Yuan dynasty landscape painting

Timeline

1. 1280–1340Dadu, Wuxing · JiangnanZhao Mengfu advocated 'painting and calligraphy share the same origin' and archaist landscape; Huang Gongwu, Wu Zhen, and others formed in Jiangnan a literati landscape language characterized by dry-brush ink and hemp-fiber texture strokes, breaking away from the academic fine-line formula.
2. 1351–1360Songjiang, Wuxi, Jiaxing · JiangnanAfter the Red Turban uprising Jiangnan was in turmoil; Ni Zan wandered the lakes and seas, expressing thoughts of displacement in simple, sparse 'one water, two banks' landscapes, while Wang Meng used dense texture strokes to depict secluded mountain dwellings; the styles of the Four Masters of the Yuan took shape and spread amid the troubled times.
3. 1368–1501Suzhou · JiangnanAfter the founding of the Ming, the Jiangnan economy recovered; Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming, and others inherited the brush-and-ink tradition of the Four Masters of the Yuan, bringing the combination of poetry, calligraphy, painting, and seal to new heights, making Yuan landscape the orthodox source of literati painting.
4. 1601Various places in China · ChinaDong Qichang regarded the Four Masters of the Yuan as the orthodox Southern School, establishing a theoretical paradigm for literati landscape; his copies and colophons circulated in Japan, Korea, and modern East Asian art history, making Yuan landscape a core classic of Chinese traditional painting.