The Spirit of Autobiography, inspired from Autobiography, the world-famous running script masterpiece produced by Tang dynasty monk Huaisu, is the world’s very first calligraphy virtual reality installation. In the original calligraphic masterpiece, Huaisu excerpts poetic praise given to him by his contemporaries, who compare his calligraphy to images in nature. A famous segment, “my brush varies as the snake glides poised into his post, or thrashes in tune with the windstorm upon the walls,” captures the changing rhythm in Huaisu’s brushwork.

In the virtual reality installation, the calligraphic text transforms rapidly from dragons and snakes into a storm. A dancer dances slowly in the diaphanous mist between water and sky, using his dance forms to interpret the speed and strength behind the calligraphy. Finally,users can pick up the virtual brush and practice writing calligraphy.