Zhao Mengfu's calligraphy became popular because of familiarity, which is Dong Qichang's evaluation. However, as an entry standard training, it is still good.
Zhao Mengfu and his wife, Guan Daosheng, are both disciples of Mingben monk in Zhongfeng (1263- 1323). Proficient in music, good at identifying ancient artifacts, beautiful and elegant poetry, especially good at calligraphy and painting. His calligraphy and calligraphy are both good at cursive script, and regular script and running script have the deepest attainments and the widest influence.
Zhao Mengfu was an influential calligrapher in the early Yuan Dynasty. "Biography of the History of Yuan Dynasty" records: "Meng Yi's calligraphy is the highest in ancient and modern times, so the title of the book is the world." Praise. According to Song Lian, a scholar, Zhao's calligraphy learned Lingling's Eight Intellectuals in his early years, Zhong You and Fairy in his middle years and books in his later years. Wang Shimao said: "Most of Wen Min's books are from the two kings (the sum of Xi and Xian). If you are close, you will win the right army; If you have an elegant attitude, you will get a big order; This calligraphy tablet is cool, imitating Li Beihai's "Yuelu" and "Miluo". " In addition, he also visited the Dingding Monument, Tang Yushi Temple, Chu Suiliang and others in the Yuan and Wei Dynasties. In seal script, he studied Shi Guwen and cursed Zhu Wen; Hu, Zhong You; Learning cursive script and offering sacrifices can strive to inherit the tradition. As Wen Jia said, "Gong Wei's calligraphy is superior to the ancients, and they are all imitations. Yu Ji called him: "Development won the" Luo Shenfu "and won its bid. Running script view "the preface to the holy teachings", into its room. As for cursive script, I am full of "seventeen posts" and measure its shape. "He is an accomplished calligrapher who combines Jin and Tang calligraphy. Contemporary calligraphers hold him in high esteem, and some later generations listed him as one of the four masters of regular script "Yan, Liu, Ou and Zhao". Dong Qichang, a painter and calligrapher in Ming Dynasty, believed that his calligraphy was directly oriented to Jin people. Zhao's success in calligraphy is inseparable from his ability to learn from other people's long sentences. What is particularly valuable is that most calligraphers in the Song and Yuan Dynasties were only good at lines and cursive scripts, while Zhao Mengfu was able to delve into various styles. Later generations, many people studied Zhao Mengfu's calligraphy, and Zhao Mengfu's calligraphy was very popular in Korea and Japan.