Wang Shouren, who was a native of Yuyao, Zhejiang province, was a successful statesman, philosopher and calligrapher. After passing the jinshi examination in 1499, he intermittently led military campaigns against rebels and criminals in the south, served as provincial governor and wrote and lectured. His primary philosophic principles focused on the importance and development of the individual intuitive mind. His suggestion that knowledge and action are inextricably linked influenced both later Japanese and 20th century Chinese thought.

Following tradition, Wang Shouren began his study of calligraphy by copying the works of ancient masters. His early writing was especially influenced by Wang Xizhi, Li Yong and Huang Tingjian. An example from this early period is his Account of the Unshabby Pavilion, dated to 1508-9, in the Tokyo National Museum. Later Wang developed a more individual style, excelling in running script calligraphy, and the belief that through calligraphy one could view the inner mind of the writer. The Art Museum of Princeton University contains three letters written in running script by Wang probably during the mid-1520's from the collection of Mrs. Edward Elliott (Wen C. Fong, et al, Images of the Mind, no. 22).