Bamboo and Insects

Wu Bing, a native of Piling, gained Empress Li’s favor and served as a painter-in-attendance at the court in Hangzhou during the Shaoxi reign (1190–94). The round fan painting shows a dragonfly hovering over a stalk of bamboo, a bush cricket (<em>luowei</em>) perching on a leaf, and a flying wasp. <br><br> Yellow leaf tips suggest the late summer or early autumn season. The chirping of the cricket sounds similar to the sound of a working loom; the insect is therefore also called <em>weaving lady</em> (<em>fangzhi niang</em>). The weaving season starts when the weather is about to turn cold—the cricket symbolizes early autumn.