There is no conclusion yet on when Chinese seals originated. Most researchers believe that it was roughly at the turn of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. This statement is too conservative. Judging from the large number of ancient seals from the Warring States Period that currently exist, their production and use are already quite mature. If a Taotie-patterned copper seal unearthed at the Yin Ruins in Anyang in 1998 is the oldest seal that can be verified through archaeological excavation, then the history of Chinese seals should be before the Shang Dynasty.
Compared with the development of seals themselves, the marriage of seals with calligraphy and painting is relatively late, and this also affects the practice of today's calligraphers and painters using seals. Before the invention of paper, people used bamboo and wooden slips as writing materials. The carrier for seal application is sealing mud - a dry and hard mud ball with a seal. The use of sealing mud dates from the Warring States Period to the Han and Wei dynasties. Around the 3rd to 4th century AD, with the improvement and promotion of papermaking technology, paper and silk gradually replaced bamboo and wood slips, and the habit of using mud sealing became no longer popular. The use of seals gradually changed from sealing in sealing mud to sealing on paper dipped in vermilion sealing mud. The widespread application of paper not only changed the way seals were used, but also created conditions for the combination of seals and the art of calligraphy and painting.
As far as we know, calligraphers and painters in the Tang Dynasty have never used their own seals on their works to gain trust. According to the "Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms", Xu Chengjie, the governor of Maozhou in the former Shu Dynasty, "every time he repaired the inscription and seal of the book, there was a slight impregnation, and the order was often changed, and the book helped it." The "inscription" here refers to the seal, the seal, and the "inscription" "The meaning is the same. It can be seen from this that in the former Shu period, people had begun to seal letters in correspondence. It was the involvement of private seals in letters and official documents that laid the foundation for the emergence of calligraphy and painting seals.
Integrated Development - Song and Yuan Dynasties
The Song Dynasty valued literature over military affairs, and its economic and cultural achievements can be regarded as the highest peak of the entire feudal era. Due to the advocacy of emperors such as Huizong and Gaozong of the Song Dynasty who were also calligraphers and painters, collection seals became popular among literati and officials, and calligraphy and painting seals also developed rapidly. During the Northern Song Dynasty, calligraphy and painting seals were used. The earliest known object is Ouyang Xiu's "To Duan Mingshi Studying", which is stamped with the seal of "Jiu Yi Jushi". The "Xiu" seals used by Ouyang Xiu in daily life and the "Drunkard's descendants will keep it forever" seals are both of collection significance. "Shang'en Tie" also contains Ouyang Xiu's seal of "Six-Yi layman". Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty established a painting academy, and he was also a practitioner of poetry, calligraphy and painting. His "imperial script" rectangular seal and gourd-shaped seal can be seen in his own paintings and signature inscriptions of ancient calligraphy and painting. In the two autographs of Wu Ju in the Southern Song Dynasty, there are white inscriptions "Yunhe Taoist" and "Yunhe Taoist" in white. On the volume of "Pictures of the Four Purities", there are Yang Wujiu's inscriptions "Descendants of Cao Xuan" and "Fleeing Zen" and white inscriptions "Yang Wujiu's seal". wait. Through the artistic practice and promotion of calligraphers and painters, in the late Northern Song Dynasty, seals had become an integral part of calligraphy and painting works, and the format of signature seals on calligraphy and painting works had also been widely accepted by literati at that time. But Mi Fu should be the pioneer who used a large number of seals in calligraphy and painting works and used a wide variety of seals.
In the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols took over the Central Plains and implemented a barbaric and backward hierarchical system in politics. This caused many literati to abandon their official careers and look for new psychological sustenance. In society, "political authority is easy to ascend, but moral authority remains at the bottom." This is true for Dao, and it is also true for art. The relatively relaxed cultural environment is conducive to the continuous inheritance of artistic traditions, and the integration of poetry, calligraphy, painting and seal has also been further developed. Among them, the most famous figures are Zhao Mengfu and Wang Mian.
Zhao Mengfu was quite talented in many aspects of poetry, calligraphy, painting and sealing. The seals he used were all his own creations, from the seal characters to the composition and layout. The Yuanzhu seal he pioneered was printed with small seals, and the "jade seal" with graceful and elegant lines, graceful and flexible lines was used in the seal cutting, so the seal surface was full of charm and had a flowing and lively atmosphere of a scholar's seal. It complements his calligraphy and painting works. Zhao Mengfu also played a role in promoting the use of seals in calligraphy and painting. Like Mi Fu, there is no definite material to confirm whether Zhao Mengfu could engrave it himself.
The use of stone seals in China has a long history, as early as the creation of seals. Judging from the archaeological excavation data, it has been used in all dynasties.
In Changsha alone, 44 talc seals from the Western Han Dynasty were unearthed from the founding of New China to the 1970s, as well as a small number of official and private stone seals from the Warring States Period. But the purpose of these talc seals is for burial purposes. The two-sided stone seals "Qiaping Ma Cheng Seal" and "Gongxian Tu Cheng Seal" from the Xinmang period of Han Dynasty currently in the Palace Museum were used as master molds for casting, which is another use of stone seals. However, after the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the nature of literati's participation in engraving stone seals was different. Today, we can get confirmation from the relevant documents of the Song and Yuan Dynasties and the historical data of literati and seal carvers. It is very common for literati in the Song Dynasty to personally carve stone seals. However, Wang Mian, a painter from the Yuan Dynasty, was the first to have precise records of sealing with stone and engraving with seals, and the imprints can be seen on the paintings that have been passed down to this day. Since the Song and Yuan Dynasties, stone seals have become a commonly used material for seal cutting among literati. The literati are no longer outside the threshold of seal cutting, but have entered the hall. The seal cutting of literati has integrated calligraphy, design, and knife engraving into one. Since then, seal art has become a direct reflection of the temperament, thoughts and aesthetic tastes of literati, and has truly become an indispensable organic component of poetry, calligraphy and painting.
The style of leisurely seal cutting in the Ming and Qing Dynasties
The art of seal cutting had a new breakthrough in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Wen Peng and He Zhen, as the pioneers of the Ming and Qing seal cutting genres with brilliant achievements, had great influence in the seal world. The nine-fold script, which turned against the shallow and grotesque, followed the Qin and Han Dynasties and ushered in the prosperity of seal cutting art in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Since then, there has been a craze in the art of seal cutting. As a kind of literati art, seal cutting has been accepted by people, and it has become a common practice to seek seal cutting by famous artists. At the same time, painting developed into the Ming and Qing Dynasties, with lyrical and freehand literati paintings taking the mainstream position, and a large number of artists who also worked in calligraphy, painting, seal cutting, and poetry emerged, making calligraphy, painting and seals more closely integrated. Calligraphers and painters can carve seals as they please, making it a pastime for literati alongside poetry, calligraphy and painting.
The widespread use of Xianzhang has also become a temporary trend. Xu Kang's "Videos of Dreams in the Past" recorded such an anecdote: "There is a seal in Hengshan that says 'Wei Geng Yin Wu came down', which corresponds to the year of birth. Wen Ershui (Jia) seal says 'Zhao bestowed upon me a good name', Wen San The seal written by Bo (Peng) of Qiaojun said, "Pieuxi Yue, my old Peng", all using idioms according to their names. "The idioms of the Wen family and his son are included in the seal, which not only tells people their birth year, but also shows their erudition and sensitivity. It can also show the exquisiteness of their seal carving skills. They can kill several carvings with one stone, which is extremely wonderful.
The peak of skill - Wu Changshuo
As an inevitable result of the development of seal cutting art, seal cutting in the late Qing Dynasty embarked on a path of "printing comes from the book", "printing comes from the knife", and "printing outside the world". The composite creative path of “seeking for seals”. Wu Changshuo's seal cutting is a culmination of the two schools of Zhejiang and Anhui. It is intertwined with the Qin and Han Dynasties and yet belongs to the Qin and Han Dynasties. It has a strong spirit and surpasses the previous philosophers. It is called the "Later Zhejiang School" in the history of printing.
Wu Changshuo's seal cutting is due to his superb attainments in calligraphy. His calligraphy is good at all five styles, vigorous, vigorous, simple and simple, and he is especially successful in seal script. Wu Changshuo's seal script is based on the stone drum inscriptions, and incorporates the styles of the three generations of bells, tripods, pottery, and carved bricks. He breaks the stereotypes and incorporates his own ideas. He changes the structure to a long shape with an oblique shape to increase momentum and change. Develop your own unique style. He also integrated the brushwork of Shigu seal script and cursive script into his painting techniques, making them unrestrained, majestic and majestic, with a strong atmosphere of gold and stone. After decades of hard work, Wu Changshuo has achieved mastery and mastery in four aspects: seal cutting, calligraphy, poetry and painting.
The practice of seals used by famous modern calligraphers and painters
All famous modern calligraphers and painters pay attention to the integration of calligraphy, painting and seal. Many calligraphers and painters themselves are masters of printing. Chen Shizeng, Qi Baishi, Lai Chusheng, Yu Rentian, etc. are all masters who combine calligraphy, painting and sealing into one. Although some calligraphers and painters are not well-known as sealers and do not have many seals, they have unique insights into the use of seals in their works, such as Huang Binhong, Pan Tianshou, Zhang Daqian, etc. Among them, Zhang Daqian The degree of attention to the use of seals is almost demanding, and seals can be matched according to the different calligraphy and painting styles of each period. For example, in his early paintings, he studied Shi Tao and Bada. Most of his calligraphy used the Qingdao human body with a strong official script flavor, and his seals were mostly in the style of green and vigorous Qiu Jin.
After the 1930s, the painting style was mostly elegant in composition, and the characters were also switched to running script with the meaning of Zhang Cao and He He inscriptions. The seals were chosen to be smooth, smooth, ancient and round, which were ruled by Fang Jiekan, Chen Julai and others. Stable work all the way seal. He also has some theories about the use of seals: "Square seals are the best, round seals are okay, and if the waist is round and natural, it cannot be used. For fine brushwork, it is better to use the ancient seals of Zhou and Qin, and for Yuan and Zhu full white. For freehand brushwork, the system of official private seals of the Han Dynasty can be used , as well as the Anhui and Zhejiang schools, among which Wu Rangzhi's is the most suitable. If the Ming Dynasty's writings are not authentic, this statement is indeed true. Most of the seals used by Pan Tianshou came from the hands of Lai Chusheng, Yu Rentian, Sha Menghai, etc. They belong to the bold and majestic seal style, which complements his calligraphy and painting. Although there are few self-engraved seals, they are not inferior to masters who specialize in seal making. Fu Baoshi is also good at sealing. His painting style is majestic and profound, his characters are thin, hard and strong, and his sealing style is simple, light and ethereal. The whole style can be attributed to the two characters "Qing" and "Yi". Lu Yan's Shao Yong seals were mostly made by Han Tianheng and Shi Kai, and each of them carved batches of seals. Both of them are masters in the seal world, with unique styles. The spatial layout and line texture are very consistent with Lu's paintings. Liu Yiwen carved the seal used by Wei Qihou, Zhu Peer carved the seal used by Li Shinan, and Wu Zijian carved the seal used by Xie Zhiliu. They can all be called models of harmonious unity of calligraphy, painting and seal.