The Calligrapher — Shí Tāo 石涛

Qing monk-painter of free, individualist running script.

Qing calligrapher (), master of running script — individualist monk-artist of the Ming-Qing transition, brush guided by 'one stroke'. Qing dynasty

Cultural Story

代 is 人 with 弋, a man with a marking pole, to take the place of, a generation succeeding another. The 說文 reads it as to substitute. 朝代 were the dynasties that replaced each other; 世代 the lines of fathers. The character is the handoff, the son for the father, the era for the era, the deputy for the principal. Time, in Chinese, moves by replacement.

Common words & phrases

• 代表 represent · delegate
• 时代 era · age · time
• 代替 replace · substitute
• 现代 modern · contemporary
• 代理 agent · acting

Read the story behind the character

代表 is the delegate and the badge; 时代 the zeitgeist and the slogan. 代替 is the substitute teacher; 现代 the modern on every label. 代理 is the acting manager and the agency. The character names succession and stand-ins, the generation, the era, the person holding the place. It still means the relay of time and office, the man with the pole stepping into another's role.