A garden rock dominates the foreground spit of land from which rise several clumps of bamboo, filling the middle and upper portion of the picture. Limited pictorial space is suggested by overlapping elements and by the mist that forms the back ground of the work and from which the forms emerge. This approach focuses all attention on the subject, “Bamboo and Rock,” and emphasizes the artist’s creative vision.
Cheng Shih-tung is not recorded in standard biographies, but the skill with which he created this image suggests that he was a professional artist, probably active during the 18th century judging on the basis of style.