Calligraphy in Running Script

This handscroll with calligraphy is attributed to Dong Qichang (1555-1636), who signed his name at the end and impressed three seals on the scroll. As suggested by the title Calligraphy in Running Script, the artist painted freely and quickly to create a unique style of cursive script calligraphy, rather than a legible section of prose. The calligraphy contains four Tang poems, including one poem by Cen Shen (715-770) and three poems by Wang Wei (692-761).
Dong Qichang was a remarkable calligrapher, painter, and art theoretician in the late Ming dynasty. He was also a politician and distinguished connoisseur who greatly influenced Chinese aesthetic theory.