Sheng'an huapin 升菴畫品

Sheng'an huapin 升菴畫品, or briefly Huapin 畫品, is a book on painting written during the early Ming period by Yang Shen 楊慎 (1499-1559), who also wrote two other books on art, Mochi suolu 墨池鎖錄, and Danqian zalu 丹鉛雜錄.

The Huapin, with a length of 1 juan, is a collection of informal notes, compiled from the author's daily observations, insights on painting, and excerpts from various texts related to painters and painting practices. It contains a total of 49 entries, which are not systematically organized. However, when categorised, its content can be broadly divided into several areas. First, a section on painting theory includes the author's reflections, interpretations or elaborations based on earlier painting theories, as well as direct quotations from respected predecessors. While most entries lack originality, some offer rather perceptive critiques.

Second, the book includes records and investigations concerning the history of painting and anecdotes from the painting world. These are organized either by artist or by subject matter, briefly describing the stylistic characteristics of representative painters.

At the end of the volume, over ten inscriptions and poems composed for paintings are included—most by renowned figures such as Gong Shengyu 龔聖予, Huang Tingjian 黄庭堅 (1045-1105) or Mi Fu 米芾 (1051-1107).

The content of this book is somewhat scattered and fragmented, and some parts are rather pedantic or even ridiculous. For instance, in the section Xiezhao 寫照 "Portraiture", Yang Shen states that before the age of thirty, one should not have their portrait painted, lest it saps their vitality. Although such a notion is absurd, in some regions of China, elderly people were still reluctant to have their portraits painted. From Yang Shen’s record, it can be seen that such taboos have a long-standing origin.

The text is included in the series Hanhai 函海, Congshu jicheng chubian 叢書集成初編 and Zhongguo shuhua quanshu 中國書畫全書.