The first comprehensive exploration of Taiwanese artist Tong Yang-Tze’s five-decade career in Chinese calligraphy—arguably the only woman with this distinction.

As one of the most celebrated contemporary artists working exclusively in the art of writing, Tong Yang-Tze (b. 1942) pushes the boundaries of this traditional art form by creating monumental works that bring the Chinese script into three-dimensional space while integrating painterly strategies and preserving the essence of calligraphy.

This first-ever monograph not only documents Tong’s significant contributions to the field for over fifty years, but serves as a valuable resource for understanding Chinese calligraphy as a living, evolving art form. Featuring over eighty color plates, newly commissioned essays, an anthology of critical reviews, and an illustrated chronology, the volume showcases Tong’s unique achievements in bridging classical Chinese art and literature with contemporary modes of expression, and challenging perceptions of the art of writing in the modern world.

About The Author

Lesley Ma is the Ming Chu Hsu and Daniel Xu Curator, Department of Modern and Contemporary Art, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Eileen Cheng-yin Chow is a professor at Duke University and directs the Cheng Shewo Institute of Chinese Journalism at Shih Hsin University in Taipei. Shih Shou-Chien is an art historian at the Academia Sinica in Taiwan and former director of the National Palace Museum in Taipei.