Obviously this isn't a painting; it's actually a composite by Don Hong-Oai, who deploys modern photographic techniques in pursuit of the aesthetic and metaphysical ideals of traditional Chinese painting. His works evoke a surreal sense of silence and distance. Critics say Don's montages are far-fetched works of unscientific fantasy. My response: And what? He's not doing Scientific American: Special Chinese Landscape Edition; he's doing his own thing. It's not supposed to be a map of a mountain, it's supposed to be a map to your mind.

Chinese landscapes aren't even all that far-fetched, as far as I'm concerned. I spend a lot of time in nature, and I find that my region is drenched in enough (3) Natural Beauty to put any Chinese landscape artist to shame.