A still from Serenade of Peaceful Joy features a screen painted with a landscape painting of the Song Dynasty in the background. [Photo/douban.com]

Song painting

When it comes to masterpieces in ancient Chinese painting, no connoisseurs would avoid mentioning Along the River During the Qingming Festival (Qingming Shanghe Tu) or A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains (Qian Li Jiang Shan Tu).

Both were created during the Song Dynasty, an era in which, as many scholars believe, Chinese painting reached its pinnacle, with Huizong (1082-1135), the eighth Song emperor, an accomplished painter himself and also a patron of the arts.

A still from Serenade of Peaceful Joy shows a Song Dynasty flower-and-bird painting hung on the wall for decoration. [Photo/douban.com]

With the prevalent aesthetic in that period emphasizing being true to the physical world, landscape and portrait paintings all come across as highly descriptive and even realistic.

In the drama, landscape paintings and portraits of auspicious animals are placed on walls or used as screens, giving an artistic and animated air to the palace's décor.

A poster for the costume drama Serenade of Peaceful Joy features a part of a landscape painting of the Song Dynasty. [Photo/douban.com]