Wang Mian

CHINA, Zhejiang, Shaoxing; Yuan dynasty

Wang Mian, also known by the names of Yuanzhang or Zhushi Shannong, was a painter and poet from Zhuji, Shaoxing. He grew up on a farm, herding cattle during the day, and going to the temple to study at night. Although he enjoyed traveling, he later lived in seclusion in Jiulishan.
Wang was adept in painting, calligraphy, and seal engraving. His paintings of bamboo, rocks, and particularly plum blossoms, are considered outstanding. Following the styles of works by Seng Zhongren and Yang Wujiu, he later created the “boneless” painting technique by using dots of vermilion as petals for his plum blossoms. Zhu Fang’ai praised his plum blossoms and proclaimed that Wang “started a new era of dense composition with rich and lively flowers.”
Paintings by Wang include Plum Tree for Liang Zuo, now kept at the Palace Museum in Beijing; Plum Tree, at the Shanghai Museum; and Early Spring on the Southern Branch, at the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan.