Gu Mei

Gu Mei (1619-1664), was a Chinese courtesan, poet and painter.

Gu Mei was famous for her beauty and talent within painting and poetry and counted among the elite of courtesans alongside Dong Xiaowan, Bian Sai and Liu Shi. She was admired for her paintings of orchids, and published a collection of poems which was given good critics. In her tower Meilou in Qinhuai district in Nanjing, she hosted a famous literary salon, which counted Chen Liang, Qian Lucan and Mao Xiang among its guests.

In 1643, she left her profession to marry the career official Gong Dingzi and settled with him in the capital. His openly demonstrated love for her attracted much attention during their time, as it offended the norms of Confucian ideals, and her influence over him became legendary. She is known to have saved the Yan Ermei from execution, and to have been the benefactor of the artist Zhu Yizun.

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