Hard-pen calligraphy and soft-pen calligraphy are the two most common writing styles in China's traditional calligraphy. They have their own characteristics and can meet different writing needs, so they have been widely used in different occasions and uses.
Hard pen calligraphy, also known as pencil or pen, refers to a kind of calligraphy written with hard pen (such as pencil and pen). Hard-pen calligraphy pursues neatness, rigidity and strong structure, which is more suitable for official documents, holiday greeting cards, class notes and other writing occasions that need to be accurate, clear and standardized.
Hard-pen calligraphy has simpler glyphs, clearer strokes and more emphasis on standardization and accuracy. At the same time, because hard-pen calligraphy has the characteristics of imitation printing, it is often used in news reports, publication typesetting and other occasions, and has strong practicability.
In contrast, soft-brush calligraphy is more free, flexible, natural and mellow, which is suitable for literary genres full of artistic sense such as writing stickers, writing brushes or cursive scripts.
Soft pen calligraphy has a greater degree of font autonomy, which may produce various artistic effects: sometimes it tends to be slender and vigorous; Sometimes it tends to be thick and full. Soft-pen calligraphy works have a strong aesthetic feeling, which easily reflects the calligrapher's personal aesthetic orientation and style.
There are also obvious differences between the fonts of the two writing methods. Hard-pen calligraphy tends to be square, paying more attention to the stroke structure and the flavor of seal cutting. Soft-pen calligraphy pays more attention to the fluency of strokes and the flexibility of curves, and its font is often considered round, kind and full of breath.
In addition, the two kinds of calligraphy also have different creative methods. Hard-pen calligraphy adopts basic structural methods such as "point connection", "turning point", "harmony" and "lingering knot", while soft-pen calligraphy emphasizes the free combination and diversification of strokes.
Generally speaking, hard-pen calligraphy emphasizes neatness and standardization, and is suitable for formal writing occasions such as company official documents and school assignments. Soft pen calligraphy emphasizes emotion, imagination and innovation, and is more suitable for writing poems, painting, giving gifts, sending messages and other cultural and artistic occasions.