Wu Zhen

Wu Zhen (1280–1354), art name the Taoist of the Plum Blossom, was a Yuan-dynasty painter born at Weitang near Jiaxing in Zhejiang, one of the Four Masters of the Yuan. Educated in philosophy and swordsmanship, he chose the quiet life of an artist.

His paintings initially sold poorly. He supported himself by fortune-telling while painter friends taught him their craft. He took the tenth-century monk Juran as his model and became a master of moist-ink landscape in long hemp-fibre strokes, as well as ink bamboo and pines; his bold, saturated ink style influenced later painters.