Quizzes
Quick Facts
- Wade-Giles romanization:
- Wu Chen
- Born:
- 1280, Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, China
- Died:
- 1354 (aged 74)
- Movement / Style:
- Four Masters of the Yuan dynasty
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Wu Zhen: Fisherman
Fisherman, ink on paper handscroll by Wu Zhen, c. 1350; in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Yuan Dynasty.
Wu Zhen
Chinese painter
Also known as: Wu Chen
Wu Zhen (born 1280, Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, China—died 1354) was one of the group of Chinese painters later known as the Four Masters of the Yuan, or Mongol, dynasty (1206–1368). His fame derives particularly from his incorruptible life as a recluse (and diviner) away from the Mongol court.
Wu Zhen: FishermenFishermen, detail of a hand scroll painted in ink by Wu Zhen, 1352; in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Wu, like others of the group, sought stylistic inspiration in the past (especially from Five Dynasties masters such as Juran), but his paintings are not overwhelmingly determined by that desire. Rather, they are a combination of the new attitudes of the Yuan period with sometimes conservative tendencies traceable to the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279). Wu is generally associated with landscapes, especially scenes of fishermen.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Alicja Zelazko.
Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.
By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica
Privacy Policy
and
Terms of Use.