Wu Daozi
~680-760 CE · Chinese (Tang Dynasty) · Tang Dynasty
Known for: The greatest painter of the Tang Dynasty - 'the Sage of Painting' - whose 300+ temple murals defined Chinese art
Wu Daozi painted over 300 murals in temples and palaces with speed and confidence that astonished observers. According to legend, he painted a scene so realistic that he walked into it and disappeared. Almost none of his work survives, but his revolutionary brushwork defined Chinese painting for centuries.
He was an orphan who rose through talent alone to become court painter to Emperor Xuanzong.
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