Caricatures of Life

The compositions of in all four scrolls are simple and devoid of background, a common treatment Qi employed when painting from life, which fully expressed Qi Baishi's love of nature. Shrimps and Crabs display Qi's familiarity with their form and structure, while Chicks and Rabbits are rendered in fine and delicate lines, with different densities of black ink to capture their spongy plumage and fur respectively. The worm held in one chick's beak is indicative of the playfulness Qi maintained in his caricatures of village life, indicative of his preference for a simple life as well as reminiscing his childhood memories.