Dong Yuan

Dong Yuan (董源) (c. 934 – c. 962) was a Chinese painter of the Southern Tang dynasty (937–976), a period following the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. He is considered one of the most important and influential figures in the history of Chinese landscape painting.

Biography:

Little verifiable biographical information about Dong Yuan survives. It is believed he was a native of Zhongling (鍾陵, modern Nanchang, Jiangxi province). He served in the Southern Tang court as a vice envoy (副使) at the Northern Garden (北苑). It is from this position that he also became known as Dong Beiyuan (董北苑). After the Song dynasty conquered the Southern Tang in 976, Dong Yuan continued to work in the Song court for a brief period.

Artistic Style and Legacy:

Dong Yuan is celebrated for his innovative approach to landscape painting, particularly his use of cun (wrinkles or texture strokes) to create a sense of volume and depth. His characteristic cun strokes, known as pima cun (披麻皴, "hemp fiber strokes"), are loose, long, and subtly modulated, resembling the texture of unraveled hemp fibers. These strokes were revolutionary in their time and departed from the more precise, linear styles of earlier landscape painters.

Dong Yuan's paintings often depicted the misty landscapes of southern China, characterized by rolling hills, waterways, and lush vegetation. He skillfully captured the atmospheric effects of humidity and light, creating a serene and evocative mood. His works are often characterized by a sense of tranquility and harmony with nature.

His influence on later generations of painters was immense. He is considered one of the "Four Masters" of the Southern School of landscape painting, along with Juran, Mi Fu, and Gao Kegong. The Southern School emphasized spontaneous brushwork, personal expression, and the depiction of the natural beauty of southern China. Dong Yuan's techniques and aesthetic principles became foundational for this school of painting, and his style continued to be emulated and reinterpreted by artists for centuries.

Representative Works:

While few authentic works by Dong Yuan survive with certainty, several paintings are attributed to him or are considered to be in his style. These include:

• Xiao and Xiang Rivers (瀟湘圖) - Often considered his most important and influential work.
• Mountains Cleared by Rain (雨後山圖)
• Riverbank (江堤晚景圖)
• Summer Mountains (夏景山口待渡圖)