Xuanhe Painting Academy

Timeline

1. 1100–1110Hanlin Painting Academy, Bianjing · Henan ProvinceAfter acceding to the throne, Emperor Huizong reorganized the Hanlin Painting Academy, raised painters' status, instituted an examination-based admission system, and made painting a core part of court culture, laying the foundation for the Xuanhe Painting Academy.
2. 1111–1120Xuanhe Painting Academy (Bianjing) · Henan ProvinceDuring the Xuanhe era, academy painters such as Zhang Zeduan and Wang Ximeng created masterpieces like Along the River During the Qingming Festival and A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains; Huizong personally wrote the Xuanhe Catalogue of Paintings; the academy's flower-and-bird and landscape styles were refined and splendid, representing the highest achievement of Northern Song court painting.
3. 1125–1127Bianjing · Henan ProvinceThe Jin invasion and the Jingkang Incident led to the fall of Bianjing; the Xuanhe Painting Academy collapsed with the Northern Song court, painters dispersed, imperial paintings and calligraphy were largely lost, and the academy style tradition was partly inherited by the Southern Song painting academy.