| Gong Kai(1222-ca1307), born in the latter years of the Southern Song, was an assistant of the military office in Huainan and Huaibei. Following the Mongol conquest of the Song, he became a hermit and made a modest living selling his paintings. His resentment of the Mongolian regime and its occupation was expressed indirectly through his paintings. This "Emaciated Horse" was one of his masterpieces, depicting a steed as thin as a lath, walking slowly in the twilight, with head bowed and mane fluttering in the wind. The painting conveys a sense of forlornness. Gong's horse was a metaphor for himself, and the tragic fate of this once noble and lively animal reflected his grief for a lost way of life and country. |
