Zhongren

CHINA, Zhejiang, Shaoxing; Northern Song dynasty

Zhongren was a monk and painter from Kuaiji (present day Shaoxing, Zhejiang) and was regarded by people as the Huaguang Laoren and Huaguang Daoren for his living in Huaguangshan in Hunan. He was closely associated with monk Huihong and Huang Tingjian in exchange on poetry and painting subjects.
With an enthusiastic passion for plum blossoms, Zhongren once saw the shadows of slanting plum tree branches cast on the window by moonlight. He sketched the scene using an ink wash technique, was thus regarded as having created the first freehand plum blossom painting. He had a ritual of burning incense and meditating prior to painting, and in his paintings, he did not strive for physical resemblance, but rather sought to achieve metaphorical likenesses. Huang Tingjian once wrote a poem in praise of Zhongren’s plum blossom paintings.
Zhongren also painted orchids, landscapes, and Chan Buddhist figures. His painting entitled, Landscape of Sandy and Distant Scenery, was enhanced with an inscription by Huang Tingjian which read, “This technique is extraordinary, and if employed often, Zhongren will be crowned the nation’s best and be famed in future generations.” His painting, Plum Records of Huaguang, has been copied by later generations.