T'ang Yin, a native of Soochow, early studied under Chou Ch'en, but later turned to the Sung and Yuan styles, taking the delicate and refined techniques of the Southern Sung academic mode and fusing them with the pure and elegant style of Yuan artists. Forming a manner of his own, he was known as one of the Four Masters of the Ming.
In following the footsteps of Chou Ch'en, T'ang Yin sought the styles of the Sung and Yuan masters. Later, from the middle of his career, he developed his own style. Fusing the academic and literati modes, the forms he painted were solid yet done with elegant brushwork. The compositions of his works were straightforward yet expansive, possessing a lyrical quality. His brushwork was both strong and soft, which in later years became flowing and abbreviated.