QI BAISHI (1864-1957) Yangxian LandscapePROPERTY FROM A VERMONT COLLECTIONQI BAISHI (1864-1957)Yangxian LandscapeHanging scroll, ink and color on paper, inscribed by the artist and signed Baishi, with one artist's seal Lao Bai. 20 1/4 x 10 5/8in (51.5 x 27cm) 齊白石 陽羡山水 設色紙本 立軸款識：忽然平地生喜筍，陽羡歸來無此山。白石幷題。鈐印：老白Qi Baishi frequently painted landscapes in his sixties and seventies, using bold brushwork and at times unconventional applications of color. This depiction of the Yangxian mountains is an excellent case in point demonstrating his approach. Improbable mountains tower precipitously over small houses nestled in a valley. Both the sky and the ground are treated with a similar rosy tone the artist often used in his landscapes. The neat, crisp brushwork that delineates the houses and enclosing fence contrasts with the bold, blade-like strokes that form the hills. In many ways this landscape evokes the paintings of the monk painter Shitao (1642-c.1707), with its casual clumsiness (zhuo), innovative palette and energetic brushwork, and Qi Baishi praised the earlier artist in his writings. Although the landscape genre would diminish in favor of other subject matter in the later stages of Qi Baishi's career, examples such as this lot offer great insight to the artist's development.