One of the most paradigmatic frameworks in Song dynasty (960–1279) art history is a division between high-status, avocational “literati” or “gentleman” (shi 士) painters and low-status, occupational “artisan” (gong 工) painters. This presentation situates that symbolic boundary within a specific discourse of artistic appraisal, and contrasts it with a growing acceptance of painting as a legitimate livelihood for respectable “gentlemen” in the 10th–13th centuries. By tracing the coexistence of these two conflicting perspectives on occupational painting, and their impact on occupational painters, it offers a new understanding of how social and symbolic boundaries were negotiated in Song art worlds.

Zach Berge-Becker is a Postdoctoral Fellow and Lecturer at the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies. His research examines practices and processes of identity construction and social distinction in middle period China, by focusing on fields of action that served as leisure for some and livelihoods for others, such as: painting, making music, fishing, gardening, and playing board games.