Zhu Yunming was a famous calligrapher from the Ming dynasty who lived in modern-day Suzhou from 1461 to 1527. He wrote this impromptu poem called “Ode to Peony” about his peonies blossoming in his garden. The peony is a symbol of wealth and prosperity and emperors and important people used to grow it in ancient China. The scroll is 0.38m long and 9.25m wide and was on display in the Shanghai Museum back in 2013. He apparently had a wild and romantic style of cursive writing and this reminds me of Tony Leung’s character Broken Sword, the romantic assassin in the 2002 Chinese kungfu blockbuster movie “Hero”.
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