Question

Many prominent artists and critics of the Qing dynasty made a sharp distinction between amateur and professional painters. After reading about and looking at paintings by amateur and professional artists, what are your thoughts on this distinction? Can you easily tell the difference between the two types of painting? Do you think the view that amateur painters were superior because their paintings were more honest or true is correct? What prejudices may have influenced this view?

Answer 1

A prejudice may have been: The social norms may have held that arts as a profession were less legitimate than something like civil service. Therefore, art as a professional career might have been criticized for this reason.