In Chinese tradition there was considered to be a conflict between art and the military - they seemed to have nothing in common. Art and calligraphy were for intellectuals and the nobility who had leisure, not for generals.But the old thinking has been changed, and the calligraphy of 151 People's Liberation Army generals will be exhibited in Shanghai from Sunday to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the founding of PLA on August 1, 1927.The exhibition opens on July 29-August 10 at Shanghai Art Museum, 325 Nanjing Rd W.The average age of the military men is 79. Most are generals and commanders who fought in wars and conflicts.Fang Qiang, a founding lieutenant general, is the eldest calligrapher at 97 years old. He still practices calligraphy. He wears his old uniform and sleeps on a hard board bed, just as he did in the army.As he writes, the old man's hand shakes and he has to stop for a while after completing just one character. It took him almost an hour to complete his calligraphy, says Zhang Liming, a journalist and organizer of the exhibition.One special work was created by another founding lieutenant general, Bao Xianzhi, who died in 1988. His grandson Bao Chengcheng sent his grandfather's work after he heard of the show."My grandpa was battle-scarred. He loved the army, so he would be very happy to know that his work could be shown in this exhibition," says the son.Zhang says the participating generals are very strict about their writing. Wang Chengbing, a former commander from Beijing, even called to ask his work sent back because he was not satisfied with it. He later perfected it and returned it.Though written by different generals in different styles, the calligraphy conveys a single message of the glorious course of the PLA over the past 80 years.Some generals' calligraphy will be displayed in museums and art galleries.