The busyness of Shen Wansheng's military work can be imagined, but his enthusiasm for calligraphy has never diminished. It is difficult to go to the swimming pool for a whole period of time, so he reads and posts silently during the break. But every weekend or midnight, he often stays indoors in his room to avoid being disturbed by his relatives and friends, and lingers between his pen and Mo Yun, which almost leads to a sleepless night.
Shen Wansheng began to learn calligraphy from Wei and Jin Dynasties. He preferred the calligraphy styles of Qin and Han Dynasties, Ming and Qing Dynasties, and found a point of agreement with his own temperament. He was obsessed with the tradition of calligraphy, and in the repeated transformation of stone tablets, he developed a profound foundation of pen and ink. His absorption of excellent traditions is not limited to modeling, but emphasizes the grasp of "degree", insists on taking seclusion to win, and absorbs the needed nutrition in many ways.
Shen Wansheng's cursive script is better than others. Different from the current calligraphy style, his cursive works insist on pursuing the beauty of being heavy, clumsy and big, infecting the audience with a broad and heavy sense of strength, which embodies the calligrapher's pursuit of "magnificent" aesthetic ideal as a soldier. His book style is integrated with inscriptions, and his spirit is broad-minded. He is dignified, stuffy and vulgar in his free and easy life. Whether it is structure or lines, he is not used to the past, naturally without false decoration. At the same time, he pays attention to the rich changes of lines and ink colors, the avoidance of words, the vertical and horizontal combination of stippling, and the expression of emotions and spirits, thus making his works have strong visual tension and the spirit of the times. When he put pen to paper, he was full of waves, round and square, dry and moist, light and handsome, moist and charming, sometimes pale and ancient, sometimes quiet and gorgeous. Whether it is a masterpiece or a sketch, his books are full of frankness, simplicity and openness, and exude a strong literati atmosphere. The formation of his book style comes from his nature and methods in addition to the factors of cognition and skill. In his own words, this is a process of discovering and grasping oneself in the long-term search.
Shen Wansheng put calligraphy under the background of contemporary culture to think seriously and constantly expand his understanding of the connotation and extension of calligraphy. The restrained brushwork, the subtle beginning and ending, the resolute inner quality and Gu Zhuo's interest confirm his persistence in the characters. As the external expression of Confucianism, the strong bookish spirit is an important supporting factor of Shen Wansheng's calligraphy art, so his works give people a free and easy aesthetic feeling.