About Cui Bai
Lived 1000 – 1074. Cui Bai was a Chinese painter.
Cui Bai (, also known as Cui Bo, style name Zixi (fl. 1050–1080) was a prominent Chinese painter of the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1279). A native of Anhui Province, Cui was best known for paintings of animals and plants. At some point during his life, he traveled to the capital of Kaifeng to seek employment as a court artist, and was accepted by Emperor Shenzong of Song, who admired his works. He became a renowned artist of Shenzong's court, but gained an awkward reputation for his often eccentric behavior.
Cui Bai is today known for two paintings depicting magpies and sparrows respectively. Magpies and Hare, also known as "Double Happiness", because "two magpies" in Mandarin Chinese is pronounced the same as "two happinesses", is held in the National Palace Museum, Taipei. The painting would have been meant as a gift to someone to congratulate them in some way, most likely for a wedding. Wintery Sparrow, a large handscroll, is kept in the Palace Museum in Beijing.
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Important facts
People in Cui Bai's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Cui Bai's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Cui Bai?
Song dynasty painter (1000–1074)
When was Cui Bai born?
Cui Bai was born in 1000 in Fengyang County.
When did Cui Bai die?
Cui Bai died in 1074.
What was Cui Bai's occupation?
Cui Bai was a painter.
What nationality was Cui Bai?
Cui Bai was Chinese.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Cui Bai. https://biography.guide/cui-bai/
MLA: "Cui Bai." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/cui-bai/.
Chicago: "Cui Bai." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/cui-bai/.
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