Early Tang Dynasty In the early Tang Dynasty, society was stable, the economy was increasingly prosperous, and calligraphy was also booming. The imperial court designated calligraphy as one of the six schools of the Imperial Academy, and established a doctorate in calligraphy to recruit scholars based on calligraphy. Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, loved calligraphy, advocated calligraphy, and tried his best to praise Wang Xizhi's calligraphy. This promoted the development and prosperity of calligraphy in the Tang Dynasty.
The Sutra of Mahaparinirvana in the Sui Dynasty
The representatives of calligraphers in the early Tang Dynasty were Ouyang Xun, Yu Shinan and Chu Suiliang. Ouyang Xun's calligraphy is rigorous, powerful, profound, elegant, and bold. Representative stele inscriptions include "Jiucheng Palace Liquan Ming", "Huadu Temple Stele", "Huangfujun Stele", "Fang Yanqian Stele", etc.; ink inscriptions include "Meng Dian Tie", "Bu Shang Tie", "Zhang Han Tie" "wait. Yu Shinan, who had studied under Zhiyong in the Sui Dynasty, was considered to be the orthodox disciple of Wang Xizhi. His calligraphy is pure and serene, without showing any edge, with solid writing power, soft on the outside and strong on the inside. The representative work is "Confucius Temple Stele". Chu Suiliang was a rising star among the three calligraphy masters in the early Tang Dynasty. His calligraphy was fresh, graceful and sinewy, and he made new creations in calligraphy. His works include "Yique Buddhist Niche Stele", "Master Meng Stele", "Yanta Sacred Religion Preface Stele", "Fang Xuanling Stele", etc. There is also Xue Ji, who studied under Chu Suiliang. He was once known as the four masters of the early Tang Dynasty along with Ou, Yu and Chu. His works include "The Monument of Zen Master Xinxing" and so on. Xue Yao, whose style is similar to Xue Ji's, has works such as "The Monument of the Sacrifice Altar", "Preface to the Stone Cong Poetry at the Autumn Banquet", and "Preface to the Stone Cong Poems on a Summer Tour". Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, made great achievements in calligraphy creation and calligraphy theory. His calligraphy was studied by Wang Xizhi, who was the first to use cursive script on monuments. There are "Jin Temple Inscription" and "Hot Spring Inscription" handed down to the world. He theoretically advocated that learning calligraphy should learn from his own strength, and personally praised the "Book of Jin: Biography of Wang Xizhi", saying that the book was perfect and the best in ancient and modern times, and even paid a lot of money to buy his calligraphy ink. Therefore, following the example and following the example, studying the King's Book became a fashion for a while. Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, was also good at calligraphy. His works include "Li □ Stele", "Ode to Record of Gong", "Ten Thousand Years Palace Inscription", etc.
Chu Suiliang of the Tang Dynasty: "Xu Pi of the Holy Religion of the Wild Goose Pagoda"
Important later calligraphers include Sun Guoting and Li Yong. Sun Guoting was good at cursive calligraphy. He learned from Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi and was good at using pens. His calligraphy is outstanding and vigorous, and he is considered to be a typical school of Erwang cursive script. His ink writings include "Shupu" handed down from generation to generation. Li Yong is a talented and prolific calligrapher, and his writing is mostly recorded in monuments. His calligraphy is thin, strong and thick, and his works include "Lushan Temple Stele", "Yunhui General Li Xiu Stele", "Yunhui General Li Sixun Stele" and so on.
The other calligraphers of this period were Ouyang Xun’s son Ouyang Tong. His calligraphy inherited his father’s method with some modifications, strict rules, elegant mood, and a little less implicit. His works include "Daoyin Stele", " Epitaph of Quan Boy" and so on. He Zhizhang was good at cursive calligraphy, and he wrote the metaphor of dragon and snake. His handed down works include the cursive script "The Classic of Filial Piety". Lu Jianzhi was Yu Shinan's nephew. He learned calligraphy from Yu Shinan, and his handed down works include the ink "Wen Fu". In addition, there are also a large number of calligraphers and their works such as Zhao Mo's "The Tomb of Gao Shilian", Wang Xingman's "Han Zhongliang Stele", Jingke's "Wang Jushi Brick Pagoda Inscription", Wang Zhijing's "Wei Jingwu Gong Li Jing Stele" and so on. Quite an achievement.
Prosperous Tang Dynasty During this period, with the development of social economy and culture, the art of calligraphy also underwent great changes and improvements. The style of calligraphy in the early Tang Dynasty shifted from vigorous and vigorous to vigorous and vigorous. At this time, famous calligraphers such as Zhang Xu, Huai Su, Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan appeared, and they created a new situation in Kuangcao and regular script respectively.
Zhang Xu, known as Zhang Dian, created Kuangcao and is known as the Saint of Grass. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Bai's poems, Pei □'s sword dance and Zhang Xu's cursive script were regarded as the three unique arts. His cursive writing is ever-changing without departing from the rules. He was also able to write extremely rigorous regular script, and his "Preface to the Records of Lang Guan's Stone Pillars" is considered to be unparalleled among the official scripts of the Tang Dynasty. Huai Su and Zhang Xu are collectively known as "Bian Zhang Kuang Su". Huaisu learned Zhang Xu's brushwork from Yan Zhenqing and Wu Tong. The words are like a startled snake and a flying dragon, and the rain is like a strong wind. There are "Autobiography", "Bitter Bamboo Shoots Tie", "Eating Fish" and other ink writings handed down from generation to generation. Yan Zhenqing is an innovative calligrapher. His calligraphy mostly uses the center, which is rich in structure, solemn and majestic, and is called Yan style. He left the largest number of inscriptions and they are extremely varied. For example, "Duobao Pagoda Stele" has even and graceful characters; "Song Guangping Stele" is plump and round, broad and broad; "Yan Qinli Stele" is full of spirit and majestic writing style; "Family Temple Monument" is solemn and powerful, and the book is profound; "Magu Immortal Altar Story" is quite elegant and graceful. His drafts "Shu Shu with Guo Pu" and "Sacrifice to My Nephew Ji Mingwen" are full of frustrations, verticality and majesty, and have become models in calligraphy.
Xu Haogong's regular script and official works include "Zhu Juchuan's Report", "Bu Kong Monk's Monument", "Dazheng Zen Master's Monument", etc. Liu Gongquan is an important calligrapher after Yan Zhenqing. It is known as Yan Jin Liu Gu. His characters are strong and round, and his regular script is strict. The steles passed down from generation to generation include the "Mysterious Tower Stele" and "The Stele of Shence's Military Discipline and Saint's Merits". Famous calligraphers during this period include Zhong Shaojing, whose works include "Ling Fei Jing"; Su Lingzhi, whose works include "Tian Renwan's Dezheng Stele", "Ode to the Iron Statue of Yizhou", etc.
Seal script and official script also flourished in the Tang Dynasty. The person with the highest achievement in seal script must be Li Yangbing. Most of Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy steles were made by him, and he is known throughout the world for his beauty of couplets. He first learned "Yishan Stele", and later he changed the opening and closing of it, becoming powerful and bold, and became his own family. His works include "Three Tombs", "Inscription on Prajna Terrace", "Qian Gua Stele", etc. Other people who are good at seal script include Wang Qiu, Li Lingsheng, Qu Huiwen, Yuan Zi, Tang Xuandu, etc. There are more famous calligraphers. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was famous for his good scribes, and his books such as Shitai Xiao Jing and Ji Taishan Inscriptions were very influential. At that time, Han Zemu, Shi Weize, Cai Youlin, and Li Chao were collectively known as the four official calligraphers. Han Zemu has the "Stele of Ye Huiming", Shi Wei has the "Stele of Zen Master Dazhi", and Cai Youlin has the "Stele of Pang Luwen". Other good officials include brothers Lu Zangyong, Liang Qing, Liu, Gu Jieshe, Dou Quan, Han Xiurong, etc.
Late Tang Dynasty During this period, the power of the Tang Dynasty gradually declined, and calligraphy was not as prosperous as in the early Tang Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty. However, some calligraphers also appeared, such as Wang Wenbing's seal script and Li E's official script, both of which were praised by later generations.
In addition to the calligraphy works of the famous calligraphers and inscriptions mentioned above, the calligraphy works of the Tang Dynasty also include a large number of epitaphs written by unknown writers and Buddhist scriptures written by Buddhist scriptures. They are all important calligraphy works. material. The calligraphy theory of the Tang Dynasty was more sophisticated and perfect based on the Three Kingdoms, Two Jin Dynasties, and Southern and Northern Dynasties. Sun Guoting's "Preface to Calligraphy" is not only an excellent piece of cursive script, but also a theoretical work on calligraphy with dense thoughts and concise words. This preface comprehensively discusses the mysteries of calligraphy from six aspects: tracing the origin, identifying calligraphy style, commenting on historical sites, describing brushwork, admonishing scholars, and hurting the sound of knowledge. It is regarded as a guideline by later generations and has a great influence. Zhang Huai's "Book Yi" and "Book Break" are also full of insights. Zhang Yanyuan's "Fashu Yaolu" is the first collection of ancient calligraphy theories. It has a wide range of collections and careful selection, and has had a profound impact on later generations of calligraphy theory.