Appreciating the art of calligraphy should start from three aspects: recognizing form, appreciating quality, and expressing feelings.
1. Recognizing shapes
Calligraphy is the art of line images, and "shape" has four elements. One is format. The most classic calligraphy formats include banners, nave, horizontal drapes, plaques, squares, fans, couplets, rulers, hand scrolls, leaf albums, and inscribed paintings.
The second is calligraphy. The most common calligraphy styles are seal script, official script, regular script, running script, cursive script, Wei style, Zhangcao and Xingcao. The third is color. The color of calligraphy is the most attractive combination of white paper, ink characters and red seal. Four is composed. A complete calligraphy work is most commonly composed of text, title, and seal.
2. Appreciation of quality
Calligraphy is different from writing. Calligraphy must pay attention to "laws" and "legality" can achieve "quality and beauty". There are four "methods". One is calligraphy. Characters are the foundation of calligraphy. Calligraphy is formed by gathering dots, and the dots should be "balanced and symmetrical, contrasting and harmonious, appropriate in priority, moderate in density, and unified in variety."
The second is brushwork. The important thing about using a pen is that it changes according to the body, is stable and rich, the middle and side (front) are interchangeable, the method comes from the source, the pen is strong and powerful, and it penetrates the back of the paper. The third is the rules and regulations. The composition is the "white cloth" of the entire calligraphy work. It emphasizes continuous strokes between words and lines, with smooth energy and clear rhythm, just like "moving clouds and flowing water". That is to say, "You can move horses in sparse places, but don't allow ventilation in dense places. When you think of nothing as black, surprises will come out."
The fourth is the ink method. There are six colors of ink, namely "thick, light, dry, wet, dry and moist". If we can "bring away the dryness and moisten it, and turn the thickness into dryness", we can achieve the state of "silent and joyous harmony", "colorful expression", "spraying the pen to create a heartfelt song, and using the ink to talk and laugh".
3. Expressing feelings
The purpose of calligraphy is to "express feelings". The highest state of calligraphy art is the human spirit, an abstract embodiment and expression of human temperament. Appreciating calligraphy is not only about the depth of skill and the exquisiteness of stippling and composition, but also about the author's spirit, mind, and temperament. Therefore, the highest state of appreciating calligraphy is to "dialogue and communicate" with calligraphers through calligraphy works.