July, 1923 
59 
In their great simplicity, in the absolute elimination of non-essen~ Tang’s work was continued by his sons and contemporaries. The 
tials lies the charm Mid the rare artistry of these iron pictures eight shown at the tops of these pages are by an unknown artist 
plied their boats up and down the streams. 
Evening after evening when his work was 
done, Tang left his forge and sought Sung's 
home. He watched the strong deft strokes 
of his friend’s brush and one evening he 
broke the silence with a wistful statement. 
“I wish I could make something beauti¬ 
ful as you do,” he exclaimed. 
“You can’t” said his friend shortly. “See 
your clumsy hands! You are only a black¬ 
smith.” 
That night Tang went home with a dar¬ 
ing purpose. He procured brushes and 
paper. His hand guided by the pent-up 
ambition of his soul drew strong outlines 
of crude beauty. He deserted his forge. 
His work commanded notice. His artist 
neighbors smiled, then wondered and 
grudgingly admired. Tang, the blacksmith, 
could paint! 
His skill increased until his work sur¬ 
passed that of his neighbors on the street 
of the painters. His fame as a portrayer 
of landscapes, grass, insects, flowers and 
bamboo lives to this day. Few of. his 
paintings have survived. The larger ones 
have been lost. Some of the smaller ones 
are still prized by their fortunate owners. 
Tang’s neighbors grew jealous. .Their 
tongues became malicious. Tang was dis¬ 
gusted. “He closed his doors to his proud 
{Continued on page 92) 
{ B e 1 0 w ) 
Chrysanthe¬ 
mums, an au¬ 
tumn panel 
A Tang panel, 
made of three 
units 
