Tai Chin (1388 - 1426) was a native of Ch'ien-t'ang (modern Hangchow). As a youth, he studied painting under local artists and gained early renown for his landscape and figure paintings. He served as an official painter at the imperial court in Peking during the Hsuan-te reign (1426 - 35), but was forced out of service by jealous colleagues. Thereafter, he returned home and lived out his life as a private painter in Hangchow. During these later years, he trained large numbers of students, and thereby exerted a powerful influence on the developing art community in the region. When later commentators began to refer to the artists and painting style associated with Hangchow as the Che school, they regarded Tai Chin as the father of the school.