Artist: Zhao Puchu

Date: Modern

Material: Ink on paper

• Object Type：
  • CALLIGRAPHY
• Location：
  • Zhao Puchu Gallery
• Tag：
  • chinese haiku morimoto kōjun running script mounted sheet zhao puchu modern ink paper

It was Morimoto Kōjun, the 81^st head priest of Tōshōdai-ji Temple in Japan, who had proposed a touring exhibition of the Jianzhen (also known as Ganjin) statue to be held in China. In April 1980, Morimoto Kōjun brought several gifts with him to China, including two stone lanterns, cherry saplings, and some sutra scrolls. In return, the China Buddhist Association presented Tōshōdai-ji with incense burners and willow saplings from Daming Temple. To celebrate this exchange, Zhao Puchu composed a Chinese haiku, a form of rhyming verse he had invented after studying Japanese haiku. Morimoto himself couriered one of the stone lanterns to Yangzhou and placed it in front of the Jianzhen Memorial Hall at Daming Temple, which had been designed by Prof. Liang Sicheng. He lit the lantern as a symbol of the deep friendship between China and Japan. This piece showcases subtle and variegated brushwork, a flexible and lively style, and superb calligraphic artistry. Zhao created it at the age of seventy-four.