Wang Xizhi began to learn calligraphy at the age of seven, and studied under Mrs. Wei and his uncle Wang Xun, who came from a calligraphy family. Later, he visited the exquisite works of the masters of seal script in Qin and Han Dynasties. He studied the form, imitated the handwriting, learned from others' strengths, and melted into one furnace, creating a running script that was "natural and full of charm" and was praised as a "book saint" by later generations. Calligraphy reached its peak in his later years, and Preface to Lanting was his masterpiece in his later years.
Preface to Lanting was called Preface to Linjiang in Jin Dynasty, and later generations also called Preface to Xiu, Preface to Tie and Preface to Lanting, with 28 lines and 324 words. According to legend, on March 3rd, the 9th year of Yonghe in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 353), the sky was clear and calm, and Wang Xizhi and Xie. [ 1]? Facing the beautiful scenery and friends, Wang Xizhi wrote the preface of Exquisite Beauty, Strong Health and Eternal Beauty on a whim. After returning to China, Wang Xizhi rewrote it dozens of times, but it was still not as good as the original, so he liked it very much, and gave it to his descendants and passed it on to Wang Xizhi's seventh generation of grandchildren. He has no children and daughters, and he was left to his disciple Koukou to preserve. In the tenth year of Zhenguan (AD 636), calligraphers such as Feng Chengsu, Yu Shinan and Chu Suiliang were asked to copy ten copies and give them to the recent ministers. After his death, the original works were brought to Zhaoling as funerary objects. So far, we can't see the original work of Preface to Lanting, but only the first-class copy of Tang Dynasty. The most authentic copy of the Tang Dynasty is Feng Chengsu's copy, which is also called "Dragon Book" because the title of Tang Zhongzong Li Xian is printed before and after the post. Guo Tianci called it "Dragon Book", "elegant brushwork, gorgeous ink color, beautiful, fascinating." [ 1]
The Preface to the Lanting Pavilion is colorful, patchwork and ever-changing, and the 20 words "ambition" in the post have their own merits. With a pen, the center is bone, and the edge pen is beautiful. Sometimes it contains storage, and sometimes it is sharp. Especially the composition, from beginning to end, looks at the pen, looks at the back, is sparse, disconnected, vivid and natural. Therefore, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Dong Qichang said in "Essays on Painting Zen Rooms": "The preface to the composition of Lanting in the right army is the first in ancient and modern times, and its words, big or small, are reflected in the Dharma, so it is God. The most commendable thing is that the style of Preface to Lanting contains the author's skillful pen and ink skills, profound traditional skills, extensive cultural accomplishment and noble artistic sentiment.