Zhang Daqian was a Chinese artist known for painting in traditional Eastern techniques while exploring the Western movements of Impressionism and Expressionism. His use of delicate brushstrokes and splashed color application, produced unique images of nature, as seen in his work Lotus (1963). He was also known for his forgeries of ancient Chinese masters, such as Shi Tao, Tang Yin, and Chen Hongshou. Born Zhang Yuan on May 10, 1899 in Neijiang, China, Zhang learned to paint flowers from his mother at a young age, going on to study traditional Chinese painting methods in Shanghai under Zeng Xi and Li Ruiqing. Over the course of his life Zhang travelled the world, even meeting Pablo Picasso during a 1956 visit to Nice, France. The artist died on April 2, 1983 in Taipei, Taiwan at the age of 84. Today, Zhang’s home, known as the Zhang Daqian Residence, is a memorial to the artist maintained by the National Palace Museum in Taipei, his works are held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Denver Art Museum, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, among others.