Ma Yuan (painter)

Ma Yuan Chinese: 馬遠; pinyin: Mǎ Yuǎn; Wade–Giles: Ma Yüan (c. 1160–65 – 1225) was a Chinese painter of the Song Dynasty. His works, together with that of Xia Gui, formed the basis of the so-called Ma-Xia (馬夏) school of painting, and are considered among the finest from the period. His works has inspired both Chinese artists of the Zhe School, as well as the great early Japanese painters Shūbun and Sesshū.

Life

Biography

Ma Yuan was born in Qiantang (now Hangzhou, Zhejiang) into a family of painters. His great grandfather Ma Fen served as painter in attendance at the Northern Song court in early 12th century, and both his grandfather Ma Xingzu and his father Ma Shirong held the same position at the Southern Song court in Hangzhou. At some point after 1189, Ma Yuan received the same position under Emperor Guangzong. He evidently enjoyed a high reputation at the court and was a favorite of Emperor Ningzong (who wrote several poems inspired by Ma Yuan's paintings); but nothing more is known about his life. He died in 1225. His son, Ma Lin, who rose to the rank of painter-in-waiting, was the last painter in the family.

Ma Yuan

Ma Yuan may refer to:

Ma Yuan (Han dynasty)

Ma Yuan (Chinese: 馬援; pinyin: Mǎ Yuán; Vietnamese: Mã Viện) (14 BC – 49 AD), known by his official title Fubo Jiangjun (伏波将军; "General who Calms the Waves"), was an ancient Chinese general of the Eastern Han dynasty. He was descended from the Warring States general Zhao She.

Life and career

Ma Yuan was a native of what is now Xingping, Shaanxi province. His family was descended from the State of Zhao. His military and political achievements included helping Emperor Guangwu unite the empire and putting down rebellions of the Trung Sisters (in Jiaozhi, modern Vietnam) and the Wulin tribes (in modern eastern Guizhou and northwestern Hunan). He fell ill during an expedition to modern Hunan in 49 AD, and died soon afterwards. Prior to that, Ma Yuan contributed to Emperor Guangwu's defeat of the warlord Wei Xiao (隗囂), who controlled the modern eastern Gansu region.

He is considered one of the more famous generals in Chinese history, not only because of his military achievements, but also because he demonstrated perseverance and respect to his friends and subordinates. In addition to his military skills, his exhortations on personal discipline were also highly regarded. His daughter became Empress Ma of Emperor Ming of Han and was also highly respected.