17th – 18th centuries) was a famous Chinese inkstone artist who lived in the Qing dynasty, during the reign of Kangxi Emperor.
[2] There is little existing information on Gu's personal life due to the lack of biographical writing about artisans during the Qing dynasty.
[1][2] Gu's career began following the deaths of her father-in-law and husband, who ran a successful inkstone-making business in Zhuanzhu Lane, Suzhou.
Gu's patrons often wrote poems and encomiums for the inkstones they received from her, which note information about the motifs she used in her work.
"[2] Despite her widespread fame and popularity, some contemporaries viewed Gu with dismissal or suspicion, as women were not thought to be rightful heirs in traditional patrilineage.
[2][6] The amount of highly skilled forgeries of Gu's work made during her lifetime is seen as indicative of her fame at the time.
[10] Following Gu's death, forgeries of her works were often engraved with poems that promoted an "ultra-feminine persona," presumably to attract collectors.