Zhu Derun
Yuan landscape master, poetic and serene
Zhu Derun(朱德润) (1294–1365) was a famous painter and poet of the Yuan Dynasty. His courtesy name was Zemin(泽民), and he went by the art names Suiyang Shanren(睢阳山人) and Daijie(旹杰). He was from Guide Prefecture (now Suiyang District, Shangqiu, Henan). He once held positions such as editor at the National History Institute and supervisor of Confucian studies at the Provincial Administration of the Eastern Expedition. He was highly praised by Gao Kegong, then Minister of Justice and a major figure in the painting world, as well as by the art master Zhao Mengfu, showing he was quite accomplished in his art. He was good at poetry and literature, skilled in calligraphy, and had a distinct, strong style. He specialized in landscape painting, first learning from Xu Daoning, then following Guo Xi, often creating scenes of distant mountains and rivers, and dense, serene forests. He valued observing nature and even made notes on painting while traveling north to Juyong Pass.