Artists › Painters and Calligraphers
Zhan Ziqian
Painter from Bohai who served the Northern Qi, Northern Zhou and Sui; Spring Outing in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is attributed to him
A desk holds an unrolled sheet bearing three bold black ink strokes, with a rack of many brushes above it, a stone ink slab and ink stick, a porcelain bowl, a red lacquer box, a dish of red seal paste and a paperweight; a small seated figure shows through a round window onto bamboo.
Also known as Grand Master Zhan Ziqian
Zhan Ziqian came from Bohai, near today's Yangxin in Shandong; his dates are unknown. Zhang Yanyuan's Record of Famous Painters of All the Dynasties says he served the Northern Qi and Northern Zhou and under the Sui held the ranks of grand master for court audiences and commander of the guard, and it lists works such as a Lotus Sutra transformation scene, Carriages, Horses and Figures of Chang'an and The Last Northern Qi Ruler Visiting Jinyang, none of which survive. He painted figures, horses, buildings and landscapes. The silk handscroll Spring Outing in the Palace Museum, Beijing, carries a title slip by Emperor Huizong of Song naming him, but most scholars regard it as a later copy; it remains a key example of early blue-and-green landscape.
Life and times
Dates Dates unknown; served the Northern Qi, Northern Zhou and Sui, active in the later 6th century and under the Sui