Later generations referred to Liu Ti and Yan Ti as Yan Jin and Liu Gu.
Comparison between Liu Ti and Yan Ti
Yan Zhenliao, courtesy name Qingchen, was born in Jingzhao Wannian (now Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province). He was born in the third year of Jinglong of Tang Zhongzong (709) and died in the first year of Zhenyuan of Tang Dezong (785) at the age of 77. During the Kaiyuan period of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, he was a Jinshi, a censor in the official palace, a prefect of Pingyuan County, a minister of the Ministry of Personnel, a prince and grand master, and the founding Duke of Lu County. His representatives include "Duobao Pagoda Stele" and "Qinli Stele". "Duobao Pagoda Stele" is his middle-aged work, and "Qinli Stele" is his late-life work.
Liu Gongquan, courtesy name Chengxuan, was born in Huayuan, Jingzhao (now Yaoxian County, Shaanxi Province). He was born in the thirteenth year of Dali of Tang Dynasty (778) and died in the sixth year of Xiantong (865) of Tang Yizong at the age of 88. Official Secretary, Secretary of the Provincial School, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, Chief Minister, Regular Attendant of Sanqi Shouyou, Bachelor of Jixian Hall, Shangzhu State was awarded a purple gold fish bag, Prince's Young Master, and was granted the title of Duke of Hedong County. "Mysterious Tower Stele" was created when he was 63 years old and is his masterpiece.
Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan were both famous calligraphers in the mid-Tang Dynasty. They were equally famous and were known as Yan Liu. Both of them were very influential calligraphers at that time. Yan Zhenliao predates Liu Gongquan and is Liu's senior. I think Liu Gongquan learned Yan style, absorbed the strengths of other calligraphers, and formed his own unique calligraphy style after improvement. Why do you say this? This conclusion was reached after comparing the "Duobao Pagoda Stele" and the "Mysterious Pagoda Stele". There are 184 unique characters in the two monuments. They are listed in the order of dot, horizontal, vertical, left, N, and fold. We will take some of them for comparison. It is not difficult to see from the table how similar the two people are in writing methods and glyph structures (what we are talking about here is similarity, not identicalness. If they are the same, they are in Yan style, not Liu style). Liu Gongquan's in-depth study of Yan style and thorough research, and his writing style completely integrated the style of Yan style, which has become a writing habit. Many characters in the two styles are very similar. Of course, Liu Gongquan did not copy and imitate everything, but improved and learned, retaining the good ones, discarding the bad ones, and then learned other good writing methods. Over time, he formed his own calligraphy style, which is Liu style. Among the 60 words in the by-laws, some are written in different ways, which are marked with "※" in the upper right corner of the words to facilitate distinction.
I personally think that Liu Gongquan studied Yan Zhenqing's "Duobao Pagoda Stele". The reason is: they are contemporaries. Yan has long been famous and famous in the calligraphy circle. He is a role model for him to learn from, so he must learn Yan style; Secondly, Liu has been working as an official in Chang'an, the capital, and Qianfu Temple is in the capital. He has the opportunity to visit, study, and even copy the invitations and take them back as a model.
Both of them have their own strengths in calligraphy, and their faces are strong and strong, just like men, with a masculine spirit and strong and vigorous strokes. The strokes of the willow body are thin but strong, like a girl, showing a sense of elegance and elegance. Comparing the two bodies, the willow body is more dignified and straight, and the characters in the pen give people a standard, elegant and delicate beauty, while the Yan body shows a bold, unrestrained and rough feeling, so people call it Yan Jin Liu Gu.
Liu Gongquan was 69 years later than Yan Zhenqing and was Yan Zhenqing’s junior. If a younger generation wants to become famous, he must surpass his elders, otherwise others will not recognize him. He must also be unique in calligraphy, only in this way can he become famous. Liu Gongquan knew this very well, so when he was practicing Yan style, he did not just copy it, but learned its strengths, discarded its shortcomings, then absorbed the strengths of other schools, made up for his own shortcomings, and finally formed his own calligraphy style. This is Willow body. His calligraphy was very famous at that time, and some dignitaries felt honored to have his calligraphy.
I personally think that we should adopt this spirit when studying calligraphy. We should not only study it seriously, but also study it skillfully, learn from the strengths of each calligraphy school and make up for our own shortcomings. Why should we learn it when we know it is a failure? This is really a shortcut to success. Secondly, it remains unchanged and will never surpass the predecessors. Even if what you write is exactly the same as the predecessors, it is difficult to tell whether it is true or not, it is also someone else's style of writing. Only by seeking change while learning, daring to improve, and dare to innovate can we make progress and write our own calligraphy style. But we must also oppose being fond of the new and hating the old. One post will appear in three days, and one will become one in five days. Without perseverance, it will not be a great tool. As a result, you will learn nothing and waste your time.
You must learn to be purposeful, work hard for your goals, and be determined not to give up until you achieve your goals. Only then will you achieve success in calligraphy.