After Wang Xizhi's "Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering Collection" 1684 - 1705

Bada Shanren created this piece, *After Wang Xizhi's "Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering Collection"*, using ink on paper. Shanren's identity was shaped by the collapse of the Ming dynasty and the establishment of the Qing dynasty in China. As a member of the Ming imperial family, he became a Buddhist monk to evade persecution by the new rulers. The artwork is Shanren's interpretation of Wang Xizhi's famous work, "Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering." Wang Xizhi's original piece celebrated a gathering of intellectuals. By emulating it, Shanren invokes themes of cultural and intellectual continuity while imbuing the work with his own sense of loss and displacement. The calligraphic style blends tradition with innovation, reflecting Shanren's negotiation of his identity in a time of political upheaval. The act of recreating this historic gathering becomes an assertion of cultural identity amidst political change. Shanren infuses the work with personal emotion, transforming a historical reference into a poignant expression of cultural memory and individual resilience.