Chinese, 8th century, male. Born 699, in Tiayuan; died 759. Painter. Wang Wei was a celebrated poet and painter whose genius blossomed in the reign of the emperor Tang Xuanzong (712-756). He was a typical representative of the golden age of the Tang civilisation at its height. He won prizes in imperial competitions and was a scholar poet who shared the tastes of his age for music, calligraphy and painting, excelling in each of these arts. He is reputed to have been the creator of monochrome painting and the greatest of the landscape poets. Born into a family of civil servants in the province of Shaanxi, the precocity of his talents attracted the attention of the court. In 721 he obtained the post of administrator of the imperial music, but he was dismissed for a minor misdemeanour and moved to the country. He returned to the capital in 734, only to be caught unawares by the revolt of An Lushan. He was taken prisoner and subsequently accused of treason. In spite of this, he attained the prestigious position of ...