Ma Quan (, dates unknown),

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Jiangxiang (), was a

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

painter who lived during the late 17th–18th centuries, specialising in

bird and flower painting Bird-and-flower painting, called () in Chinese, is a kind of Chinese painting with a long tradition in China and is considered one of the treasures of Chinese culture. The was named after its subject matter. It originated in the Tang dynasty w ...

. As a female artist who sold her paintings, Ma's art style is markedly different from both that of the imperial court and contemporary "talented young ladies" ().

Biography

Little information exists on Ma Quan's life, but sources suggest that she was born in

Changshu Changshu (; Suzhounese: /d͡ʐan¹³ ʐoʔ²³/) is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, and is part of the Yangtze River Delta. It borders the prefecture-level city of Nantong to the northeast across the Yangt ...

and was either the daughter or granddaughter of the artist-scholar Ma Yuanyu. In later life, Ma suffered from blindness, and her students' paintings were sold with her signature. She made

s to sell when she and her husband encountered financial difficulties. Gradually, her paintings became so popular that other people prepared the paint for her to allow her to make more works faster. In her later years, she was compared favourably to

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

artists like

Shen Zhou Shen Zhou (, 1427–1509), courtesy names Qinan () and Shitian (), was a Chinese painting, Chinese painter in the Ming dynasty. He lived during the post-transition period of the Yuan conquest of the Ming. His family worked closely with the gove ...

, and many people in Changshu, particularly women, sought her out to request tuition, including an artist who would later gain fame, Jiang Lixi ().

Art

Ma's subjects include butterflies, bees, and dragonflies, with modern critics identifying her brushwork as very controlled producing particularly fine strokes. She mainly painted flowers and birds seen in an ordinary garden, contrasting with the paintings of the imperial court. To one painting of chrysanthemums, Ma added a poem about how she has no place to plant such flowers but can tend them with her brush. In comparison with Ma Yuanyu, Ma Quan's works have been described as similarly realist, but capable of conveying an aesthetic essence. The later Qing artist Tai Zuyong () described her paintings as having alluring brushwork of serene interest. Ma was strongly influenced by

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

art styles, which she expresses in her frequent tags that an image had been painted in the "style of the Song". Ma's paintings have been compared with those of Yun Bing (), another female artist in the

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

region and the aunt of

Yun Zhu Yun Zhu (惲珠) or Wanglan Yun Zhu (惲珠畫像) aka Adept of the Lotus Lake (29 July 1771 – 1 June 1833) was a Qing dynasty poet, painter, anthologist and moralist. She gathered together thousands of poems written by hundreds of women. Life S ...

. Whilst Yun was known for her skill in painting subjects without outlines (), Ma was skilled at creating paintings with defined silhouettes ().

Gallery

Chinese Bulbul, Ma Quan.jpg, ''The White Head's Honour and Glory'' (白头荣贵图), Tianjin Museum Colored Flower, Ma Quan, Shenzhen Museum.jpg, ''Flower Painted on a Folded Leaf'' (设色花卉折页）, Shenzhen Museum 清傳馬荃花蝶圖卷-Flowers and Butterflies MET DP203085.jpg, ''Flowers and Butterflies'' (花蝶圖),

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

Grapes and mantis, Ma Quan, Hunan Museum.jpg, ''Grapes and Mantis'' (葡萄螳螂图),

Hunan Museum The Hunan Museum () is the provincial museum of Hunan, China. It was built in 1951 and opened to the public in July 1956. It is located in the provincial capital Changsha at No. 50, Dongfeng Lu next to the Revolutionary Martyr's Park. It spans a ...

References

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Biography

Art

Gallery

References

Bibliography

See also