1. Zhang Zhi Linchi
The calligrapher Zhang Zhi has profound attainments and outstanding contributions in calligraphy. Zhang Zhi has been familiar with classics and history since he was a child, and he studies calligraphy diligently. He does not choose paper or pen when practicing calligraphy. Sometimes he takes a rag dipped in water to write on a stone, sometimes he uses chopsticks to draw on the table, and even the cloth for sewing clothes at home is made by him. Write in color first and then dye it for use. But he was very particular about his writing posture, often waving his hand in front of a bronze mirror, so that both his front and back sides could be seen clearly through the reflection on the mirror.
In order to facilitate calligraphy practice, Zhang Zhi dug an inkstone washing pond several feet in diameter in front of his house. After finishing his homework for the day, he went to the pond to wash away the remaining ink on the inkstone and brush to extend their service life. He washed and washed. As time went by, the clear water in the entire pond was dyed black. Later, people called practicing calligraphy "Linchi", which evolved from Zhang Zhi's story of learning calligraphy.
2. Zheng Banqiao learned calligraphy
Zheng Banqiao, one of the "Eight Eccentrics" in Yangzhou, loved calligraphy since he was a child. He copied all calligraphy styles of famous ancient calligraphers and after some hard practice , and finally it is almost exactly the same as what the predecessors wrote, and it can be authentic. But no one appreciated his calligraphy very much, and he himself was very anxious. He studied and practiced harder than before.
One summer evening, he and his wife were sitting outside enjoying the cool air. He used his fingers to write on his thigh, and he wrote on his wife. His wife hit his hand angrily and said, "You have your body (body), and I have mine. Why don't you write about your own body and other people's bodies?"
Go to bed at night At that time, Zheng Banqiao thought, everyone has his own body, and each has his own font for writing. They are all different! Why do I always learn other people's fonts instead of going my own way and writing in my own style? Even if you learn the same thing as others, it is just someone else's font. There is no innovation or your own style. What's the point?
From then on, he took the strengths of each school, integrated them, mixed official script with seal script, cursive script, running script, and regular script, and used painting methods to write, and finally formed a style that is both elegant and popular, and is loved by everyone. "Six-and-a-half-point calligraphy", also known as "rubble-paved street style", became a famous calligrapher and painter with a high reputation in the Qing Dynasty.
3. Xiao Xian’s apprenticeship
It is said that when Xiao Xian, a calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty, was a child, the children in the same village who were good at reading gathered together for a "big character writing competition". An old man who was cutting firewood passed by and saw them writing, so he put down his load of firewood and came closer to watch. Xiao Xian held up the banner "Number One in the World" written by himself to show to the old man who cut firewood. The old man said: "This word is not well written, how can it be called number one?" Xiao Xian said unconvinced: " How about you write something to open our eyes?"
The old man took off a straw sandal, dipped the toe of his shoe in ink and waved it on the paper, writing the word "一". This horizontal stroke is vigorous, dense, thick and unrestrained, and the brushwork is quite profound. Xiao Xian was stunned after seeing it, and immediately knelt down in front of the old man and said, "Grandpa, I want to worship you as my teacher." The old man said, "The word '一' is like a load of firewood, and it must be strong and soft at the same time." After Xian became a disciple, he posted the character "一" written by the old man on the bedside, watching and studying his penmanship every day, and finally became a calligrapher.
4. Studying calligraphy with great concentration
Wang Xizhi concentrated on writing when he was a child. Once, he was so absorbed in writing in his study that he forgot to eat. His mother had no choice but to ask the boy to bring him food, including steamed buns and Wang Xizhi's favorite mashed garlic. When my mother came to the study to see Xiao Xizhi, she burst out laughing as soon as she entered the study. It turned out that Wang Xizhi was reading the copybook while eating, and ate the ink as if it were minced garlic, which made his mouth full of black. It didn't dawn on him until he heard his mother laughing.