Dong Boren

CHINA, Henan, Zhumadian; Western Wei dynasty

Dong Boren, a native of Runan, Zhumadian, was also known as Zhihai. He was a painter who at one point in his life served as both the Imperial Minister of State and Palace Security General in the imperial court. Renowned for his paintings of pavilions, he was also regarded as a skilled painter of figures and carriages in addition to Buddhist images.
Dong was regarded alongside Zhan Ziqian, and together they were known as Dong Zhan. Famous Paintings in History commented that Dong’s depictions of horses and carriages are on par with the works of Zhan, however, Zhan’s skill in painting pavilions cannot even be compared with Dong’s. It was also recorded that Dong once painted murals on the West Hall of Chongsheng Temple in Shaanxi, as well as the Guangyan Temple in Henan. Several of Dong’s paintings, including Illustration of Maitreya, Pavilions in Mixed Patterns, and Farmer’s Fields and Houses, were documented in Painting Annals of the Zhenguan Period.