18 Facts About Wen Zhengming

Wen Zhengming, born Wen Bi, was a Chinese painter, calligrapher, and poet during the Ming dynasty.

Wen Zhengming was regarded as one of the Four Masters of Ming painting.

Wen Zhengming had an elder brother, Wen Gui, who was born in 1469.

When Zhengming was two years old, his father, Wen Lin, passed the imperial examination with the highest possible rank, jinshi.

Wen Zhengming Lin commissioned the noted scholar Li Dongyang to write an inscription for her tomb.

Wen Zhengming's family was originally from a line of military men who lived in Hengshan County, Hunan province.

In 1489, Wen Zhengming began studying under Shen Zhou, the eldest of the Four Masters and founder of the Wu school of painting, of which Wen himself later became a leading figure.

Zhengming's father Wen Lin died in 1499, while working as prefect of Wenzhou.

Wen Zhengming married the daughter of a high-ranking official and jinshi named Wu Yu around the year 1490.

Wen Zhengming Jia, was an artist, as was his nephew Wen Zhengming Boren.

Wen Zhengming's great-granddaughter, Wen Shu, was a popular and respected professional painter of flowers and insects.

Wen Zhengming was one of a number of Ming dynasty literati artists who set themselves in opposition to the professional, academy-influenced style favored in the region of Zhejiang.

Wen Zhengming studied under the founder of the Wu school, Shen Zhou, whose style he was deeply influenced by.

Wen Zhengming sometimes added his own poetry to Shen Zhou's paintings, thereby benefitting from the latter's established reputation.

Wen Zhengming produced works in a number of styles, and has been called a "chameleon" whose works could easily be misidentified.

Wen Zhengming's paintings were highly sought after by wealthy collectors throughout the 16th century, and counterfeits of his works were common during the late Ming.

Wen Zhengming was a prolific and well-known writer, whose poems often touched on the subject of painting.

Wen Zhengming regarded art and nature as being inseparable, and frequently wrote about and painted nature scenes, as well as private gardens such as the Humble Administrator's Garden.