Look at the place of origin
The main producing areas of paper for calligraphy and painting are Anhui, Sichuan, Xijiang and other places. Anhui rice paper has a long history of manufacturing and is the first choice for calligraphers and painters. Sichuan Paper Next, Xijiang not only produces rice paper, but also produces vellum paper. Mr. Fu Baoshi and his son Fu Xiaoshi make good use of Wenzhou vellum and Japanese vellum.
Look at the process
In terms of materials, rice paper can be divided into rice paper and calligraphy and painting paper. Really high-quality rice paper is made from a mixture of about 70% sandalwood and about 30% sandalwood fiber. Its cost is high and it requires more than a hundred processes.
At present, there are only a few well-known brand factories in Jing County, Anhui Province. Most of the more than 100 other small factories and workshops produce calligraphy and painting paper (rice paper in a broad sense). Its raw material is asparagus, generally no sandalwood fiber is added, and there are only fifty or so processes. Some factories also add 10 to 30% of sandalwood fiber, and the price is another 200 to 300 yuan. Pure asparagus is sold for about 100 yuan. The main raw material of Sichuan rice paper is bamboo fiber, and some are added with sandalwood bark, hemp bark and wolfberry bark fiber.
Look at the characteristics
Really good rice paper has good color, strong pulling force, resistance to repeated rendering, and more visible brushstrokes. Asparagus calligraphy and painting paper is relatively loose, and the ink on some papers will be dark after drawing, so it is not suitable to be dyed repeatedly. Paper is not about thickness, but about tightness. Some calligraphy and painting papers are better made, have good ink color and tensile strength, and can have special effects when painting flowers and birds. Landscape painting is a bit worse. Landscape painting sometimes requires wet dyeing, and the calligraphy and painting paper cannot withstand it and will become fluffy. Due to the difference in pulling force, it will draw through.
Xuan paper can be divided into two types: raw Xuan paper and cooked Xuan paper. Raw rice paper can produce a blurring effect and is very suitable for writing calligraphy (line, cursive, etc.). Cooked rice paper is coated with alum and bone glue to prevent it from bleeding. It is mainly used for gongbi paintings, small regular script, etc. The degree of bleeding of Sichuan paper is worse than that of Anhui paper, and it feels a bit half-baked. Vellum paper is different from rice paper. In the past, vellum paper was thicker and thinner, so it was not suitable to be inked repeatedly, otherwise it would become stiff. Today's vellum paper is made thinner, and its surface is sometimes difficult to distinguish from rice paper. Due to the thick fiber, small hair-like ink lines will bleed out when the ink touches water. Some painters use it to draw lions and tigers, and the effect is good. Some calligraphers use it to write running script, and it can also have special effects. Of course, it must be used with caution.
Raw rice paper can be divided into pure leather and cotton paper. It is not advisable to render large areas of clean skin because a colorless glue mark will appear between each stroke. If you spray it wet before painting, it can be avoided. However, pure paper is mostly used for landscape painting. It is easier to use than brushes and can be rubbed repeatedly. The brush strokes will not mix and the handwriting will be clear when writing calligraphy. It is suitable for regular script or Xingkai script. Cotton paper is suitable for painting flowers, birds, and ink. The colors should be compatible and there will be no white glue marks. It can be imagined that if you paint peonies, every stroke is clear and there are colorless glue marks, it will not look good. Writing calligraphy is something you can consider.
Look at the test
From the above characteristics, you can pay attention to it when choosing rice paper. Buy one and try it out first.
1. First draw a stroke with thick ink, and after it dries, check whether it is gray (check the ink according to your preference);
2. Draw several strokes in parallel with light ink. Check to see if there are colorless glue marks (if so, it is best to draw shrimps);
3. Dip the base of the pen with light ink and the tip of the pen with burnt ink, loosen the tip of the pen, and rub it repeatedly on the paper. For writing, if the light ink is covered with the thick ink, and the thick ink does not melt away, it is a better clean skin. It is best for painting landscapes and writing running script;
4. Use light ink to repeat in one place. It is better to use a pen that is lint-free. Sometimes calligraphy and painting paper will also have this effect. When painting flowers and birds, or writing running script or cursive script, the paper should be looser and have clear layers. Generally, it is not necessary to clean the skin, but to use cotton material.
Selection of rice paper
Paper needs to be stored for some time, especially real rice paper. The longer the better, but it must be kept well. Do not face the sun and do not expose it for a long time. When the paper is not in use, wrap it in three layers of newspaper. Otherwise, the rice paper will become stiff, not smeared well, and some white spots will appear, making it impossible to apply color or ink.
When some manufacturers stamp the paper, they will indicate cotton or pure leather. Don't believe it too much, it's not allowed. Generally, the properties of calligraphy and painting paper are similar to those of cotton. Even big manufacturers may not be very accurate. This has to do with the production process, which is a long story. Trust your eyes. In addition, good products are not cheap. After using it a lot, you can tell the performance of the paper by touching it with your hands and touching it with saliva. If you have sufficient funds, you might as well collect some paper. Now if you want to buy good paper from 25 years ago, it will cost about one hundred yuan a piece.