The Seven Sages of Bamboo Forest talked about the late Cao Wei of the Three Kingdoms, when politics was dark. Some literati refused to go with the flow and quit the officialdom one after another, leading a bohemian life. At that time, Dan Tao, Ruan Ji, Ji Kang, Xiang Xiu, Liu Ling, Ruan Xian and Wang Rong made friends in seclusion. They often meet in the bamboo forest, drink and recite poems, and are known as the "Seven Sages of Bamboo Forest".
Fan Ceng's Seven Sages of Bamboo Forest has a fresh and handsome picture style, novel and generous composition, and ingenious and simple expression. The seven sages and two boys in the painting are leisurely on the rocks. Characters are static or dynamic, and they are born with it. The sound of reciting words is still in my ears. The people in the painting are fresh, lively, energetic and touching, which are all described in Mr. Fan Ceng's works. Gu Song meandered behind, as if listening. Character performance is still teacher Fan's typical style, mainly lines, slightly dizzy, and the facial expression is vivid and peaceful. The use of ink for the lines of the rock is obviously aggravated, and the distance between the lines and the characters is opened to show the heavy feeling of the rock, and the tree method is between the two. It is rare to express the texture with ink painting in this way. Mr. Fan Ceng showed a master's demeanor in creating the environment. Within a few feet, he showed an extremely open space, which is of course directly related to his brushwork. This calligraphy brush is even-handed, and the momentum that comes from splitting the air reaches the top of the mountain, and the pen is amazing without any tension. Painting sand is like a cone, not frivolous, like leakage, heavy and subtle. The center hits both sides, as heavy as a falling stone, as light as a beam, and combines rigidity and softness. Its ink is essays, light as fog and thick as eyes.