This is the story of Xu Wei, the tragic genius who has been likened to China’s Van Gogh.
徐渭是明朝的一位著名画家、诗人和剧作家。他1521年出生在浙江绍兴，从小就非常聪明，很有才华。但是他的一生充满了痛苦和不幸。
徐渭年轻的时候，非常希望通过科举考试，为国家做官。但是他一共考了八次，每次都失败了。在那个时代，科举考试对一个人的人生非常重要。考不上，就意味着没有地位，没有前途。这对徐渭打击很大。
后来，徐渭成为了一位有名的将军胡宗宪的幕僚，帮助他处理重要的事情。但是好景不长，胡宗宪后来被朝廷判罪处死。徐渭非常害怕自己也会受到牵连，精神开始出现问题。他的状态越来越差，最终精神崩溃。在那段最黑暗的时间里，他多次试图结束自己的生命，据说前后共尝试了九次。后来，他在精神失常的状态下杀死了自己的妻子，因此被关进监狱，一共坐了七年牢。
出狱以后，徐渭已经是一个老人了。他非常贫穷，生活十分艰难。但是他没有停止创作。他的画风非常独特，笔法自由奔放，充满感情，和当时其他画家的风格完全不同。他最喜欢画植物和蔬菜，比如葡萄、荷花、竹子。他的画看起来很随意，但是每一笔都充满力量和生命力。
徐渭晚年过得非常凄凉。他没有钱，没有家人，据说只有一只狗陪伴着他。他去世的时候，身边几乎什么都没有。
但是，他死后，人们慢慢开始认识到他的伟大。后来的画家郑板桥说，他愿意做徐渭的书童，只为了能够靠近这样的天才。二十世纪最伟大的画家之一齐白石说，他曾经因为徐渭的画而流泪，因为那些画实在太好了。
徐渭的一生充满了失败、痛苦和悲剧。但是他留下的艺术作品，影响了中国画坛几百年。有人说他像中国的梵高——在世的时候没有人真正理解他，死后却成为了永远的传奇。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 科举考试 | kējǔ kǎoshì | imperial examination |
| 幕僚 | mùliáo | personal advisor/staff member |
| 牵连 | qiānlián | to implicate/to involve |
| 精神崩溃 | jīngshén bēngkuì | mental breakdown |
| 奔放 | bēnfàng | bold and unrestrained |
| 凄凉 | qīliáng | bleak/desolate |
| 书童 | shūtóng | book boy/study servant |
| 画坛 | huàtán | painting circles/art world |
| 传奇 | chuánqí | legend/legendary |
| 徐 | xū | slow; gentle; surname Xu |
| 渭 | ||
| 是 | shì | to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4] |
| 明朝 | Míng cháo | Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) |
| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to… |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 位 | wèi | position; location; place; seat; classifier for people (honorific); classifier for binary bits (e.g. 十六位 16-bit or 2 bytes); (physics) potential |
| 著名 | zhù míng | famous; noted; well-known; celebrated |
| 画家 | huà jiā | painter; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 诗人 | shī rén | bard; poet |
| 和 | hé | old variant of 和[he2]; surname He; (literary) harmonious (variant of 和[he2]) |
| 剧 | jǔ | theatrical work (play, opera, TV series etc); acute |
| 作家 | zuò jiā | author; CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4] |
| 他 | tā | (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2]) |
| 年 | Nián | surname Nian; grain; harvest (old); variant of 年[nian2] |
| 出生 | chū shēng | to be born |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) |
| 浙 | ||
| 江 | Jiāng | surname Jiang; (bound form) Yangtze River; (bound form) Jiangsu Province (abbr. for 江蘇|江苏[Jiang1 su1]) |
| 绍 | Shào | surname Shao |
| 兴 | Xīng | surname Xing |
| 从小 | cóng xiǎo | from childhood; from a young age |
| 就 | jìu | (after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as; immediately after; (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely; nothing else but; simply; just; precise… |
| 非常 | fēi cháng | very; really; unusual; extraordinary |
| 聪明 | cōng ming | intelligent; clever; bright; acute (of sight and hearing) |
| 很 | hěn | very; quite; (also, often used before an adjective without intensifying its meaning, i.e. as a meaningless syntactic element) |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 才华 | cái huá | talent; CL:份[fen4] |
| 但 | dàn | but; yet; however; still; merely; only; just |
| 一生 | yī shēng | all one's life; throughout one's life |
| 充 | chong | sufficient; full; to serve as; to act as |
| 满 | Mǎn | Manchu ethnic group |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 痛 | tòng | ache; pain; sorrow; deeply; thoroughly |
| 苦 | kǔ | bitter; hardship; pain; to suffer; to bring suffering to; painstakingly |
| 不幸 | bù xìng | misfortune; adversity; unfortunate; sad; unfortunately; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 年轻 | nián qīng | young |
| 时 | shí | old variant of 時|时[shi2]; surname Shi |
| 候 | hòu | to wait; to inquire after; to watch; season; climate; (old) period of five days |
| 希 | xī | to hope; to admire; variant of 稀[xi1] |
| 望 | wàng | full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards; 15th day of month (lunar calendar); old variant of 望[wang4] |
| 通过 | tōng guò | to pass through; to get through; to adopt (a resolution); to pass (legislation); to pass (a test); by means of; through; via |
| 为 | wéi | as (in the capacity of); to take sth as; to act as; to serve as; to behave as; to become; to be; to do; by (in the passive voice); variant of 為|为[wei2] |
| 国家 | guó jiā | country; nation; state |
| 做 | zuò | to make; to produce; to write; to compose; to do; to engage in; to hold (a party etc); (of a person) to be (an intermediary, a good student etc); to become (husband and wife, frien… |
| 官 | Guān | surname Guan |
| 一共 | yī gòng | in total; altogether |
| 考 | kǎo | to beat; to hit; variant of 考[kao3]; to inspect; to test; to take an exam; to check; to verify; to test; to examine; to take an exam; to take an entrance exam for; deceased father |
| 八 | bā | eight |
| 次 | cì | next in sequence; second; the second (day, time etc); secondary; vice-; sub-; infra-; inferior quality; substandard; order; sequence; hypo- (chemistry); classifier for enumerated e… |
| 每次 | měi cì | every time |
| 都 | Dū | surname Du |
| 失 | shī | to lose; to miss; to fail |
| 败 | bǎi | to defeat; to lose (to an opponent); to wither |
| 那个 | nà ge | that one; that thing; that (as opposed to this); (used before a verb or adjective for emphasis); (used to humorously or indirectly refer to sth embarrassing, funny etc, or when one… |
| 时代 | Shí dài | Time, US weekly news magazine |
| 对 | duì | right; correct; towards; at; for; concerning; regarding; to treat (sb a certain way); to face; (bound form) opposite; facing; matching; to match together; to adjust; to fit; to sui… |
| 一个人 | yī gè rén | by oneself (without assistance); alone (without company) |
| 人生 | rén shēng | life (one's time on earth) |
| 重要 | zhòng yào | important; significant; major |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 上 | shǎng | used in 上聲|上声[shang3 sheng1] |
| 意 | yì | (bound form) idea; thought; meaning; sense; (bound form) intention; feeling; inclination; state of mind; (bound form) Italy (abbr. for 意大利[Yi4 da4 li4]) |
| 味 | wěi | taste; (fig.) (noun suffix) feel; sense |
| 着 | zhāo | variant of 著|着[zhao1]; a move in chess (Taiwan pr. [zhuo2]); trick; tactic; (dialect) okay; all right; (dialect) to put in; to add |
| 没有 | méi yǒu | haven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not be |
| 地位 | dì wèi | position; status; place; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 前 | qián | front; forward; ahead; first; top (followed by a number); future; ago; before; BC (e.g. 前293年); former; formerly |
| 途 | tū | way; road |
| 这 | zhè | (pronoun) this; these; (bound form) this; the (followed by a noun); (bound form) this; these (followed by a classifier) (in this sense, commonly pr. [zhei4], esp. in Beijing) |
| 打击 | dǎ jī | to hit; to strike; to attack; to crack down on sth; blow; (psychological) shock; percussion (music) |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 后 | Hòu | surname Hou; back; behind; rear; afterwards; after; later; post- |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
| 成为 | chéng wéi | to become; to turn into |
| 有名 | yǒu míng | famous; well-known |
| 将军 | Jiāng jūn | (common place name) |
| 胡 | Hú | surname Hu; used in 衚衕|胡同[hu2 tong4]; beard; mustache; whiskers |
| 宗 | zong | ancestor; clan; sect; to honor; principal; surname Zong |
| 宪 | ||
| 帮助 | bāng zhù | assistance; aid; to help; to assist |
| 处理 | chǔ lǐ | to handle; to deal with; to punish; to treat sth by a special process; to process; to sell at reduced prices |
| 事情 | shì qing | affair; matter; thing; business; CL:件[jian4],樁|桩[zhuang1] |
| 好 | hǎo | good; appropriate; proper; all right!; (before a verb) easy to; (before a verb) good to; (before an adjective for exclamatory effect) so; (verb complement indicating completion); (… |
| 景 | Jǐng | surname Jing |
| 长 | cháng | long; (bound form) length; (bound form) strong point; forte; (bound form) to be good at; (literary) surplus; spare (Taiwan pr. [zhang4]) |
| 被 | bèi | quilt; to cover (with); (literary) to suffer (a misfortune); used to indicate passive voice (placed before the doer of the action like "by" in English passive-voice sentences, or, … |
| 朝廷 | cháo tíng | court; imperial household; dynasty |
| 判 | pǎn | (bound form) to differentiate; to distinguish; to judge; to decide; to grade |
| 罪 | zuì | guilt; crime; fault; blame; sin; variant of 罪[zui4], crime |
| 处死 | chǔ sǐ | an execution; to put sb to death |
| 害怕 | hài pà | to be afraid; to be scared |
| 自己 | zì jǐ | oneself; (attributive) one's own |
| 也 | Yě | surname Ye |
| 会 | huì | can; to have the skill; to know how to; to be likely to; to be sure to; to meet; to get together; meeting; gathering; (suffix) union; group; association; (bound form) a moment (Tai… |
| 受到 | shòu dào | to receive (praise, an education, punishment etc); to be ...ed (praised, educated, punished etc) |
| 精神 | jīng shén | spirit; mind; consciousness; thought; mental; psychological; essence; gist; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 开始 | kāi shǐ | to begin; to start; beginning; start |
| 出现 | chū xiàn | to appear; to arise; to emerge; to show up |
| 问题 | wèn tí | question; problem; issue; topic; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 状 | zhuàng | (bound form) form; appearance; shape; (bound form) state; condition; (bound form) to describe; (bound form) written complaint; lawsuit; (bound form) certificate |
| 态 | tài | (bound form); appearance; shape; form; state; attitude; (grammar) voice |
| 越 | Yuè | generic word for peoples or states of south China or south Asia at different historical periods; abbr. for Vietnam 越南 |
| 差 | chā | difference; discrepancy; (math.) difference (amount remaining after a subtraction); (literary) a little; somewhat; slightly |
| 最 | zuì | variant of 最[zui4]; old variant of 最[zui4]; (before an adjective or verb) to the highest degree; (the) most ...; -est; (after 之[zhi1]) best or most extreme example (e.g. 世界之最[shi4 jie4 zhi1 zui4] "the greatest in the world") |
| 终 | zhong | end |
| 那 | Nā | surname Na |
| 段 | Duàn | surname Duan |
| 黑暗 | hēi àn | dark; darkly; darkness |
| 时间 | shí jiān | (concept of) time; (duration of) time; (point in) time |
| 里 | lǐ | variant of 裡|里[li3]; lining; interior; inside; internal; also written 裏|里[li3]; surname Li |
| 多次 | duō cì | many times; repeatedly |
| 试图 | shì tú | to attempt; to try |
| 结 | jiē | (of a plant) to produce (fruit or seeds); Taiwan pr. [jie2] |
| 束 | Shù | surname Shu |
| 生 | shēng | to grow; to give birth; to produce; to be born; to arise; to occur; to light (a fire); to live; to be alive; life; raw; uncooked; unprocessed; unfamiliar; strange; (bound form) stu… |
| 命 | mǐng | life; order or command |
| 据 | jǔ | according to; based on; evidence |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 共 | gòng | common; general; to share; together; total; altogether; abbr. for 共產黨|共产党[Gong4 chan3 dang3], Communist party |
| 尝 | chāng | to taste; to try (food); (literary) ever; once |
| 试 | shì | to test; to try; experiment; examination; test |
| 九 | jǐu | nine; 9 |
| 常 | Cháng | surname Chang |
| 下 | xià | down; downwards; below; lower; later; next (week etc); second (of two parts); to decline; to go down; to arrive at (a decision, conclusion etc); measure word to show the frequency … |
| 杀死 | shā sǐ | to kill |
| 妻子 | qī zǐ | wife and children |
| 因此 | yīn cǐ | thus; consequently; as a result |
| 关 | Guān | surname Guan |
| 进 | jìn | to go forward; to advance; to go in; to enter; to put in; to submit; to take in; to admit; (math.) base of a number system; classifier for sections in a building or residential com… |
| 监 | jiān | to supervise; to inspect; jail; prison |
| 狱 | yǔ | prison |
| 坐 | Zuò | surname Zuo |
| 七 | qī | seven; 7 |
| 牢 | láo | (literary) pen; fold (for livestock); prison; jail; firm; secure; fast |
| 出 | chū | to go out; to come out; to arise; to occur; to produce; to yield; to go beyond; to exceed; (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result); classifier for…; variant of 出[chu1] (classifier for plays or chapters of classical novels) |
| 以 | yǐ | old variant of 以[yi3]; abbr. for Israel 以色列[Yi3 se4 lie4] |
| 已经 | yǐ jīng | already |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 老人 | lǎo rén | old man or woman; the elderly; one's aged parents or grandparents |
| 贫 | pīn | poor; deficient |
| 穷 | qíong | poor; destitute; to use up; to exhaust; thoroughly; extremely; (coll.) persistently and pointlessly |
| 活 | huó | to live; alive; living; work; workmanship |
| 十分 | shí fēn | very; completely; utterly; extremely; absolutely; hundred percent; to divide into ten equal parts |
| 艰难 | jiān nán | difficult; arduous; hard |
| 停 | tíng | to stop; to halt; to park (a car) |
| 止 | zhǐ | to stop; to prohibit; until; only |
| 创 | chuǎng | to start; to create; to initiate (chuang4); wound; trauma (chuang1) |
| 作 | zuō | (bound form) worker; (bound form) workshop; (slang) troublesome; high-maintenance (person) |
| 画风 | huà fēng | painting style |
| 独特 | dú tè | unique; distinctive |
| 笔 | bǐ | writing brush; writing implement (pen, pencil etc) (CL:支[zhi1],枝[zhi1]); brushstroke; stroke (in painting or calligraphy); (bound form) style of writing; literary manner; technique… |
| 法 | fǎ | variant of 法[fa3]; France; French; abbr. for 法國|法国[Fa3 guo2]; Taiwan pr. [Fa4]; old variant of 法[fa3]; law |
| 自由 | zì yóu | freedom; liberty; free; unrestricted |
| 感 | gǎn | to feel; to move; to touch; to affect; feeling; emotion; (suffix) sense of ~ |
| 情 | qíng | (bound form) feelings; emotion; sentiment; passion; (bound form) situation; condition |
| 当时 | dāng shí | then; at that time |
| 其 | qí | his; her; its; their; that; such; it (refers to sth preceding it) |
| 风 | fēng | wind; news; style; custom; manner; CL:陣|阵[zhen4],絲|丝[si1] |
| 格 | gē | used in 格登[ge1 deng1] |
| 完全 | wán quán | complete; whole; totally; entirely |
| 不同 | bù tóng | different; distinct; not the same; not alike |
| 喜欢 | xǐ huan | to like; to be fond of |
| 画 | huà | to draw; to paint; picture; painting (CL:幅[fu2],張|张[zhang1]); to draw (a line) (variant of 劃|划[hua4]); stroke of a Chinese character (variant of 劃|划[hua4]); (calligraphy) horizonta… |
| 植 | zhī | to plant |
| 物 | wù | (bound form) thing; (literary) the outside world as distinct from oneself; people other than oneself |
| 蔬 | shu | vegetables |
| 菜 | cài | vegetable; greens (CL:棵[ke1]); dish (of food) (CL:樣|样[yang4],道[dao4],盤|盘[pan2]); (of one's skills etc) weak; poor; (coll.) (one's) type |
| 比如 | Bǐ rú | see 比如縣|比如县[Bi3 ru2 Xian4] |
| 葡 | pū | Portugal; abbr. for 葡萄牙[Pu2 tao2 ya2] |
| 萄 | tāo | used in 葡萄[pu2 tao5] |
| 荷花 | hé huā | lotus |
| 竹子 | zhú zi | bamboo; CL:棵[ke1],根[gen1] |
| 看 | kān | to look after; to take care of; to watch; to guard |
| 起 | qǐ | to rise; to raise; to get up; to set out; to start; to appear; to launch; to initiate (action); to draft; to establish; to get (from a depot or counter); verb suffix, to start; sta… |
| 随意 | suí yì | as one wishes; according to one's wishes; at will; voluntary; conscious |
| 每 | měi | each; every |
| 力量 | lì liang | power; force; strength |
| 力 | Lì | surname Li |
| 晚年 | wǎn nián | one's later years |
| 过得 | guò dé | How are you getting by?; How's life?; contraction of 過得去|过得去, can get by; tolerably well; not too bad |
| 钱 | Qián | surname Qian |
| 家人 | jiā rén | family member; (old) servant |
| 只有 | zhǐ yǒu | only have ...; there is only ...; (used in combination with 才[cai2]) it is only if ... (that one can ...) (as in 只有通過治療才能痊愈|只有通过治疗才能痊愈[zhi3 you3 tong1 guo4 zhi4 liao2 cai2 neng2 qu… |
| 只 | zhī | variant of 隻|只[zhi1]; variant of 只[zhi3]; grain that has begun to ripen; classifier for birds and certain animals, one of a pair, some utensils, vessels etc |
| 狗 | gǒu | dog; CL:隻|只[zhi1],條|条[tiao2] |
| 陪 | pēi | to accompany; to assist |
| 伴 | bǎn | partner; companion; comrade; associate |
| 去世 | qù shì | to pass away; to die |
| 身边 | shēn biān | at one's side; on hand |
| 几 | jī | small table; (literary) almost |
| 乎 | hu | (classical particle similar to 於|于[yu2]) in; from; than |
| 什 | shén | what |
| 么 | má | exclamatory final particle; variant of 麼|么[me5] |
| 死 | sǐ | to die; impassable; uncrossable; inflexible; rigid; extremely; damned |
| 人 | rén | person; people; CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4],名[ming2] |
| 们 | men | plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals |
| 慢 | màn | slow |
| 认 | rèn | to recognize; to know; to admit |
| 识 | shí | to know; knowledge; Taiwan pr. [shi4] |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 伟大 | wěi dà | huge; great; grand; worthy of the greatest admiration; important (contribution etc) |
| 郑 | zhěng | surname Zheng; (hist.) the Zheng state (a Zhou-dynasty vassal state) |
| 板 | bǎn | board; plank; plate; shutter; table tennis bat; clappers (music); CL:塊|块[kuai4]; accented beat in Chinese music; hard; stiff; to stop smiling or look serious; used in 老闆|老板[lao3 ban3] |
| 桥 | qiáo | bridge; CL:座[zuo4] |
| 愿 | yuàn | honest and prudent; variant of 願|愿[yuan4]; (bound form) wish; hope; desire; to be willing; to wish (that sth may happen); may ...; vow; pledge |
| 为了 | wèi le | for; for the purpose of; in order to |
| 能 | Néng | surname Neng |
| 够 | gòu | enough (sufficient); enough (too much); (coll.) (before adj.) really; (coll.) to reach by stretching out |
| 靠近 | kào jìn | to be close to; to approach; to draw near |
| 样 | yàng | manner; pattern; way; appearance; shape; classifier: kind, type |
| 天才 | tiān cái | talent; gift; genius; talented; gifted |
| 二十 | èr shí | twenty; 20 |
| 世纪 | shì jì | century |
| 之一 | zhī yī | one of (sth); one out of a multitude; one (third, quarter, percent etc) |
| 齐白石 | Qí Bái shí | Qi Baishi (1864-1957), famous Chinese painter |
| 曾经 | céng jīng | once; already; former; previously; ever; (past tense marker used before verb or clause) |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because; owing to; on account of |
| 而 | ér | and; as well as; and so; but (not); yet (not); (indicates causal relation); (indicates change of state); (indicates contrast) |
| 流 | líu | to flow; to disseminate; to circulate or spread; to move or drift; to degenerate; to banish or send into exile; stream of water or sth resembling one; class, rate or grade |
| 泪 | lěi | (bound form) tears; teardrops |
| 那些 | nà xiē | those |
| 实 | shí | real; true; honest; really; solid; fruit; seed; definitely |
| 太好了 | tài hǎo le | very good |
| 悲 | bēi | sad; sadness; sorrow; grief |
| 留下 | líu xià | to leave behind; to stay behind; to remain; to keep; not to let (sb) go |
| 艺 | yì | skill; art |
| 术 | shù | method; technique |
| 作品 | zuò pǐn | work (of art); opus; CL:部[bu4],篇[pian1] |
| 影响 | yǐng xiǎng | influence; effect; to influence; to affect (usually adversely); to disturb; CL:股[gu3] |
| 中国画 | Zhōng guó huà | Chinese painting |
| 坛 | tān | altar; (bound form) (sporting, literary etc) circles; world |
| 百年 | bǎi nián | hundred years; century; (fig.) a whole lifetime; a person's whole life |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people; anyone; there is someone there; occupied (as in restroom) |
| 像 | xiàng | to resemble; to be like; to look as if; such as; appearance; image; portrait; image under a mapping (math.) |
| 中国 | Zhōng guó | China |
| 梵 | ||
| 高 | Gāo | surname Gao |
| 世 | Shì | surname Shi |
| 真正 | zhēn zhèng | genuine; real; true; really; indeed |
| 理解 | lǐ jiě | to comprehend; to understand |
| 却 | què | old variant of 卻|却[que4]; but; yet; however; while; to go back; to decline; to retreat; nevertheless; even though |
| 永远 | yǒng yuǎn | forever; eternal |
Xu Wei was a famous painter, poet, and playwright of the Ming Dynasty. He was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province in 1521. From a young age, he was extremely intelligent and talented. However, his life was filled with pain and misfortune.
When Xu Wei was young, he desperately hoped to pass the imperial examination and become a government official. But he took the exam a total of eight times, and failed every single time. In that era, the imperial examination was extremely important for a person’s life. Failing to pass meant having no status and no future. This was a huge blow to Xu Wei.
Later, Xu Wei became a personal advisor to a famous general named Hu Zongxian, helping him handle important matters. But good times don’t last forever. Hu Zongxian was later convicted and executed by the imperial court. Xu Wei was terrified that he would also be implicated, and his mental state began to deteriorate. His condition grew worse and worse, until he eventually had a mental breakdown. During that darkest period, he attempted to end his own life multiple times – reportedly a total of nine times. Later, in a state of mental illness, he killed his own wife. Because of this, he was thrown into prison and served seven years.
After his release from prison, Xu Wei was already an old man. He was extremely poor, and life was very difficult. But he never stopped creating art. His painting style was very unique – his brushwork was free and unrestrained, full of emotion, completely different from other painters of his time. He loved painting plants and vegetables, such as grapes, lotus flowers, and bamboo. His paintings looked casual, but every stroke was full of power and vitality.
Xu Wei’s later years were extremely bleak. He had no money, no family, and it is said that only a dog kept him company. When he died, he had almost nothing beside him.
However, after his death, people gradually began to recognize his greatness. The later painter Zheng Banqiao said he would be willing to serve as Xu Wei’s book boy, just to be close to such a genius. Qi Baishi, one of the greatest painters of the twentieth century, said he once cried because of Xu Wei’s paintings – they were simply too beautiful.
Xu Wei’s life was filled with failure, pain, and tragedy. But the artwork he left behind has influenced Chinese painting for hundreds of years. Some say he was like China’s Van Gogh – no one truly understood him while he was alive, but after death, he became an eternal legend.