Hsia Kuei

Hsia Kuei shyä gwā [key], c.1180–1230, Chinese painter of the Sung dynasty. Little is known of his life. He and his contemporary Ma Yüan were regarded as the greatest landscape painters of the day and were the founders of the so-called Ma-Hsia school of landscape painting. Hsia was especially known for his skillful use of empty spaces, which he outlined with firm, decisive strokes. Many later artists tried to recapture his style. Twelve River Views in the Nelson-Atkins Museum, Kansas City, Mo., is one of the better examples of many paintings attributed to him.

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