Su Hanchen
Master of vibrant, detailed infant paintings
Su Hancheng (1094–1172) was from Bianjing (now Kaifeng, Henan) and was a painter during the Northern Song dynasty. During the Xuanhe years of Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song (1119–1125), he served as a painter in the imperial painting academy. After the Southern Song was established, he resumed his position under Emperor Gaozong during the Shaoxing period (1131–1162), and in the early years of Emperor Xiaozong's Longxing era (1163), he was appointed as Chengxin Lang. Su Hancheng had worked as a painter in the Xuanhe imperial academy of the Northern Song and, after moving south, resumed his role. During the early Longxing period, his Buddhist paintings were highly praised, and he was appointed Chengxin Lang. He was a student of Liu Zonggu and excelled in painting Taoist and Buddhist subjects as well as figures, with a particular talent for painting infants. His scenes of street vendors were especially notable for their detailed depiction and abundance of goods. He studied under Liu Zonggu of the imperial painting academy. His paintings of people, scholars, women, and Buddhist and Taoist themes were meticulously executed with vibrant colors. He was particularly skilled at depicting playful scenes of babies and street vendors, with lifelike expressions. His surviving works include 'Autumn Courtyard Playing with Baby,' 'Five Auspicious Scenes,' 'Playing Music,' and 'Babies at Play.'