early life and background ni zan, a renowned chinese painter, was born in 1301 into a wealthy family in wuxi. his courtesy name was yuan zhen (元鎮), and his art names were yun lin zi (雲林子), huan xia sheng (幻霞生), and jing man min (荊蠻民). despite being born after the death of kublai khan, ni zan's family could afford a rigorous confucian education for him. artistic style and contributions ni zan is considered one of the four masters of the yuan dynasty, alongside huang gongwang, wu zhen, and wang meng. his paintings, characterized by ink-monochrome landscapes with widely separated riverbanks, for…