Hanging scrolls provide a vertical format to display art on walls. They are one of the most common types of scrolls for Chinese painting and calligraphy. They are made in many different sizes and proportions. Horizontal hanging scrolls are also a common form.
Hanging scrolls are different from the handscrolls. A handscroll is a long narrow scroll for displaying a series of scenes in Chinese painting. It intended to be viewed section for section, flat on a table, during its unrolling. In contrast, a hanging scroll is appreciated in its entirety.
Besides the previous styles of hanging scroll mountings, there are a few additional ways to format the hanging scroll.
Chinese mounting and conservation techniques are considered a traditional craft and are believed to have developed around 2,000 years ago. This craft is considered an art unto itself. Careful attention was and still is paid to ensure the quality and variety of the silk and paper to protect and properly fit the artwork onto the mounting, as it gives form to the art. The art is fixed onto a four-sided inlay, made from paper or silk, thus providing a border.
Traditional scroll mounters go through a lengthy process of backing the mounting silks with paper using paste before creating the borders for the scroll. Afterwards, the whole scroll is backed before the roller and fittings are attached. The whole process can take two weeks to nine months depending on how long the scroll is left on the wall to dry and stretch before finishing by polishing the back with Chinese wax and fitting the rod and roller at either end. This process is generally called 'wet mounting' due to the use of wet paste in the process.
In the late 20th century a new method was created called 'dry mounting' which involves the use of heat activated silicone sheets in lieu of paste which reduced the amount of time from a few weeks to just a few hours. This new method is generally used for mass-produced artwork rather than serious art or conservation as mounting done this way tends not to be as robust as wet mounting whose scrolls can last for over a century before it requires remounting.
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"Technical Aspects of Painting". Retrieved 15 August 2011. http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgtech.htm
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"Technical Aspects of Painting". Retrieved 15 August 2011. http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgtech.htm
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Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
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Qu, Lei Lei (2008). The simple art of Chinese brush painting. New York: Sterling. pp. 58–9. ISBN 978-1-4027-5391-6. 978-1-4027-5391-6
Qu, Lei Lei (2008). The simple art of Chinese brush painting. New York: Sterling. pp. 58–9. ISBN 978-1-4027-5391-6. 978-1-4027-5391-6
Qu, Lei Lei (2008). The simple art of Chinese brush painting. New York: Sterling. pp. 58–9. ISBN 978-1-4027-5391-6. 978-1-4027-5391-6
Qu, Lei Lei (2008). The simple art of Chinese brush painting. New York: Sterling. pp. 58–9. ISBN 978-1-4027-5391-6. 978-1-4027-5391-6
Qu, Lei Lei (2008). The simple art of Chinese brush painting. New York: Sterling. pp. 58–9. ISBN 978-1-4027-5391-6. 978-1-4027-5391-6
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Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
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Dillon, Michael (1998). China: A historical and cultural dictionary. Richmond: Curzon. p. 273. ISBN 978-0-7007-0439-2. 978-0-7007-0439-2
"Technical Aspects of Painting". Retrieved 15 August 2011. http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgtech.htm
"立軸". National Palace Museum. Retrieved 16 August 2011. http://www.npm.gov.tw/dm/album/htm/note004.htm
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
"A Look at Chinese Painting". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 14 August 2011. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Chinese/html_pages/glossary.htm#thirty
Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
"A Look at Chinese Painting". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 14 August 2011. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Chinese/html_pages/glossary.htm#thirty
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ
Spielvogel, Jackson J.; Duiker, William J. (2010). The essential world history, Volume 1: To 1800 (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning. p. 258. ISBN 978-0-495-90291-1. 978-0-495-90291-1
Lee, Valerie; Gu, Xiangmei; Hou, Yuan-Li (2003). "The treatment of Chinese ancestor portraits: An introduction to Chinese painting conservation techniques". Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. 42 (3): 463–477. doi:10.2307/3179868. JSTOR 3179868. http://cool.conservation-us.org/jaic/articles/jaic42-03-007.html
Sze, Mai-Mai (1957). The Tao of painting. Taylor & Francis. pp. 62–65. Retrieved 15 August 2011. https://books.google.com/books?id=zJ89AAAAIAAJ