Preface to Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion

by Chu Suiliang,

Tang Dynasty.

hand scroll Ink on silk, 20.5 x 511 cm,

Palace Museum National, Tabei, China

Chu Suiliang (596 - 659) byname Dengshan  was a native of Qiantang (present-day Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province). Chu Suiliang was a junior to the four great calligraphers at the beginning of the Tang Dynasty. Chu Suiliang learned Ouyang Xun's (557 - 641) calligraphy and then from Yu Shinan (558 - 638) . At last he  studied  calligraphy of Wang Xizhi (303 - 361, or according to anothe version, 321 - 379) and incorporated the clerical calligraphy of the Han Dynasty (2nd century BC - AD 2nd century). Synthesized the brushwork of Yu Shinan and Ouyang Xun, he created his own calligraphic style noted for ease and combination of angular and round strokes. His calligraphy was appreciated by Li Shimin, the Taizong Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. The emperor once asked him to distinguish genuine calligraphic works of Wang Xizhi and forged works attributed to him from the Palace Treasury, and he made correct judgment. The anecdotes demonstrates he was conversant with Wang Xizhi's calligraphy. 

The genuine piece of Wang Xizhi's Preface to Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion was lost after it was buried with the Taizong Emperor. We can only see the calligraphic masterpiece through viewing copies done by Yu Shinan, Chu Suiliang and Feng Chengsu. The copy on yellow silk done by Chu Suiliang is the most famous copy and the only copy on silk. Ming-dynasty artists put inscriptions on the copy making it even more valuable.