First trained as a silversmith, Ts'ai Chia later became a professional painter, calligrapher and poet. Although often linked with Yangchou's eccentric group, Ts'ai's painting represents a rather lyrical interpretation of the Ch'ing orthodox lineage, especially that of Wang Hui (1632-1717). The present set of twelve paintings depicting scholars or fishermen in landscapes are each clearly composed, carefully brushed renderings. An inscription on the last page states the work was produced in the fourth month of 1735 at a grass hut on the river.