Born in Suchou, Ch'ien was orphaned at an early age and had little formal education until he became a pupil of the great literatus, Wen Cheng-ming. He evolved into an avid book collector and gained a reputation as a fine poet. While Ch'ien often painted in Wen's style, his personal approach is recorded as having been derived more from that of Wen's teacher and friend Shen Chou, the legendary founder of the Wu school.
Shen's style, defined by simple blunt brushwork, clear compositions, and transparent mineral colors is clearly evident in these landscapes by Ch'ien. The remaining four leaves of this album are in a private Chinese collection.