Lan Ying, also known by his courtesy name Tianshu and literary names Diesou and Shitoutuo, was born in Qiantang, Zhejiang province. He was a skilled handscape painter. His style was elegant and smooth during his early years, free, grand, peculiar, and unsophisticated in his middle age after he travelled extensively around the country, and vigorous, robust yet slightly showy during his senior days. Lan was also good at painting figures, flowers, birds, orchids, and bamboos. He was an important exponent of the “Wulin School of Painting” (wulinpai).