An ancient Shanghai painter who heavily influenced later works of paintings and calligraphy is now on display at the Shanghai Museum in the most extensive exhibition in China to date.

Dong Qichang (1555 to 1636) is a Songjiang-born artist who became famous during the late Ming Dynasty for his landscape paintings and calligraphy, and the show brings together 154 pieces from local museums and 15 overseas institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Tokyo National Art Museum.

The exhibition, dubbed The Ferryman of Ink World: Dong Qichang’s Calligraphy and Painting Art, covers Dong’s early days to works by other masters who were inspired by him, as well as his outsized impact on Jiangnan culture. Dong drew strongly on his predecessors to create his own plain, distinctive style and in turn that led to a generation of landscape painters and calligraphers who were profoundly impacted by him.

The exhibition is now on until March 3. The museum is open everyday except Mondays and entry is free.

The Ferryman of Ink World: Dong Qichang’s Calligraphy and Painting Art

December 7, 2018 to March 3, 2019 *

9am to 5pm (last entry at 4pm)

* The museum is closed every Monday

Free entry

Chinese Painting Gallery and Chinese Calligraphy Gallery

Shanghai Museum

201 Renmin Da Dao