“To err is human.” Even the most revered calligraphers throughout history were not immune to mistakes in the act of writing. Mistaken characters, omissions, transposed characters, and errors can all be found in surviving works. In Japan, there is even a proverb that says, “Even Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai) makes mistakes in writing.” Imperfections in calligraphic works were once often overlooked, yet such flaws are also evidence of the work's authenticity. As Tai Ching-nung (1902-1990) once joked about his own calligraphy, “A work is only genuine if it contains a slip of the brush.”  The presence of errors often better reveals the writer's thoughts, rhythm, and emotions at the very moment of inscription.
 
In today's digital age, opportunities for handwriting have steadily diminished, gradually replaced by keyboards and screens. As the art of writing, calligraphy can sometimes feel unapproachable if considered solely through abstract formal elements such as penmanship, structure, or composition. Yet calligraphy is not only an art form; it is also a medium for conveying language and meaning. Since the Chinese writing system has remained fundamentally unchanged, contemporary audiences are still able to read the contents of these works and recognize mistakes and revisions. These so-called “mistaken characters” therefore offer a compelling point of entry into the appreciation of calligraphic art.
 
This exhibition is structured into four sections, each using mistaken characters as a lens through which viewers may engage with the textual content of calligraphic works. It begins by introducing seeming errors that are in fact variant characters, phonetic loan characters, taboo substitutions, or conventional calligraphic usages and added strokes. It then examines different types of writing errors found in the past, along with various methods of correction, enabling viewers to decipher the hidden codes of revision embedded within manuscripts and calligraphic works. The exhibition further explores the development of Chinese orthography, introducing educational materials for literacy and handwriting in ancient times, as well as the establishment of officially standardized scripts. Finally, it presents celebrated masterpieces of classical calligraphy whose mistakes and corrections, rather than diminishing their artistic value, instead heighten the authenticity of the brushwork and reveal the human warmth inherent in the act of writing.