Lu Zhongyuan

CHINA, Zhejiang, Ningbo; Yuan dynasty

Lu Zhongyuan was a painter born in Yinxian (present day Ningbo, Zhejiang). With the eastward spread of Buddhism, there was a rising demand for Buddhist art. Lu was among the several Chinese artists, including Lu Xinzhong and Jin Dashou, whose works were highly sought after and brought to Japan to be used as samples for making Buddhist paintings.
Lu’s paintings of King Taishan, King Yama, and King Zhuanlun are now kept in the Nara National Museum and are regarded as Important Cultural Properties. Two of these works, which bear his signature, are comparable in style with the Ten Kings of Hell painted by Lu Xinzhong. Because both artists carry the same family name, Lu, they are believed to have been related to one another.