Yang Wencong
Blended Song strength with Yuan elegance
Yang Wencong(楊文驄) (1596–1646), styled Longyou(龍友), also known as Shanzi(山子), Xuezhai(雪齋), Along(阿龍), and Hechao(鶴巢), was from Guizhou and a painter during the Ming dynasty. He lived for a time in Jinling (now Nanjing). In the 47th year of the Wanli era (1619), he passed the provincial examination, but failed the metropolitan exam six times. In the 7th year of the Chongzhen era (1634), he was appointed as a teacher in Huating County and later served as magistrate in Qingtian, Jiangning, and Yongjia. He was impeached by the censor Zhan Zhaoheng and consequently removed from office. Yang Wencong was well-educated and loved antiquities, and he was good at painting landscapes. He was one of the 'Nine Friends in Painting.' Born in Guizhou, he broke new ground with his art. His paintings of lotus and other subjects carried the strength of Song masters without their stiffness and the elegance of Yuan painters without their ostentation, blending the styles of Juran and Huichong.