Xiang Yuanbian

Place: Jiaxing

Born: 1525

Death: 1590

Biography:

Xiang Yuanbian was a Chinese Asian Antiquities artist who was born in 1525. He was a wealthy Ming-era merchant and a distinguished connoisseur and collector of painting and calligraphy. He was born to a peasant family in Taicang and moved with his family to Suzhou, where he was apprenticed as a lacquer artisan. He later learned the art of painting from the famous artist Zhou Chen and imitated ancient works of Tang and Song dynasties, becoming so successful that his copies and the originals were indistinguishable. He painted with the support of wealthy patrons, including art collectors Chen Guan, Zhou Fenglai, and Xiang Yuanbian himself. He found favor among collectors, bringing him an opportunity to copy and learn from Song and Yuan dynasty paintings in the collections of the Jiangnan area and greatly broadening his artistic scope. As his skills in painting matured, a style of his own gradually emerged and took form. He painted in the gongbi brush technique and specialized in figure, landscape, and flower subjects. His paintings are elegant and refined, and his use of the brush is meticulous and elegant. His depictions of landscapes and figures are orderly and well-proportioned, and his painting style also has the delicately graceful air of literati art. His talent and versatility allowed him to become regarded as one of the Four Masters of the Ming dynasty.