Artists › Painters and Calligraphers
Guo Zhongshu
Painter and philologist of the late Five Dynasties and early Song, known for ruled architecture, who died on the way into exile in 977
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 Zi Shuxian
Guo Zhongshu, courtesy name Shuxian, was a painter and scholar of ancient scripts from Luoyang. Under the Later Zhou he was made assistant in the Court of the Imperial Clan and professor of calligraphy at the Imperial Academy, but was demoted after a quarrel at court. Emperor Taizong of Song later made him a registrar of the Imperial Academy; given to drink and reckless talk, he was flogged and banished to Dengzhou in 977 and died on the road at Linyi in Qizhou. He was best known for ruled-line paintings of buildings and wrote the script dictionaries Peixi and Hanjian. Clearing after Snow on the River in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is attributed to him.
Life and times
Dates Birth date unknown; died 977 CE