Li Tang (painter) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Li Tang
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Wind in the Pines Among a Myriad Valleys (1124)
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| Born | ca.1050 China
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| Died | 1130 |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Known for | Painting |
| Movement | Southern Song Dynasty |
Li Tang (Chinese: 李唐; pinyin: Lǐ Táng; Wade–Giles: Li T'ang, also known as Xigu; around 1050 – 1130) was a very important landscape painter from China. He lived during the Song Dynasty. Li Tang worked in cities like Kaifeng and Hangzhou. He was a key artist who connected older painting styles with newer ones. He also made a special painting technique called "axe-cut" brushstrokes very popular.
Contents
Li Tang's Life Story
Li Tang was born around 1050 in a place called Heyang County. From a young age, he used his painting skills to earn a living.
After 1100, during the time of Emperor Huizong, Li Tang became a top painter. He worked at the Painting Academy in the capital city, Bianjing (which is now Kaifeng).
He lived through a big invasion by the Jurchen Jin dynasty in 1126 and 1127. After this, the court moved to Qiantang (now Hangzhou). This city became the new capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. Li Tang continued to work as a painter for the new emperor, Emperor Gaozong. He passed away around 1130.
His Unique Art Style
Li Tang was one of the most influential landscape artists of the early Southern Song period. Many other artists learned from him. He was a crucial link between the painters of the Northern Song school, like Guo Xi and Fan Kuan, and later Southern Song artists such as Xia Gui and Ma Yuan. Both Xia Gui and Ma Yuan studied Li Tang's art closely.
Li Tang developed and perfected a special painting method called "axe-cut" brushstrokes. This technique made rocks and mountains in his paintings look very detailed and real.
Famous Painting: "Wind in Pines Among a Myriad Valleys"
Like many artists from the Song Dynasty, only a few of Li Tang's paintings still exist today. Also, it's sometimes hard to be sure if a painting was really done by him.
However, a large hanging scroll called Wind in Pines Among a Myriad Valleys is very special. It is also known as Whispering Pines in the Mountains. This painting is kept at the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan. It is the only painting that has a clear signature from Li Tang himself. His signature is on one of the mountain peaks at the top. It says: "Painted by Li Tang of Ho-yang in Spring of the chia-ch'en year of the Hsüan-ho Reign of the Great Song [Dynasty]." The way the rocks are painted in this artwork is a perfect example of his famous "axe-cut" strokes technique.
Other Paintings Attributed to Li Tang
Other artworks that are often believed to be by Li Tang include Intimate Scenery of River and Mountains. This is a long landscape scroll. Another is Sitting on Rocks Gazing at the Mist. Both of these paintings are also held at the National Palace Museum.
See also
In Spanish: Li Tang para niños
