The Cultural Politics in the Studio of Painted Pleasure Boat: Emperor Qianlong’s Jiangnan Imaginary and the Discourse of Power

Huafang Zhai in Beihai Garden, built by Emperor Qianlong, integrates Jiangnan literati garden sensibility with imperial ideology. Drawing on archives, poems, and scholarship, this study systematically examines its construction history, spatial usage, and literary inscriptions, identifying three dimensions: cultural appropriation of literati traditions by invoking Ouyang Xiu and Mi Fu; political self-discipline enacted through the ruler-boat analogy as a spatial medium for moral reflection and governance; and psychological reconciliation of the emperor’s inner tensions between indulgence, restraint, and conceit. The case positions Huafang Zhai beyond mere spatial transplantation, as a vehicle for Manchu power and identity in High Qing.