[Pu Xinyu; ming Ru; hao Xishan Yishi; studio name Hanyutang] (b Beijing, Jul 24, 1896; d Taipei, Nov 18, 1963). Chinese painter, calligrapher, and poet. P’u was a descendant of the Qing imperial line (1644–1911), and his life was adversely affected by the fall of the dynasty—a situation attested by one of his favorite seals, jiuwangsun (former prince). He started practicing calligraphy at the age of 4 and received a classical education at the age of 6. His calligraphy modeled the upright regular script of the Tang-era monk Guifeng’s Stele, and after the age of 17, during a retreat to the Jietai Temple outside Beijing, he befriended an older monk, Monk Yongguang (or Haiyin, 1861–1924), whose calligraphy style P’u appreciated and studied in order to loosen up his own. Eventually, he mastered all kinds of calligraphy styles. Meanwhile, he copied paintings of ancient masters in the family collection, starting with the works of the Four Wangs (early Qing), then works from the 10th-century Dong-Ju tradition, then the 13th-century artists Ma Yuan, Xia Gui, and Liu Songnian, and the 16th-century Wu School masters. His prose style emulated Six Dynasties–era prose, which placed emphasis on parallelism, ornateness, tonal and grammatical balance, rhyme, and abundant literary allusions....