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Jao Tsung-I – courtesy name Bolian or Xuantang, pseudonym Gu'an – was born in Chaozhou, Guangdong. His father, Jao E, was a renowned scholar in Chaozhou and left behind a great volume of publications. Learning from his father at an early age, Jao started to compile his father’s posthumous work –Chaozhou Yi Wen Zhi (literally The Art and Literature of Chaozhou).
As a renowned historian, archaeologist, litterateur, educator, calligrapher and painter of the contemporary era, Prof. Jao Tsung-I is a versatile master in academia and art as well as a distinguished translator. For a long period of time, he has been committed to academic research, engaging in the fields of literature, history, philosophy and the arts. Over the course of an academic career spanning 60 years, he has conducted research across various fields including Dunhuang studies, the study of Oracle Bone Scripts, the study of Chu Ci, religious studies and Chinese studies, writing prodigiously about these various fields.
Jao’s outstanding contribution to academia earned him the Prix Stanislas Julien – a prize generally considered the ‘Nobel Prize of Sinology’ – in 1962, followed by many more honorary titles and accreditations. Jao was awarded the medal of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture, the Golden Dragon Award of Chinese Literature and Master of Chinese Culture by the Artists Association of the Hong Kong College of Foreign Studies. In 2000, he was awarded a Grand Bauhinia Medal by the Hong Kong SAR Government.
To recognise his accomplishments in terms of his Dunhuang studies, the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China and Gansu Provincial Government awarded him a Prize for Special Contributions to the Protection of Dunhuang Relics in the event In Commemoration of the Discovery of Dunhuang Library Cave and the 100th Anniversary of Dunhuang Studies. Jao also serves as a consultant for the working group of ancient books in the State Council of the People’s Republic of China.
The Jao Tsung-I Academic Seminar held in Chaozhou in 1996 was attended by nearly 100 scholars from the United States, France, Japan, Poland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. During the seminar, the term ‘Study of Jao’ was confirmed, thereby affirming Jao Tsung-I’s position in global academia.
His Chinese paintings comprise a wide variety of themes including landscapes, human figures, and flower-and-bird; some of his works emulate the traditional schools of painting while some are landscape sketches of the world’s beautiful scenery, and some are creations of his own. His calligraphy style is deeply rooted in ancient scripts. His running and cursive scripts integrate the bold and exuberant style of various schools of the late Ming Dynasty, whilst his clerical script embraces the best qualities of various other schools, in a highly individual style.
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