The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of October 7, 2026

A pair of hanging scrolls features columns of seven black-inked Chinese characters on cream paper. Loopy, undulating characters streak down the page, the ink occasionally thinning to grayed remnants. Two small red square stamps and a column of fine text accent the left scroll. The paper is mounted on cream-colored fabric with a subtle pattern, framed by top and bottom rollers.

Calligraphy couplet

after 1939

Wu Hufan

(Chinese, 1894–1968)
China
Pair of hanging scrolls; ink on paper
Overall (each): 174.6 x 39.4 cm (68 3/4 x 15 1/2 in.); calligraphy: 129.5 x 31.4 cm (51 x 12 3/8 in.)
Gift of the Gracious Pine Studio Collection 2025.191
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

A calligraphy couplet (duilian) was typically hung at the sides of a door or on pillars in the house.

Description

Wu Hufan was one of the most important artists, collectors, and connoisseurs of his time, active in Shanghai. The CMA owns at least 6 works that were inscribed by Wu Hufan and many more that bear his collector seals. Here he writes a couplet in his typical swift and delicate script style, referring to a paradise land where immortals dwell.
  • 1980s–2025
    Gracious Pine Studio collection, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2025–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Calligraphy couplet|url=false|author=Wu Hufan|year=after 1939|access-date=07 October 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2025.191