Chapter 51 Ma Yuan

Ma Yuan is called "Ma Yijiao", and Xia Gui is called "Xia Banbian", and is regarded as the representative of the so-called "remnant mountains and remaining water" in the paintings of the Southern Song Dynasty's half-walled rivers and mountains.Together with Li Tang, Liu Songnian and Xia Gui, they are collectively known as the "Four Masters of the Southern Song Dynasty". Ma Yuan is a painting handed down from his family. His great-grandfather Ma Ben, grandfather Ma Xingzu, uncle Ma Gongxian, father Ma Shirong, brother Ma Kui and son Ma Lin are all painters in the Academy of Painting.Ma Yuan is the most outstanding of them.His landscape imitation is Li Tang, who uses an ax to break the cracks, and uses square edges and thin hard brushes. Trees and stones are mostly made of scorched ink, and the branches and leaves are clamped with brushes.There are not many large-scale panoramic landscapes. "Ge Gu Yao Lun" says that his small paintings "may be steep peaks go straight up without seeing their tops, or cliffs go straight down without seeing their feet, or near mountains are towering while distant mountains are low, or lonely boats are floating on the moon and alone. Sitting alone, this corner of the scene also."Ma Yuan's landscape paintings are unique in style and full of poetic flavor.Painted water can show various forms in different environments and climates, and is called "living water".

Ma Yuan is also good at painting flowers, birds and figures.His flower and bird works are good at depicting the wild expressions of flowers and birds in the natural environment.The characters in the paintings are drawn from a wide range of materials, and most of them are Buddhists, nobles, literati, fishermen, farmers, etc. They are elegant and dignified, full of air. Ma Yuan had a great influence at that time and was known as a unique painting academy. Together with Li Tang, Liu Songnian and Xia Gui, he was called "Four Great Masters of the Southern Song Dynasty", and together with Xia Gui, he was called "Ma Xia".There are "Pictures of Stepping Songs", "Pictures of Water", "Pictures of Puddles on the Plum River", "Pictures of Elegant Collections in the West Garden", "Portraits of Confucius", "Landscapes in Spring", "Pictures of Two Herons on the Snow Beach", "Pictures of Viewing Plums in Snow Clogs" and so on.