A pair of pheasants in variegated colors perch atop a Tai-hu rock. A small stream languidly flows in their midst.  On the grassy slope myriad flowers compete in loveliness.  Lang Shih-ning's colors, as always, are lushly beautiful and bright.  In this painting the red and gold plummage of the male pheasant interacts with the azure blue of the garden rock, presenting the richly grand aristocratic atmosphere of the imperial garden.  Both the birds and the flowers, described with the utmost of naturalistic detail, are painted with Western techniques.  The garden rock and the grasses, however, present the particular flavor of Chinese brush-and-ink painting.  This blending of Chinese and Western methods is one of the special characteristics of Lang Shih-ning's paintings.  The painting is signed, "Servitor Lang Shih-ning respectfully paints."  There are two seals: Chen Shih-ning and kung hua.

Lang Shih-ning (Giuseppe Castiglione, 1688 - 1766) was a native of Milan, Italy.  At the age of nineteen he entered the Jesuit Order, and in 1715 traveled to China where he served as a painter to the three courts of the Emperors Kang-hsi, Yung-cheng and Chien-lung.  Before he came to China, Lang Shih-ning already possessed considerable training as a Western style painter and architect.  Utilizing naturalistic Western techniques to capture the absolute likeness of his subject's form and spirit, Lang Shih-ning's paintings gained the admiration of the emperors.  A number of the painters who served the court were influenced by his style of painting.  Lang Shih-ning introduced Western techniques of modeling with light and shadow to traditional Chinese painting.  With bright and luxurious colors that capture the eye, Lang Shih-ning painted figures, flowers, birds, dogs and horses with equal skill and success.  A number of the Ching court's most important commemorative painting as well were produced under his direction.  As a missionary, Lang Shih-ning was greatly aided in his propagation of religious teachings by his proximity to Emperor Chien-lung, and his numerous contributions in this area should also be recognized.  Lang Shih-ning was born on the twenty-second day of the sixth month of the twenty-seventh year of the Kang-hsi reign (July 19, 1688); he died in Peking at the age of seventy-nine on the tenth day of the sixth month of the thirty-first year of the Chien-lung reign (July16, 1766).  After his death the Ching court awarded him the posthumous title of Vice Minister.