Tani Bunchō (谷 文晁, October 15, 1763 - January 6, 1840) was a Japanese literati (bunjin) painter and poet. He was the son of the poet Tani Rokkoku (1729-1809). As his family were retainers of the Tayasu Family and descendents of the eighth Tokugawa shogun, Bunchō inherited samurai status and received a stipend to meet the responsibilities this entailed. In his youth he began studying the painting techniques of the Kanō school under Kato Bunrei (1706-82). After Bunrei's death, Bunchō worked with masters of other schools, such as the literati painter Kitayama Kangan (1767-1801), and developed a wide stylistic range that included many Chinese, Japanese and European idioms. He's best known for his crisp landscapes in the literati style (Nanga or Bunjinga). Like most bunjinga painters of his time, Bunchō focused largely on Chinese-inspired landscapes. Since travel outside Japan was forbidden under the Tokugawa shogunate, Bunchō was unable to study in China; he spent many years in Nagasaki, therefore, studying Chinese art and Western art (洋画, Yōga) with the traders there. Watanabe Kazan and Takaku Aigai were among his disciples.