The author of this famous quote is Dong Qichang.
"Traveling thousands of miles, reading thousands of books", this sentence comes from Dong Qichang's "Painting Purpose" of the Ming Dynasty. The interpretation is: If a person wants to increase his knowledge, he must travel thousands of miles and read thousands of books. But the explanation in ancient times is different: reading ten thousand volumes of books means "going to Beijing to take the exam and get a title on the gold list." Traveling thousands of miles means "entering the court, becoming an official, and entering the official career."
When it comes to the history of Chinese painting, Dong Qichang's theory of "Northern and Southern Sects" has influenced later generations for hundreds of years. Dong Qichang's achievements made him the highest authority in the Ming Dynasty painting circle and had a profound impact on the development of painting in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In addition, Dong Qichang's calligraphy is also outstanding, and he can be said to be the best in the calligraphy world of the Ming Dynasty.