“The Ink Is Sparse—Exhibition of High-Quality Reproductions by Bada Shanren” is being held at the Yichun Art Museum. You’re welcome to come and visit!

Eight Great Mountains, whose real name was Zhu Da, was a descendant of the Ming royal family and the ninth-generation grandson of Zhu Quan, the Prince Xian of Ning—the sixteenth son of Emperor Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang. He was an outstanding master of calligraphy and painting during the late Ming and early Qing periods in China. He was born in Nanchang in 1626. From an early age, he received a thorough artistic education from his family and displayed remarkable talent. According to Chen Ding’s “Eight Great Mountains” from the Qing dynasty, the artist was “independent and aloof, exceptionally gifted and extraordinary. By the age of eight, he could already compose poetry; he excelled in calligraphy and seal carving, and was particularly skilled in painting.” In 1644, when the Qing army entered the pass and the Ming dynasty fell, the former prince suddenly found himself “wandering aimlessly like a dog that has lost its master.” At the young age of nineteen, Eight Great Mountains went into hiding in the forests and countryside under an assumed name, eventually taking monastic vows and becoming a monk in the mountains of Fengxin. Endowed with exceptional intelligence, after entering the Buddhist faith, he “within just a few years rose to become a renowned master” (as stated by Shao Changheng of the Qing dynasty). Yet, despite the purity and tranquility of the Zen monastery, he could not quell the deep-seated anger and frustration within him. At the age of fifty-four, in Linchuan, Eight Great Mountains suddenly fell into madness: at times he would burst into loud laughter, at other times he would weep bitterly. He even tore his monastic robe to shreds and threw it into the fire before returning to Nanchang. At fifty-seven, he “resolutely grew his hair back and resolved to start a family,” leaving the monastic life behind and earning a living by selling his paintings. He passed away in 1705 at Wuge Caotang in Nanchang.