Wu Zhen (1280-1354 C.E.) was a painter during the Yuan dynasty

Yuan Dynasty

The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...

 of China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. He followed the Dong Yuan

Dong Yuan

Dong Yuan was a Chinese painter.He was born in Zhongling . Dong Yuan was active in the Southern Tang Kingdom of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period...

school of painting. Following along with trends of the time, Wu's works tended less toward naturalism (i.e. painting exactly what the eye sees) and more toward abstraction, focusing on dynamic balance of elements, and personifying nature. His painting The Central Mountain, dated 1336, is perhaps his greatest work and shows his style very clearly. It is a symmetrical image, with one large mountain in its center and others to each side. The mountains have rounded tops, and in fact all of Wu's lines in this painting are smooth, curved and flowing. The painting is a reinterpretation of traditional landscape paintings as it brings abstract style and brushwork to landscape, primarily to create a work focused on balance.

External links

• Wu Zhen and his Painting Gallery at China Online Museum