Cui Bai
Innovative realistic Northern Song flower-bird painter
Cui Bai (exact birth and death dates unknown), courtesy name Zixi, was from Haoliang (now Fengyang, Anhui) and was a painter during the Northern Song dynasty in China. Cui Bai was already well-known during Emperor Renzong's reign. In 1065, the second year of Emperor Yingzong's Zhiping era, the wall paintings of Xiangguo Temple collapsed due to rising water in the Bian River. Cui Bai, along with Li Yuanji, helped repair and repaint the murals. He painted works in the east corridor of Xiangguo Temple, including the Nine Planet Sitting Deities and the Radiant Buddha, earning praise from people at the time. At the beginning of Emperor Shenzong's Xining period (1068–1077), he was ordered to paint folding screens in the Chuigong Hall together with Ai Xuan, Ding Kuan, Ge Shouchang, and others. Cui Bai’s painting skills were outstanding, gaining the emperor’s appreciation. He was appointed to the Painting Academy, and during the Yuanfeng period (1078–1085), he was promoted to an official position waiting for imperial orders. Cui Bai excelled at painting flowers and birds, with a strong ability in realistic depiction. His work "Cold Sparrows" reflects a departure from the calm and rich style that dominated Northern Song flower-and-bird paintings, showing that court flower-and-bird painting had entered a new aesthetic stage. Cui Bai’s innovative style changed the century-long dominance of the Huang Quan school and advanced the development of Song dynasty flower-and-bird painting. Some of Cui Bai’s artworks include "Huizhuang Watching Fish" and "Xie An in Dongshan," with "Double Happiness" still surviving today.