Huang Daozhou on Wang Xizhi's Oath for the Tomb

Author: Liu Yuanshan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: Huang Daozhou excelled in regular, running, cursive, and clerical scripts. His regular script was square and well-structured, with a hint of ancient clerical script's essence. His running script had a magnificent style, superior in artistic charm, ancient yet interesting. His cursive script was bold and varied, profound and vast. His running and cursive script traced back to the Wei and Jin dynasties and extended to the Tang and Song dynasties, blending the styles of the ancients to create his own unique style. He also pioneered a strong and vigorous calligraphic tradition, greatly influencing later masters such as Shen Zongzhi, Pan Tianshou, Sha Menghai, and Lai Chusheng. The history of calligraphic development tells us that calligraphy is transmitted through people, and it is rare for a person to be transmitted through calligraphy. Huang Daozhou's calligraphy is a prime example. His loyal and resolute heroic spirit was the decisive factor that made his works revered by later generations as treasures. Although he himself always regarded calligraphy as "the seventh or eighth level of learning" and advised himself "not to be overly concerned with it," he also said, "I have never particularly liked this, only viewing it as a way to showcase my minor talents, something deemed suitable for the lower classes. Archery and horseback riding are more appropriate for me." The history not only remembers his eternal achievements but also his calligraphy and painting. He viewed calligraphy from the perspective of Confucian orthodoxy, which is not surprising.