Han Gan painted the famous Tang-dynasty horse painting Night-Shining White.
The work shows a spirited horse tethered to a post, with its head turned and nostrils flared. It is widely regarded as one of the best-known surviving examples of Tang-dynasty animal painting. Han Gan was active in the eighth century and became especially celebrated for his precise, lively depictions of horses.
Night-Shining White is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Its title refers to the horse’s brilliant, almost supernatural appearance rather than to a specific breed. The painting is often dated to about 750, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong.
A common mix-up is confusing Han Gan with Zhao Mengfu, a later Yuan-dynasty painter also famous for horse pictures. Han Gan’s reputation is particularly tied to imperial Tang horses and courtly animal art.