K'uai-hsueh shih-ch'ing t'ieh

Wang Hsi-chih (ca. A.D. 307-365), Chin dynasty (A.D. 265-420)
Ink on paper. Semi-cursive script. Album leaf. 23.0 x 14.8 cm

Wang Hsi-chih, whose style name was I-shao, was a native of Lin-i in Shantung province. A precocious youth, he later held several high military posts, attaining the rank of General of the Right.
It is said he would practice calligraphy near a pool and was accustomed to washing his brush in its water; eventually the pool turned black with his ink. He is revered the patriarch of calligraphy and established calligraphy as one of the loftiest of all artistic pursuits in Chinese culture

Click here for a larger picture
(image size between 100k - 300K)
and use the [BACK] Function key back to this page