Calligraphy: Phoenix

Wang Fangyu was born in Beijing and began the study of calligraphy in his youth. He moved to the United States in 1945 and settled in the New York area. Professor Wang's varied career included teaching Chinese language and literature at Yale and Seton Hall Universities, compiling a widely used Chinese-English dictionary, and developing the first computer system to teach Chinese. He was also a noted art historian and connoisseur and was especially respected for his expertise regarding Bada Shanren (1626-1705), which culminated in the exhibition at Yale University Master of the Lotus Garden: The Life and Art of Bada Shanren. Professor Wang's unique calligraphy, which he often compared to dance, explored the pictorial quality of Chinese characters and the expressive potential of the brush.