Calligraphy - Farewell

One of the most eloquent poets and virtuoso calligraphers of the Yuan dynasty, the Chan master Chushi Fanqi (known as Soseki Bonki in Japanese, 1296-1370) was orphaned at a young age. He began living in a monastery where he became a novice at the age of nine. In his youth, he encountered the calligrapher, painter and scholar Zhao Mengfu (1254-1322), one of the most influential figures in the history of Chinese art, who was greatly impressed by his gift for calligraphy. Chushi Fanqi studied calligraphy with the revered calligrapher and with his support, he was ordained as a monk at the age of sixteen. A disciple of the master Yuansou Xingduan (1255-1341), Chushi Fanqi was summoned by imperial decree to travel to the capital to assist in the writing and copying of Buddhist canons. Throughout his life serving as abbot of important temples in China, his friendship with Zhao Mengfu fostered a life-long affinity with the arts.
The present calligraphy contains a farewell poem composed and written by Chushi Fanqi for the monk Kanchu Genshi (1346-1428) before Genshi set sail homeward to Japan. In the poem, Chushi Fanqi eulogizes that after an extended stay at the Zhongtianzhu Temple, near Hangzhou, the young Japanese monk longed to return home:

Long has he served as attendant to great masters at the temple,
His thoughts are now with the ship Japan-bound.
Has Bodhidharma ever visited China,
And Shenguang [Huike], India?

The exact dates of Kanchu Genshi’s sojourn in China are unknown, although it has been suggested that existing references in the anthology of Chushi Fanqi’s writing date to the late 1360s. Chushi Fanqi often extolled the virtue, sincerity and wisdom of Kanchu Genshi, which served as a testament to the close friendship between the master and the young monk. The Utterberg work is a fine example of Chushi Fanqi’s mature calligraphy, marked by a sharp, angular brushwork that conveys a sense of daring vitality.