Ren Renfa: Artist and Official
Ren Renfa was an expert of irrigation works, artist, and a government official of the Yuan dynasty. Born in Qinglong Town, Songjiang, he also served as a hydrological engineer, where his work included dredging an area in what is now Beijing to improve the water supply and leading a team to build embankments after the Yellow River burst its banks.
Notable Works
His paintings include subjects such as horses, people, flowers, and birds. One prominent work is Chu Yu Tu (Coming out of the Stable), a painting on silk with color that depicts three officials of the royal stables leading four horses out of a stable. The figures in this work are dressed in Tang style costumes.
Another significant work is Five Drunken Princes Returning on Horseback , a two-metre scroll depicting five princes on horseback with four attendants. This piece includes Li Longji, who later became the Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang dynasty. Ren Renfa also produced the work Fat and Lean Horses , which contains an inscription explaining that the fat horse represents the self-satisfied, wealthy official while the lean one represents the humble, poor, self-deprecating official.
Questions & Answers
How did Ren Renfa's art evolve over time?
The Chronicle of Ren Renfa is a scroll-driven timeline that presents the artist's works in chronological order, grouped into career-period chapters.
Where are Ren Renfa's artworks grouped by palette?
The By Palettes page groups Ren Renfa 's artworks by their color palettes.
Where are Ren Renfa's artworks organized by color?
The Spectral Index of Ren Renfa is a page that organizes the artist's artworks by their colors.
By the AllPaintingsStore.com Editorial Team
Updated Sept. 29, 2026
