A brief introduction to the life of Liu Gongquan, a calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty

Liu Gongquan was a famous calligrapher and writer in the Tang Dynasty. He was one of the "Four Masters of Regular Script". So what is Liu Gongquan's life like? The following is a brief introduction to Liu Gongquan's life that I have collected for you. I hope it will be helpful to you. !

A brief introduction to the life of Liu Gongquan

Liu Gongquan was a famous calligrapher and writer from the Tang Dynasty. He was one of the "Four Masters of Regular Script" and enjoyed a high reputation in the calligraphy circle. "Diamond Sutra Engraved Stone", "Mysterious Tower Stele", "Fengsu Stele", etc. are Liu Gongquan's classic masterpieces.

Liu Gongquan was born in 778 AD and died in 865 AD at the age of 88. He was a native of Tongchuan, Shaanxi. Liu Gongquan was born in a family of officials. His father Liu Ziwen once served as governor, and his brother Liu Gongchuo was a famous official in the Tang Dynasty. Liu Gongquan, who was born into an official family, was influenced by his family and was very talented in literature. When he was twelve years old, Liu Gongquan could write poems and poems. When Liu Gongquan was twenty-nine years old, he took part in the imperial examination and won the Jinshi in one fell swoop. He then entered the court and became an official and became a school secretary.

In politics, Liu Gongquan once served as a secretary in the three dynasties of Tang Muzong, Tang Jingzong and Tang Wenzong. During his reign, Liu Gongquan dared to make bold suggestions, for which he was appreciated by Emperor Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty. Once, Tang Wenzong mentioned that Han Wenzong was very frugal in his living habits, so he took his own sleeves as an example and claimed that he had washed these clothes three times. The ministers present all praised Wenzong's thrifty character, but Liu Gongquan remained silent. Wenzong asked him why he didn't speak. Liu Gongquan said that the most important thing for a monarch is to appoint talents and listen to the advice of upright ministers. Washing clothes is just a small detail and the monarch should not take a fancy to it. Emperor Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty admired Liu Gongquan's ability to advise, so he appointed him as an advisor. After the death of Emperor Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Wuzong of the Tang Dynasty came to the throne. Liu Gongquan was appreciated and reused by Emperor Wuzong of the Tang Dynasty, and he rose to the position of crown prince and Taibao. After Liu Gongquan's death, the emperor posthumously granted him the title of Crown Prince and Grand Master.

In terms of calligraphy, Liu Gongquan copied and studied the works of calligraphers such as Wang Xizhi and Zhong Yao, and carried out reforms and innovations on this basis. In the direction of regular script calligraphy works, I carefully studied Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy skills and fonts, and then carried out integration and innovation, creating "Liu Ti". Liu Gongquan's Liu style works have also become one of the representatives of "Tang Shu Shang Fa".

How is Liu Gongquan’s calligraphy written?

Liu Gongquan’s calligraphy is called Liu style, which has the beauty of bones. In his early years, Liu Gongquan copied and studied the works of calligraphers such as Wang Xizhi and Zhong Yao, and carried out reforms and innovations on this basis.

In the direction of regular script calligraphy works, I carefully studied Yan Zhenqing’s calligraphy techniques and fonts, and then carried out integration and innovation, creating "Liu Ti". Liu Gongquan's Liu style works have also become one of the representatives of "Tang Shu Shang Fa".

The work "Mengzhao Tie" is Liu Gongquan's representative work in running script. "Mengzhao Tie" was written in 821 AD, when Liu Gongquan was forty-four years old, which was the peak period of his calligraphy creation. Because he was young and strong, in this work, Liu Gongquan used general running script to complete the work in one go, full of the beauty of powerful force. The characters are scattered but the spirit is not scattered, giving people an ethereal and dynamic state. In the first post, Liu Gongquan wrote the three characters "Gongquan Meng" in large fonts. The characters were continuous and huge, and the feeling of majesty came to the face. In terms of using the pen, Liu Gongquan writes very vigorously, so the handwriting he writes is powerful and beautiful. This work is Liu Gongquan's early work, which shows his full energy and verve in his writing.

"Mysterious Tower Stele" is a regular script work by Liu Gongquan in his later years. "Mysterious Tower Stele" was written by Liu Gongquan when he was sixty-four years old. His writing style is vigorous and powerful. On the basis of Yanti, Liuti and innovation are added. The fonts are tight and powerful, and the whole picture is clean and beautiful. "Mysterious Tower Stele" is considered to be the pinnacle masterpiece of calligrapher Liu Gongquan. The font is beautiful and the font form reflects the characteristics of Liu style calligraphy. Although this work has a history of thousands of years, its artistic value has not faded with the passage of time.

Appreciation of the calligraphy of calligrapher Liu Gongquan

Most of Liu Gongquan’s calligraphy works are inscriptions, such as "The Diamond Sutra Stele", "The Stele of Li Sheng, Prince of Pingxi County", and "The Bell Tower Inscription of the Huiyuan Temple of the Tang Dynasty" ", "Feng Su Stele", "Fu Lin Stele of Xiyang County Prince", "Xuanmi Pagoda Stele", "Shence Army Stele", "Liu Mian Stele" and so on. ,

Liu Gongquan is a famous calligrapher. His font is called "Liu Ti" by later generations. His innovative "Liu Ti" focuses on regular script. In his early years, Liu Gongquan copied and studied the works of calligraphers such as Wang Xizhi and Zhong Yao, and carried out reforms and innovations on this basis. In the direction of regular script calligraphy works, I carefully studied Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy techniques and fonts, and then carried out integration and innovation, creating "Liu Ti". Liu Gongquan's Liu style works have also become one of the representatives of "Tang Shu Shang Fa". Appreciating Liu Gongquan's fonts, later generations concluded that Liu Gongquan's fonts have the following characteristics: first, the fonts are relatively thin and hard, and the strokes are strong; second, the calligraphy works are clean and beautiful, and the work is completed in one go, which is relatively coherent and smooth; third, the calligraphy works are clean and beautiful, and the work is completed in one go, which is relatively coherent and smooth; The structure of the calligraphy works is very rigorous, and the fonts are full of integrity and strength. Compared with Yan Zhenqing's facial body, Liu Gongquan's willow body is uniformly thin and hard. Later generations called the characteristics of their works "Yan Zhenqing Liu Gu".

In the middle and late Tang Dynasty, Liu Gongquan’s calligraphy became more and more popular. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty liked Liu Gongquan's calligraphy works very much. Once, Tang Xuanzong summoned Liu Gongquan and asked many court officials to grind and pick up pens for Liu Gongquan. Liu Gongquan wrote calligraphy works in front of the palace, which Tang Xuanzong cherished very much. Later, Tang Xuanzong rewarded Liu Gongquan with many gold, silver and jewelry.