Calligraphy style: research, enlightenment, cultivation

"Gan" means to research and study, to be diligent in writing, good at studying, and courageous to explore. I think "research" mainly refers to the study and exploration of writing techniques, word knots, and composition. The ancients spent almost a lifetime pursuing "research", as evidenced by the calligraphy theory of calligraphy, knotting, and composition by calligraphers in the past dynasties. Dazong of the Tang Dynasty said: "In general, when studying calligraphy, the fingers should be solid, the palms should be empty, the tubes should be straight, and the heart should be round. If the wrist is straight, the front is straight, and if the front is straight, the four sides will be full..." This is the center of the writing method in talking about writing. The pen method.

"The five fingers work together and the elbows and wrists help. The fingers should be shallow and easy to transfer. If the pen is placed on the crook of the knuckles, it will hinder the movement." (Authentic Chiang He Calligraphy). This is about the movement of fingers, elbows and wrists in calligraphy. Wang Xizhi's theory of writing style says: "The characters in Fu's calligraphy should be flat, straight and stable. You must first use a pen, which may be Yan, Yang, Yan, side, oblique, small or large, long or short..." He emphasized that the writing style is important in The importance of penmanship. "Chinese Chinese characters are square characters. If they are written too similarly, horizontally and vertically, and the structure is square and even, it cannot be regarded as calligraphy. It cannot be said to be artistic and can only be used for daily practicality." This is "Wang Xizhi's Inscription on Mrs. Wei's Writing Gestures" The problem of knotting and whitening of Chinese characters as explained in "Hou".

"Jiang Jixu's Theory of Calligraphy" discusses the composition in this way: "The length of the text is based on composition first, the real is used as virtual, and the real is clever; the virtual is real, and the discontinuous is continued. Looking at the calligraphy of ancient people, Everywhere the brushwork is intentional and powerful, the beauty of this chapter is..." Calligraphers in the past dynasties have elaborated on brushwork, word knotting, composition, etc. in their calligraphy treatises. In today's terms, they all belong to the technical level of explaining writing. The thing above is a writing method and writing state that are fully displayed by the author when he writes the book. We guide practice through extensive theoretical study, and most "research" problems can be solved. Is it any wonder that the ancients called art "a trivial skill"? Are they being self-effacing? Is it inferiority complex? Not discussed here.

"Enlightenment" means: perception and epiphany, which are instant inspirations and confusions generated through long-term study in the pond, which make people enlightened. "Enlightenment" varies from person to person, and a smart person can understand it with just one click. Those who are dull must make up for their mistakes the day after tomorrow. However, without the previous “study”, there would be no “enlightenment” later. "Enlightenment" without "research" is metaphysics, a castle in the air, and illusory.

Herbert Reed, a famous contemporary British esthetician, said this when discussing beauty in "The True Meaning of Art": "People respond to the shape, appearance and mass of things presented in front of them: certain things The shape, appearance and proportional arrangement of the masses will cause pleasure in people. "This pleasure arising from a pleasant relationship is the sense of beauty. We also have the same feeling when appreciating the classic Dharma stickers of all ages. The brilliant line quality, the unpredictable knot shapes, the contrast between black and white blocks composed of rich rhythmic lines, and the literati artistic conception presented by the ups and downs of compositions all make people's hearts imitate them. This is beauty. No wonder Emperor Wu of Liang commented on the king's calligraphy: "The characters are majestic and majestic, like a dragon leaping over the gate of heaven or a tiger lying on the phoenix tower." We associate with natural things through calligraphy. Similarly, in creative activities, we can also associate calligraphy with natural phenomena, get inspired by creation, and evoke artistic inspiration. There are many such examples. Zhang Xu said to himself: "I first saw the princess fighting for her husband, and I heard the advocacy and got the idea of ????writing. I watched and advocated Gongsun's sword dance and got his magic." ("New Book of Tang Dynasty. Zhang Xu Biography") "The text and the visible snake fight And the cursive script is advanced." (Tongwen "On Cursive Script") Huai Su said: "The poor Taoist observer Xia Yun has many strange peaks, and he often follows them. The Xia Yun changes due to the wind, and the road is broken one by one. "(Lu Yu's "Biography of Tang Monk Huaisu") These are the "things bestowed on me" inspiration that our ancestors used the beauty of nature to express the beauty of calligraphy.

It can be seen from this that there are two main sources of artistic creation: one is "moving in the heart"; the other is "observation of things". This is also what Zhang Hong said about painting in the Tang Dynasty: "The external teacher creates nature, and the inner source is the source of the heart." This is also the meaning. Therefore, although words are created by humans, the beauty of shaping the image of words also requires observation of nature. But we must also note that observing nature with an indifferent attitude cannot arouse our desire to create. The mountains, rivers, cliffs and valleys of nature must be stirred and mixed with our emotions before they can become a source of inspiration. However, we ask ourselves: How much have we realized? I think we can only get bits and pieces of information from these ancient books and treatises. Therefore, I would like to sigh: "Go into the classics and feel nature." Inspiration can be found anywhere, as long as you look and think about it.

"Nurture" means self-cultivation and self-cultivation. "Nourishment of Qi and mind" means improvement of cultural quality for ordinary people. For scholars, they need to study calligraphy theory, literature, and philosophy. and other disciplines. Only by improving self-cultivation can we cultivate our temperament, shape our personality, and enhance our artistic realm. The ancients said: "If you read thousands of volumes, you will write like a god." Let me ask: Which of the ancient masters is not a well-educated person? Xiang Mu's "Calligraphy Yayan. Deification" says: "Before writing, set your mind to be handsome, nourish your spirit while writing to fill your ambition, don't forget and don't help, and you will be at peace from encouragement. This is what happens in writing, and it happens all the time." "Exactly." Zhou Xinglian's "Linchi Guanjian" says: "Writing can nourish Qi and help Qi...it can be swayed freely, and the soul will be radiant. When writing poems, there will be a clear and logical way, and the momentum will come slowly, so the way of calligraphy is It is also enough to rejuvenate talents and cultivate knowledge. "The first is nourishing Qi as the cause, and the Zhou is nourishing Qi as the effect. Writing and nourishing Qi influence each other." The connection between calligraphy practice and mental and physical cultivation is emphasized by calligraphy commentators in Confucianism.

In summary, the "technical revolution" of contemporary calligraphy is flawed and incomplete. Technical issues can only reach the "research" stage, which is the most basic issue in calligraphy creation. If you want to reach a profound state in calligraphy, you must go through "research, understanding, and cultivation". The three are not in any order, and they penetrate and influence each other. "Research" is the foundation, the accumulation, and the "writing state" in terms of "technical content". "Enlightenment" is inspiration, explanation of confusion, and "enlightenment state" in which "things are given to me". "Nurture" means cultivation, a state of mind, and a "mental state" of "righteousness and sincerity". Only when the "three states" are integrated into one can the calligraphy works created be high-level, state-of-the-art, and more perfect.

(The above works are selected from Song Guoyong)

Born in Zhangshu City, Jiangxi Province in December 1970. No. Yuanzhang Sanren, the master of Qingjiang Wuchen Hall and the master of Yixianzhai. Director of the Calligraphers Association of Pingxiang City, Jiangxi Province. He is a senior middle school teacher. He has served as the head of the publicity section and the director of a television station. He has been the principal and secretary of the school until now. He is a contract artist with a calligraphy expertise.

In July 2017, I became a teacher of Teacher Chen Zhongkang at Beijing Zhangli Academy. Under Teacher Chen’s careful guidance, my calligraphy art has made rapid progress.

Calligraphy began with the regular script of Tang Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan, the two patriarchal kings. He is especially good at small regular script, mostly referring to Zhong Yao's method, and later studied it from Zhao Mengfu of the Yuan Dynasty, Wen Zhengming and Wang Chong of the Ming Dynasty. The works are graceful, handsome and free-spirited. Xingcao specializes in studying Sun Guoting (calligraphy) of the Tang Dynasty, pursuing charm, full of bookishness, and elegant style.

In 1989, the hard-pen calligraphy works were exhibited in Mount Emei, Sichuan, China;

In 1992, the calligraphy works won the selection award in the National Poetry, Calligraphy, Painting and Film Art Competition in Baoshan City, Yunnan Province;

In 1995, the calligraphy works were included in the "Complete Chinese Hard-tipped Calligraphy" inscribed and edited by Mr. Shen Peng and published by Shantou University Press;

In 1998, the calligraphy works won the second prize in the Jiangxi Province Calligraphy and Painting Competition;

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In 2008, the calligraphy works were exhibited in the second China Bahrain Stone Cup Calligraphy and Painting Grand Prix;

In 2008, the calligraphy works were exhibited in the first China Tengwangge Cup Literary and Art Grand Prix;

In July 2017, he studied and graduated from the Zhanjia Academy organized by Dr. Xiao Wenfei and Dr. Chen Zhongkang of the Chinese Academy of Arts and Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts;

On May 19, 2018, he attended the first calligraphy competition hosted by the Calligraphy Newspaper In the 5th National Teacher Calligraphy Competition in Zhuhai, two works copied and created won the first prize in the country.