Mu Qi

Muqi Fachang or Muxi Fachang (1210?-1269?) (Chinese: 牧溪法常; pinyin: Mu-ch'i Fa-ch'ang; Japanese: 牧谿 Mokkei) was a Chinese Zen Buddhist monk and painter who lived in the 13th century, around the end of the Southern Song dynasty. His surname is thought to be Xue; Muqi/Muxi was a hao or pseudonym, and Fachang a monastic name.

Muqi was perhaps from the city of Kaifeng in Henan Province or possibly Sichuan. A painting bears the inscription "monk from Shu (Sichuan)." He originally studied at the Wannian Monastery on Mount Wutai. Muqi was doubtless drawn to the beauty of West Lake in Hangzhou and refounded the abandoned monastery Liutong Temple there in 1215. He is said to have been the disciple of his abbot Wuzhun Shifan (1178–1269) and the painter Liang Kai. His works are considered among the most expressive of the Chán (aka Zen) style of painting.

Important works generally attributed to Mu Qi: presently in the Daitoku-ji in Kyoto are a triptych of Guan Yin flanked by a monkey family on one side and a crane on the other; Tiger; Dragon; and the much-reproduced Six Persimmons. Other works sometimes attributed to Mu Qi or as being "in the style of Mu Qi" include various nature studies and a Luohan painting in the Seikado Museum.

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