Author:

Size:Length:182.2 x Width:45.6 (cm)

Size description：182.2×45.6

Introduction：Chen Wei-te (1945–) was born in Fuzhou, Fujian Province. His courtesy name is Si-chi, and his studio name is Hsi-mei Studio ("Washing Plum” Studio). He holds a doctorate in literature from National Chengchi University, and is accomplished in both classical Chinese writing and calligraphy. He has served as a professor, department head, director of the Graduate Institute of Chinese Classical Studies, dean of the College of Literature, and registrar at Taipei Municipal University of Education (now University of Taipei) and privately-run Mingdao University. He has served as advisor to the Chinese Calligraphy Association and Chinese Academy of Painting, and as chairman of the Chinese Calligraphy Society and Chinese Standard Cursive Script Society. His calligraphy has been recognized with the Wu San-lien Award, Chung Shan Literary and Arts Award, and National Arts Award. He has been invited to hold solo exhibitions at the National Museum of History, National DR. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, and National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, and is recognized as a leading contemporary calligrapher in Taiwan.

Chen's deep engagement with classical Chinese prose, poetry, and lyrics is such that even after his appointment as professor he went on to pursue doctoral studies, earning his doctorate. This work is a self-composed thirteen-character couplet for a Year of the Horse, reading: "Towering mansions reach the clouds—behold ten thousand horses galloping, reviving the grand legacy of Han; midday shadows spread across the fields—rejoice as all the people rest in ease, bathed in the gentle spring breeze." The opening characters incorporate the stem-and-branch characters "jiawu" to indicate the year of composition; the content also evokes the zodiac symbolism of the Year of the Horse and the public's hopes for the coming year, attesting to Chen's deep literary learning and expressive gifts.

The work is written in semi-cursive script, but with consistent character size and without the layout convention of columns without rows. Instead, the format of the Longmen or Dragon Gate couplet is used to present this thirteen-character extended couplet. The style draws on Mi Fu, Pu Hsin-yu, and Wang Ching-chih, and the artist's deep foundation in regular script—particularly his mastery of the style of Chu Sui-liang—allows regular and semi-cursive script to interact and supplement each other throughout. The brushstrokes throughout are controlled in their pressing and lifting; the work combines the tight, stable structure of regular script with the fluid naturalness of semi-cursive brushwork, presenting an overall impression of vigor and broad generosity—a distinctive voice that is moreover entirely in keeping with the content of the text.

Colophon: An auspicious beginning to the Jiawu Year of the Horse; composed and written with reverence by Chen Wei-te.
Seals: Chen Wei-te; Ssu-chi.

Accession Number:PT10300601

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