Ming Wang Yixiang, Book of Nine Songs

Author: Zhao Mengfu
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-10-01
Features: Three Works of Wen Zhengming in Small Regular Script by Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), a Ming Dynasty painter, calligrapher, and litterateur. Originally named Bi (also written as Bi), he styled himself Zhengming, later changed to Zhengzhong, and was known as the "Resident of Hengshan." He was from Changzhou (now Wuxian County, Jiangsu). Together with Zhu Yunming, Tang Yin, and Xu Zhengqing, he was known as the "Four Wits of Wu." At the age of 54, he was recommended as a candidate for the civil service examination and served as a court painter in the Hanlin Academy, resigning three years later. He excelled in running and cursive scripts, with the style of Zhi Yong; his large characters imitated Huang Tingjian, and he was particularly skilled in small regular script, as well as clerical script. He was also adept at landscape painting, learning from the styles of the Song and Yuan dynasties. His compositions were stable, with brushwork that was both vigorous and elegant. His early works were meticulous, while his middle-aged works were more unrestrained, and his later works combined both refinement and boldness. He was also skilled in painting flowers, orchids, bamboo, and figures. Highly regarded in his time, he had many students, forming the "Wumen School." Together with Shen Zhou, Tang Yin, and Qiu Ying, he was known as the "Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty." Wen Zhengming's calligraphy covered all styles. His regular script was influenced by Zhong Yao and Wang Xizhi; his cursive script was inspired by Huai Su; his large characters imitated Huang Tingjian; his running script resembled that of Wu Xing; his clerical script followed Zhong Yao; and his seal script drew from Yang Bing. He was particularly renowned for his running script and small regular script. His son, Wen Peng, was also skilled in painting and calligraphy, gaining recognition in the literary world. The father and son were both esteemed masters. This book collects three works of Wen Zhengming's running script: one is The Sayings of the Supreme Elder Lord on Constant Purity and Tranquility, written in the seventh month of the sixteenth year of the Jiajing era; the second is The Biography of Laozi, written in the sixth month of the seventeenth year of the Jiajing era, nearly a year apart. The third is The Preface to Pan Valley, written when he was eighty-four years old. At the end of the Biography, Wen Zhengming appended a short note: "On the nineteenth day of the sixth month of the Jiajing era, I this biography for the Northern Mountain. By then, I had reached the age of sixty-nine. Ouyang Xiu once said that writing at a desk in summer could dispel the heat and forget fatigue. However, as I sweated holding the brush, I only felt it was tedious. Perhaps Ouyang Xiu found joy in it himself. That afternoon, there was a light drizzle, and it became slightly cooler, but the dim window made it difficult to write evenly from beginning to end. I didn’t notice that the thick and thin strokes were inconsistent, and I didn’t realize that the viewers would mock me." At nearly seventy, the old man was still holding a brush and writing small regular script in a dim window, showing the profound depth of his calligraphic skill, which was truly admirable.