Introduction to various calligraphy styles

1: Oracle bone inscriptions

The name of a calligraphy style of ancient Chinese characters is also the oldest existing Chinese writing. It was carved on oracle bones and was first used for divination (people in the Yin Dynasty used tortoise shells and animal bones for divination. After the divination, the divination period, the name of the diviner, and the divination matters were carved with a knife next to the divination, and some even put the date of the divination a certain number of days in the future. Good and bad fortunes are also engraved on it. Scholars call this kind of record a divination, which is a divination of the outcome of future events and was popular in the Yin and Shang Dynasties. Oracle bone inscriptions were discovered in 1889. They are records of royal divination in the late Yin and Shang Dynasties. They were discovered in the Xiaotun Village area of ??Anyang, Henan Province, more than 3,000 years ago. Oracle bone inscriptions are the first treasures in the history of Chinese calligraphy. The writing techniques have changed in thickness, weight, and speed. The strokes are light and fast, the strokes are thick and heavy, and the strokes are closed quickly and quickly, with a certain sense of rhythm. The turning points of the strokes are both square and round, the square ones are dynamic and sharp, and the round ones are soft and smooth. Its lines are more harmonious and smooth than pottery inscriptions, setting the tone and rhythm for the unique line art of Chinese calligraphy. The oracle bone inscriptions are rectangular in shape, establishing the shape of Chinese characters. The structure of the oracle bone inscriptions changes with the shape of the body, allowing it to be natural. Its compositions vary in size, square and round, long and flat according to the shape, scattered and harmonious. The so-called writing principles of Chinese characters such as staggered and staggered, interspersed and avoided, echoing of court bows, and heaven and earth are covered by the oracle bone inscriptions have been generally implemented in oracle bone inscriptions.

2: Bronze Inscriptions

The name of a calligraphy style in ancient Chinese characters. A general term for the inscription fonts on bronze vessels during the Shang, Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn, and Warring States periods. It flourished in the Zhou Dynasty. Bronze inscriptions are another monument in the history of Chinese calligraphy. Attached to the bronze ware, the tripod was intended to "make the people aware of the treachery of gods", so it was a ritual vessel for religious sacrifices. Bronze inscriptions are also called bell and tripod inscriptions, vessel inscriptions and ancient bronze inscriptions. The lines of the inscriptions cast together with the bronzes are thicker and more powerful than the oracle bone inscriptions, and the pictographic meaning of the words is also stronger. The earliest bronze inscriptions were found on the bronzes unearthed in the middle of the Shang Dynasty. Although there is not much information, they are older than the Yin Ruins oracle bone inscriptions. morning. The Zhou Dynasty was the golden age of bronze inscriptions, with the largest number of unearthed inscriptions.

The main works of this period include: "Li Gui", "Heavenly Death Gui", "Big Cup Tripod", "Wall Plate", "Sanshi Plate" and "Guo Jizi White Plate". In particular, "Simuwu Ding", "Sanshi Pan" and "Mao Gong Ding" are the most famous and have the highest artistic achievements.

3: Stone inscriptions

Stone inscriptions originated in the Zhou Dynasty and flourished in the Qin Dynasty. The Qin State carved stone characters during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. Each of the 10 granite drum-shaped stones is engraved with a four-character poem, which sings about the hunting situation of the king of Qin, so it is also called hunting tablets. The earliest stone carving in the legend is the "Si Stele" from the Xia Dynasty. The style of the carved poems is similar to that of the "Book of Songs". The font is close to the text contained in "Shuowen Jiezi", and his calligraphy has always been highly praised. The main works include: "Shiguwen", "Yishan Stone Carvings", "Taishan Stone Carvings", "Langya Stone Carvings", "Kuiji Stone Carvings", etc.

4: Ink on bamboo slips and silk slips

Authenticity is the most important in the art of calligraphy, but authentic calligraphy before the Qin and Han Dynasties can generally only be seen in bamboo slips and silk alliance books. Ancient bamboo slips were mainly made of bamboo, and the ropes for compilation were made of beef tendon, silk thread, and hemp rope. The earliest ink marks on bamboo slips and silks discovered by archeology include the Qin bamboo slips unearthed in Yunmeng, Hubei Province, the Warring States alliance script unearthed in Houma, Shanxi (the alliance letter is the text written on stone or jade), and the Warring States silk scroll unearthed in Mawangdui, Changsha. Chinese calligraphy is based on oracle bone inscriptions and bronze inscriptions. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, due to the separation of princes, writing since the Yin and Shang Dynasties has embarked on different development paths in the princely countries. During this period, the form and technique of calligraphy also showed a kind of contention among a hundred schools of thought. situation. For example, the "tadpole script" of the Jin Dynasty in the north and the "bird script" of Wu, Yue, Chu, Cai and other countries have many twists and turns and long tails. The bronze inscriptions of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period are no longer as thick as those of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Instead, they have a slender body, showing a kind of roundness and beauty, such as "Fuchi Jian of the King of Wu". A large number of ink marks remain from this period, including slips, silks, alliance letters, etc.

The pioneering calligraphy of the Qin Dynasty

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the writing styles of various countries were very different, which was a major obstacle to the development of economy and culture. After Qin Shihuang unified the country, Prime Minister Li Si presided over the unification of the national script, which was a great achievement in the history of Chinese culture. The characters written after the unification of the Qin Dynasty are called Qin seal scripts, also called small seal scripts. They are based on the bronze inscriptions and stone drum inscriptions, deleting the complex ones and simplifying them. The famous calligrapher Li Si presided over the compilation of Xiaozhuan. "Yishan Stone Carvings", "Taishan Stone Carvings", "Langya Stone Carvings" and "Kuiji Stone Carvings" were all written by Li Si. It has been highly praised throughout the ages. The Qin Dynasty was a period of change of inheritance and innovation. "Shuowen Jie Zi Preface" says: "Qin Shu has eight styles, one is called large seal script, the second is called small seal script, the third is called engraved symbols, the fourth is called insect script, the fifth is called copy seal, the sixth is called signed script, the seventh is called script, and the eighth is called "official script." basically summarizes the appearance of fonts at this time. From Li Siqin's small seal script, the seal script was harsh and inconvenient to write, so the official script appeared. "Official script is the best of seal script." Its purpose is to facilitate writing. By the Western Han Dynasty, official script had completed its transformation from seal script to official script. The structure changed from vertical to horizontal, and the undulations of the lines became more obvious. The emergence of official script is a great progress in Chinese character writing and a revolution in the history of calligraphy. It not only makes Chinese characters more square and upright, but also breaks through the single center stroke in brushwork, laying the foundation for various calligraphy schools in the future. In addition to the above-mentioned masterpieces of calligraphy, the Qin Dynasty also had edicts, quantities, tiles, currency and other texts in different styles. The calligraphy of the Qin Dynasty left a glorious page in the history of Chinese calligraphy. It was magnificent and pioneering.

Seeking degree and pursuing rhyme - Eastern Han Dynasty to Southern and Northern Dynasties

Calligraphy of the Two Han Dynasties

The calligraphy of the Two Han Dynasties is divided into two major forms of expression, one is the mainstream system of Han stone carvings; It is a sub-stream system of Wadang seal seals and ink marks on bamboo slips and silk alliance documents. "Since the late Han Dynasty, tablets and tablets have appeared," which is a sign of the maturity of the Han Dynasty. Among the cliff carvings (texts carved on the cliff), "Ode to the Stone Gate" is the most famous, and is regarded as a "divine product" by calligraphers. At the same time, Cai Shar's "Jiaping Stone Classic" met the requirements of restoring ancient official script and regular script. Inscriptions are the most important art form that reflects the time and charm of the times. Among them, "Fenglong Mountain", "Ode to the West", "Kongzhou", "Yiying", "Shichen", "Zhang Qian", "Cao" All the steles in "Complete" are especially praised and imitated by later generations. It can be said that each monument has its own uniqueness, and none are the same. The books in the north are majestic and beautiful, while the books in the south are simple and ancient, reflecting the different aesthetic pursuits of the "scholar" and "common" classes. As for the Wadang seal and the bamboo slips and silk alliance documents, they embody the marriage of artistry and practicality.

The flourishing period of calligraphy art began in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Special calligraphy theoretical works appeared during the Eastern Han Dynasty. The earliest calligraphy theory proposer was Yang Xiong at the turn of the Eastern and Western Han Dynasties. The first theoretical monograph on calligraphy was "Cursive Script Shi" by Cui Yuan during the Eastern Han Dynasty.

The calligraphers of the Han Dynasty can be divided into two categories: one is the Han official calligraphers, represented by Cai Yong. The first type is cursive calligraphers, represented by Du Du, Cui Yuan and Zhang Zhi. Zhang Zhi is called the "Sage of Cursive Calligraphy" by later generations.

The calligraphy that best represents the characteristics of Han Dynasty calligraphy is the calligraphy on inscriptions and slips. There are many inscriptions in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The inscriptions of this period were carved with Han official script, with square characters, strict rules and clear waves. At this time, official script has reached its peak.

Cursive script was created in the Han Dynasty. The birth of cursive script is of great significance in the history of the development of calligraphy art. It marks the beginning of calligraphy becoming an art that can express emotions with a high degree of freedom and express the calligrapher's personality. The initial stage of cursive script was Caoli. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Caoli further developed and formed Zhangcao. Later, Zhang Zhi founded Jincao, that is, cursive script.

Calligraphy Art of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties

1: Three Kingdoms Period

During the Three Kingdoms period, the official script began to decline from its peak status in the Han Dynasty to regular script, and regular script became the standard of calligraphy art. Another subject. Regular script, also known as Zhengshu and Zhenshu, was created by Zhong Yao. It was during the Three Kingdoms period that regular script entered the history of stone carving. "Jian Ji Zhi Biao" from the Three Kingdoms (Wei) period. "Declaration Form" and so on have become the treasures of EMI.

2: The Two Jin Dynasties

In the Jin Dynasty, "elegance" and "elegance" were advocated in life and affairs. In art, they pursued the beauty of neutrality and simplicity. Calligraphy masters emerged in large numbers, and there were many slippers. Wang (Wang Xizhi. Wang Xianzhi)'s elegant and elegant artistic taste catered to the requirements of scholar-bureaucrats. People increasingly realized that writing also had an aesthetic value. The calligrapher who best represents the spirit of the Wei and Jin Dynasties and is the most influential in the history of calligraphy is Wang Xizhi, known as the "Sage of Calligraphy". Wang Xizhi's "Lanting Preface" in running script is known as "the best running script in the world". Commentators say that the writing style is as floating as floating clouds and as powerful as a startling dragon. His son Wang Xianzhi's "Luo Shen Fu" has strong calligraphy and "broken body". " and "One Stroke Calligraphy" have made great contributions to the history of calligraphy. With the support of calligraphy families such as Lu Ji, Wei Jin, Suo Jing, Wang Dao, Xie An, Jian Liang, etc., Southern Calligraphy is quite prosperous. In the Southern Dynasty, Yang Xin of the Song Dynasty, Wang Sengqian of the Qi Dynasty, Xiao Ziyun of the Liang Dynasty, and Chen Zhiyong all followed in his footsteps.

When calligraphy in the Jin Dynasty was at its peak, it was mainly reflected in running script, which is a font between cursive script and regular script. His representative works are "Three Hopes", namely "Bo Yuan Tie", "Quick Snow and Shi Qing Tie" and "Mid-Autumn Tie".

3: Northern and Southern Dynasties Period

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Chinese calligraphy art entered the era of northern stele and southern calligraphy.

The Northern Wei Dynasty and the Eastern Wei Dynasty are the most exquisite calligraphy on stele inscriptions in the Northern Dynasties, and their styles are also diverse. His representative works include "Zhang Menglong Monument" and "Respecting the Envoy Monument". The representative works among the inscriptions include: "Zhencao Qianziwen". In the Northern Dynasty, there were many engraved stones to praise the ancestors and reveal the family property. For example, the northern stele and the southern inscription, the northern regular script and the southern line, the northern people and the southern soil, and the northern Xiong and the southern show are all differences in foundation.

As for the representative work of the northern and southern schools, it is Nanliang's "He Ming". The "Zheng Wengong Stele" of the Northern Wei Dynasty can be said to be a double star of the north and the south. Most of the writers of the northern school were common people, and the books were unnamed. Therefore, they were crowned in calligraphy and were known as the "Saints of the Book". The northern school Wang Youjun.

Seeking regulations and elevating laws - Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties

Sui Dynasty calligraphy

The Sui Dynasty ended the chaos of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, unified China, and the subsequent Tang Dynasty was relatively stable During the period, the development of Nantiebeistele in the Sui Dynasty was mixed with the same stream, and the form of regular script was officially completed, occupying the position of inheriting the past and linking the future in the history of calligraphy. Sui Kai inherits the history of Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. Under the new rules of the Tang Dynasty, there are some tablets left in the Sui Dynasty, most of which are real books, divided into four styles:

1: "Qifa Temple Stele" by Pingzheng Chun and Ruding Daohu, etc.< /p>

2: Strict and orderly, such as "Dong Meiren's Epitaph", etc.

3: Deep and round, such as "Xinxing Zen Master's Pagoda Inscription", etc.

4: Beautiful and beautiful It is as thin and tall as the "Longzang Temple Stele".

The Tang Dynasty when calligraphy flourished

1: Introduction to Tang Dynasty calligraphy

The culture of the Tang Dynasty was profound, profound and brilliant, reaching the highest peak of Chinese feudal culture. It can be said that "the book reached its peak in the early Tang Dynasty". More ink writings from the Tang Dynasty have been handed down to this day than from previous generations, and a large number of tablets have left behind valuable calligraphy works. The calligraphy of the entire Tang Dynasty was both inheritance and innovation from the previous generation.

The development of regular script, running script, and cursive script in the Tang Dynasty has entered a new realm. The characteristics of the era are very prominent, and the impact on future generations far exceeds that of any previous era.

In the early Tang Dynasty, when the country was strong, calligraphy emerged from the regular script inherited from the Six Dynasties, and everyone used Ouyang Xun. Yu Shinan. Chu Suiliang, Xue Ji and Ouyang Tong are the four mainstream calligraphers. The overall characteristics are rigorous and neat in structure, so later generations have said that "Tang Dynasty emphasizes the intervening frame" in calligraphy. It was respected as "the crown of calligraphy and calligraphy" in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, and Confucianism and Taoism were combined. Li Yong changed the right army's approach and became unique. Zhang Xu, Huaisu pushed the expression form of cursive script to the extreme with his crazy and drunken state, Sun Guoting was famous for his elegant cursive script, Yu Ruhe Zhizhang, and Li Longji also strived to create a new realm of sincerity, straightforwardness, and rich character. However, Yan Zhenqing took the ancient method into the new meaning and created the new method out of the ancient meaning. Dong Qichang said that the people of the Tang Dynasty took the method from the calligraphy, and the Duke of Lu was very prepared. In the late Tang and Five Dynasties, the country's power declined and Shen passed on his master. Liu Gongquan changed his style again. Show off your pride by being thin and strong. This further enriched Tang Kai's method, and by the Five Dynasties, Yang Ningshi also took advantage of Yanliu's strengths. The two kings of Shanggui took a sideways approach and exerted all their efforts, so they only showed signs of peace at the time of chaos, which was also a reflection of the Tang Dynasty. During the Five Dynasties, the trend of Kuang Zen was very popular, which also affected the calligraphy world. Although "Kuan Zen calligraphy" did not show its scale in the Five Dynasties, it had a great influence on the calligraphy of the Song Dynasty.

The calligraphy art of the Tang Dynasty can be divided into three periods: the early Tang Dynasty, the middle Tang Dynasty and the late Tang Dynasty. The early Tang Dynasty focused on inheritance, respected laws and regulations, and deliberately pursued the beauty of Jin Dynasty calligraphy. The Middle Tang Dynasty continued to innovate and was extremely prosperous. Calligraphy in the late Tang Dynasty also made progress.

There were six highest schools of learning in the Tang Dynasty, namely Imperial College, Imperial College, Four Schools, Legal Studies, Calligraphy, and Arithmetic. Among them, calligraphy, which specializes in cultivating calligraphers and calligraphy theorists, was a pioneering work of the Tang Dynasty. Throughout the dynasties, famous figures emerged in large numbers, shining like stars. For example, Ouyang Xun, Yu Shinan, Chu Suiliang, etc. in the early Tang Dynasty; Yan Zhenqing, Liu Gongquan, etc. in the middle Tang Dynasty are all great calligraphers. In the late Tang Dynasty, there were Wang Wenbing's seal script, Li E's regular script and Yang Ningshi's "Er Wang Yanliu" aftertaste.

The calligraphy of the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties can be divided into three stages

(1) Sui Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty

The Sui Dynasty unified China and integrated the culture and art of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. By the early Tang Dynasty, when politics was prosperous, the art of calligraphy gradually emerged from the legacy of the Six Dynasties and appeared in a new form. In the early Tang Dynasty, regular script was the mainstream, and its general characteristic was a rigorous and orderly structure.

(2): The prosperous Tang Dynasty and the mid-Tang Dynasty

Calligraphy in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, like the social form at that time, pursued a romantic and oblivious way. Such as "Dian Zhang Zuisu" (Zhang Xu, Huai Su)'s wild cursive writing and Li Yong's running script. In the mid-Tang Dynasty, regular script once again made new breakthroughs. With Yan Zhenqing as the representative, he laid the standard for regular script, established an example, and became orthodox. At this point, all Chinese calligraphy styles have been determined.

(3): The legacy of the Tang Dynasty remains in the late Tang and Five Dynasties periods

In 907 AD, the separatist Zhu Quanzhong destroyed the Tang Dynasty and established the Later Liang Dynasty, which led to the Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, and Later The Zhou Dynasty is called the Five Dynasties. Due to the country's weakness and chaos, culture and art are also on a downward trend. Although the art of calligraphy continued from the late Tang Dynasty, it has formed a general trend of decline due to the influence of war and war. During the Five Dynasties, Yang Ning style was worthy of praise in calligraphy. His calligraphy was a mainstay during the Five Dynasties when calligraphy was in decline. There are also accomplished calligraphers such as Li Yu and Yan Xiu. At this point, the upright and rigorous calligraphy style of the Tang Dynasty had ceased. Later, the "Four Schools" of the Northern Song Dynasty followed and set off a new wave of the times.

Advocating meaning and expressing love - from Song to Ming dynasty

Calligraphy in the Song Dynasty

Song Dynasty calligraphy advocating meaning is the result of Zhu Da's advocacy of Neo-Confucianism, and the connotation of meaning. It contains four points: the first level of philosophy, the second level of bookishness, the third level of stylization, and the fourth level of artistic conception expression, while mediating personalization and originality in calligraphy creation. These are reflected in calligraphy. If the admiration of law in the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties is a manifestation of the pursuit of "work", then by the Song Dynasty, calligraphy began to appear in front of the world in a new look of advocating meaning and lyricism. This means that in addition to the two levels of "naturalness" and "gongfu", calligraphers also need to have "knowledge", that is, "book style". The four schools of the Northern Song Dynasty changed the appearance of Tang Kaikai. Directly following the tradition of Jin Dynasty calligraphy.

Whether it is the talented Cai Xiang or Su Dongpo who comes up with new ideas, or Huang Tingjian who highly values ??the ancients, or Xiao Sanqi's Mi Fu, they all strive to express their own calligraphy style while highlighting the Taking an unconventional attitude makes the intellectual spirit flourish in the pen and ink, and gives people a new aesthetic artistic conception. This is what Wu Shuo, Zhao Ji and Lu You in the Southern Song Dynasty wrote. Fan Chengda, Zhu Xi, Wen Tianxiang and other calligraphers further extended their calligraphy skills. However, the knowledge and writing skills of the calligraphers of the Southern Song Dynasty can no longer be compared with those of the four calligraphers of the Northern Song Dynasty. The representative calligraphers of the Song Dynasty are Su, Huang, Mi and Cai.

The art of calligraphy in the Yuan Dynasty

In the early Yuan Dynasty, the economic and cultural development was not great. The general situation of calligraphy was that it advocated retrospection and the patriarchal Jin and Tang dynasties with little innovation. Although politically the Yuan Dynasty was ruled by a foreign race, culturally it was assimilated by Han culture. Different from the Song Dynasty's informal pursuit of artistic conception, the Yuan Dynasty's intention was manifested in the pursuit of open-ended beauty that was deliberately seeking work, so what Su Shi advertised was " "I can't create the meaning of my calligraphy." Zhao Mengfu advocated that "using a pen is not easy through the ages." The former pursues the meaning of straightforwardness, and only later emphasizes the meaning of intentionality. The core figure in the calligraphy world of the Yuan Dynasty was Zhao Mengfu, who founded the regular script "Zhao style" and the European style of Tang regular script. Face and body.

Liu style is also known as the four styles and has become the main calligraphy style followed by later generations. Since Zhao Mengfu's calligraphy thoughts are definitely not one step ahead of the two kings, his calligraphy has a unique understanding of the essence of the Wang style calligraphy and expresses it. His style and appearance are "gentle and elegant" and "exquisite and elegant", which is also consistent with his belief in Buddhism. There is a certain connection between aesthetics tending towards an elegant and transcendental state and obtaining a kind of spiritual liberation. Also famous in the calligraphy circles of the Yuan Dynasty were Xian Yushu and Deng Wenyuan. Although their achievements were not as good as those of Zhao Mengfu, they also had their own uniqueness in calligraphy style. They advocated the same method of calligraphy and painting, paying attention to the posture of knotting characters.

Looking at the calligraphy of the Yuan Dynasty, the characteristic of the calligraphy of the Yuan Dynasty is "upholding the ancient calligraphy", and its greatest achievements are in cursive writing. As for seal script and official script, although there are several famous ones, they are not very outstanding. This kind of calligraphy, with running and cursive script as the mainstream, did not change until the Qing Dynasty. The calligraphy style of the Yuan Dynasty still followed the Song Dynasty and flourished in calligraphy studies, and the Tang and Jin Dynasties. Although each has its own merits, it cannot be established in the calligraphy world as a family. Compared with literature, painting and other art categories, it is still far less accomplished.

The art of calligraphy in the Ming Dynasty

The development of calligraphy in the Ming Dynasty can be divided into three stages:

1: The first stage - the early Ming Dynasty

< p>In the early Ming Dynasty, calligraphy was "uniform" and "Taige style" was popular. The brothers Shen Duxuecan added fuel to the fire and pushed the stable small regular script to the extreme. "Every gold-printed jade book is used by the imperial court, stored in the secret palace, and issued to the country as a must-do book." Erchen calligraphy was promoted as the regular standard for imperial examinations. Calligraphers in the early Ming Dynasty included Liu Ji who was good at cursive script, Song Lian who was good at small regular script, Song Sui who was good at seal script and Zhu Ke who was famous all over the world. and the "three sons" Zhu Yunming, Wen Huiming, and Wang Chong.

2: The second stage - Mingzhong

In the middle of Ming Dynasty, the four Wuzhong schools rose up, and calligraphy began to develop in the direction of Shangtai. The four sons, Zhu Yunming, Wen Zhengming, Tang Yin and Wang Chong, followed Zhao Meng and went to the Jin and Tang Dynasties, and adopted the best methods; their writing styles were also unparalleled. This is related to the development and liberation of ideological concepts at that time, and calligraphy began to enter a new realm of advocating individualization.

3: The third stage - the late Ming Dynasty

In the late Ming Dynasty, a trend of critical thought emerged in the calligraphy circle. In calligraphy, large-scale and shocking visual effects were pursued, and the trend was taken from the side. The original order of calligraphy began to disintegrate due to horizontal scribbling and vertical scribbling, which filled the paper with smoke. These representative calligraphers include Zhang Ruitu, Huang Daozhou, Wang Duo, Ni Yuanrui, etc. Dong Qichang, the Tie Xuedian army leader, still adhered to the traditional position.

Lyric expression and promotion of rationality - from the middle Ming Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty

In the late Ming and Qing Dynasties, the main aesthetic trend took lyricism and promotion of rationality as its banner, the pursuit of individuality and the promotion of rationality combined with each other, orthodox classical aesthetics It thrives alongside new aesthetics that seek differentiation. The overall tendency of calligraphy in the Qing Dynasty was to emphasize quality, and it was divided into two major development periods: calligraphy and stele studies.

The unrestrained writing and ink in the calligraphy world in the late Ming Dynasty was endlessly wild. The cynical ethos further extended in the early Qing Dynasty. The works of people such as Zhu Fushan still showed their inner life and an unstoppable emotional expression. This point was repeated again in the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" in the mid-term. At the same time, the late Ming Dynasty's Tie tradition was further promoted. Jiang Ying, Zhang Zhao, Liu Yong, Wang Wenzhi, Liang Tongshu, Weng Fanggang and others, while deliberately respecting the tradition, tried to show a new look, or wrote in light ink, Or change the organizational structure, etc. However, because Tie Xue has been passed down for a long time and has not been properly cleaned up, understood, and adjusted, certain accumulated shortcomings have become increasingly deepened, which has inevitably led to the decline of Tie Xue.

At this time, more and more epigraphy and stones were unearthed, and the scholar-bureaucrats turned from being keen on rulers and tablets to engaging in the study of textual research on epigraphy. For a time, both inside and outside the court, the study of monuments followed suit, and finally became the mainstream of calligraphy in the Qing Dynasty. Together with Ruan Yuan and Bao Shichen. Kang Youwei vigorously promoted that the study of stele existed as a calligraphy system that competed with the study of calligraphy. Famous calligraphers at that time, such as Jin Nong, Deng Shiru, He Shaoji, Zhao Zhiqian, Wu Changshuo, Zhang Yuzhao, Kang Youwei, etc., all used the meaning of the stele in writing and painting, achieving the goal of exhausting their souls and principles. A dazzling situation. It can be said to be a unique landscape of Chinese calligraphy culture. If the desire of the stele scholars to find quality has not been realized, then this desire has been realized in the stele studies.

Modern Fashion - Today's Calligraphy

As the calligraphy world becomes diversified today, the art of calligraphy has been elevated to a high level of conceptual change, which is undoubtedly a big step forward. The modernity of calligraphy does not simply depend on the form, structure, lines and other external aspects of calligraphy art, but on the modernization of the inner spirit. The spirit of calligraphy modernity refers to the value trend of modern society embodied and transmitted by contemporary calligraphy art.

Calligraphy has wide practicality

The most basic activity of learning calligraphy is writing, and the primary purpose of writing is to remember things and communicate feelings. The minimum requirement is to write the words in a standardized way. , neat and clear, making people happy to read it. If the words are written in a messy manner, or even randomly made up words as they please, it will be like interpreting "heavenly books" and cannot be recognized by readers, and it will lose its practical value. Some people think that writing with a brush is not as convenient as using a hard pen. Hard pens can completely replace the brush, and you can only learn calligraphy by writing with brushes. Some people think that calligraphy is the preserve of "geniuses" and "we are not made to learn calligraphy." Especially some older friends, bound by the outdated thinking of "no one should learn calligraphy after thirty", believe that it is too late to learn calligraphy. Some people think that calligraphy is mysterious and unpredictable, the spirit cannot be described, the form is difficult to express, and good things are difficult to achieve. All these ideas are undesirable, because there are rules when it comes to writing, especially when there are many occasions where there is no "facade" of calligraphy, which is absolutely unacceptable.

For example, trademarks, advertisements, slogans, couplets, calligraphy and painting banners, etc. are all inseparable from calligraphy. It is undeniable that it is convenient and quick to use pens, ballpoint pens and other tools to set calligraphy, but no matter what tool you use to write, the rules for writing are basically the same as using a brush, so you should learn calligraphy no matter how you write. Regarding the age of learning calligraphy, there is no doubt that there are great advantages in starting to learn calligraphy from a young age or a teenager. However, there are also many advantages for older people to learn calligraphy: they have knowledge, life, experience, quick understanding, deep feelings, and good expression. Wait, young people are incomparable. As for "genius", it specifically refers to "a person with this kind of talent". Any intelligence and wisdom are obtained through enthusiasm, diligence and scientific learning. "Nothing is difficult in the world, as long as you are willing to climb." "Be determined and don't be afraid of failure." A calligrapher answered a student's question with a few phrases that were very instructive, concise and clear, and endlessly memorable. Asked "What is the most suitable age to learn calligraphy?" Answer: "Any age is suitable from the beginning of literacy." Question: "Can I become a calligrapher?" Answer: "Do you think you can---you definitely can!" Learn Calligraphy is the same as learning other arts. As long as we don't doubt our ability, have confidence, enthusiasm, and use the right methods, we will definitely achieve success. Don’t be intimidated by the metaphysics of some monopolies. They describe calligraphy as miraculous, teach abstraction, neglect the basics and seek the end, and are ignorant of the closed circle, which hinders subsequent learning. In fact, calligraphy is like "window paper", which also "breaks with one poke". Its charm can be characterized, its image can be expressed, its techniques can be achieved, and its composition can be achieved. "Going up to the hall and entering the house" is within reach.