Summary: This dissertation will argue that Wang Yiting applied traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy to social ends and expanded the visual, discursive, and social ranges of these art forms to include Japan. Wang's early career in international business enabled him to organize artistic, religious, and philanthropic projects that aimed at cultivating friendly ties between China and Japan while also furthering the interests that Wang held dear, such as the strengthening of China as a nation, the preservation and development of China's traditional art, the promotion of Buddhism as a means of universal salvation, and the relief of the unfortunate. Wang pursued these projects while privately cultivating ties with many influential Japanese, making traditional painting and calligraphy the basis of many of his exchanges with them. Wang thus combined interests in commerce, art, religion, and philanthropy, becoming an artistic entrepreneur who was not only an accomplished painter and calligrapher but also an influential organizer of commercial, charitable, religious, and artistic projects.