"Autobiography" is a cursive calligraphy work created by Huai Su, a calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, in the eleventh or twelfth year of the Tang Dynasty (776 or 777). It is an ink scroll on paper. It is now collected in the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
"Autobiography" is Huaisu's self-narration of his life in general, and it also contains poems written by Yan Zhenqing, Zhang Wei, Dai Shulun and others. The entire text is written in wild grass, with the center of the strokes like a cone scratching a sand table, vertically, horizontally and diagonally, going in all directions; the whole volume emphasizes the continuous grass flow, turning the brush up and down, sometimes left and now right, ups and downs, some fast, some light, some light. Heavy, full of rules and regulations, with strange changes and turbulent expressions, it is the ultimate expression of the art of cursive calligraphy.
"Zi Xu Tie" has been a popular calligraphy in the field of cursive script since the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties. It has connected the past and the future in the history of Chinese cursive script and has a profound influence in the field of calligraphy art. [3] It is Huaisu's longest work handed down and is known as "the best cursive script in the world".
Explanation:
Huaisu grew up in Shasha. He became a Buddhist when he was young. In his spare time, he practiced Zen and was quite good at penmanship. However, I regret that I was unable to see the miracles of my predecessors, and my vision was very shallow. Then he carried the tin stick and traveled to the west to visit the famous princes of the time. Tangled things. The posthumous compilation is very simple, and it is often encountered. The scholar-bureaucrats did not think it strange that his mind was suddenly open and his mind was slightly stagnant. Yan Xingbu was a famous calligrapher with exquisite brushwork and water mirror recognition, which was probably at the end of his career. In addition, Lu Xiang, Xunlang of Shangshu, and Zhang Zhengyan, Xiao Zongbo, once wrote poems, so they described it as follows: "Kai Shi Huai Su is a hero among monks. He has a smooth spirit, an open spirit, and he is meticulous in cultivating saints. He has accumulated many years of experience." At that time, his name was famous among the rivers and mountains. Therefore, Wei Gongzhi, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, praised Xu for his success in writing. Now the minister of rites, Zhang Gong, praised him for his unruliness and invited him to travel and write songs together. In order to praise it, it moved the scroll. It was written by Du Du and Cui Yuan in the Han Dynasty, and they were especially good at its beauty. As a result, Zhang Xu of Wu County has a long history. Although his appearance is elegant and outstanding in ancient and modern times, his Kaijingfa (the word "Mo" is a mispronunciation) and his Kaijingfa (the word "Fajing" is a mispronunciation) are very detailed. Zhenqing was early in life and often traveled around. , I was repeatedly inspired to teach him; my writing skills were weak, and I was too impatient to practice it. So far, I thought about it, how could I get it back? If you return to the old concept, you can personally teach the master and follow the instructions, and the guests who come into the room will sigh and sigh at the inadequacy, and write about it, and it will be the first of all the chapters. Boxes. The description of the appearance is similar, as Zhang Libu said: "I was seated like a snake and a snake, and the sound of a sudden rain and whirlwind filled the hall." Yuan Lu said: "At first, I suspected that the ancient pines were covered in light smoke, but it was also like a mountain with thousands of peaks." Wang Yongzhou said. : "The cold ape drinks water and shakes the withered vines, and the strong man pulls up the mountain and stretches out the strong iron." Zhu Chushi said: "I only see the electric current in the pen, and the words are afraid of the coiled dragon walking away." Narrating Ji Ge, Li Yushi Zhou said: "In the past, Zhang Xu's work was called Zhang Dian, but now it is Huai Su's work, and Yu Shi calls it the mad monk. Who can say that it is impossible to succeed Dian with madness." Zhang Gong also said: "Mr. He from Jishan is well-known, and Wu County Zhang Dian never met. "Xu Censor Xu said: "Aiming for novelty and having no rules, he was thin and half-inkless in ancient times. He wrote two or three lines in his hand when he was drunk, but he couldn't write when he woke up." Dai Censor Shulun said: "Heart-palm reading. The teacher's situation turned strange, and everyone wanted to ask about the wonder of it. Huaisu said he didn't know it at first. "Speaking quickly, Dou Yushi Ji said: "There are dozens of pink-walled corridors, and Xinglai is small. The chest was full of energy. Suddenly, there were three or five screams, and thousands of words were written all over the wall. "Dai Gong also said: "The horses are running in a row, and the whole audience is speechless." There is a member of the father's department who has stupid eyes. Wuxing Qianqian, a foreign minister, wrote in a poem: "I have no friends far away from Xi, and I am so far away from the west. I am so crazy that I despise the world, but when I am drunk, I get the truth." All of them are passionate in their speeches and have profound knowledge. Ashamed and frightened. It was the twenty-eighth day of the tenth month of Dingdong in the Dali calendar.
Seal and postscript
Before the post, there are the seal script of Li Dongyang of the Ming Dynasty leading to the four words "Zang Zhen Zi Preface", followed by the inscription of Shao Zhou and others in the fourth year of Shengyuan of the Southern Tang Dynasty (940). The seals include "Seal of Jianye Scholars", "Descendants of the Sixth Seal", "Seal of the Four Generations", "Descendants of the State of Xu", "Seal of Wuxiang", "Zhao Collection", "Qiuhe Books". ", "Xiang Yuan Bian Seal", "Anqi Seal", "Qianlong", "Xuantong Appreciation" and other appreciation seals.
There are also inscriptions by Su Che and Jiang Can of the Song Dynasty, Wu Kuan and Li Dongyang of the Ming Dynasty, Wen Zhengming, Gao Shiqi and An Qi of the Qing Dynasty. The content is as follows:
The clear postscript of Zhengming says: "Like the San monks, the saints are crazy. Every quirk is out of standard. "
Qing'an Qiba said: "The color of the ink and paper is wonderful and moving, and the vertical and horizontal changes occur at the end of the hair, which is mysterious and indescribable."
The above is written by me.
Creative background:
When Huai Su was about thirty-two years old, he walked out of Hunan to Chang'an to visit famous teachers and seek further development. After arriving in Chang'an, I saw many rare "posthumous bamboo slips" and made friends with many literati and dignitaries. Because of his free and easy personality and excellent cursive writing, he was highly praised by many calligraphers, poets and celebrities, and received a series of praising poems, enough to be compiled into an album. Huaisu lived in Chang'an for about five years. About October of the seventh year of Dali in the Tang Dynasty (AD 772), he left Chang'an for his hometown of Lingling and passed through Luoyang. Zhang Xu, the Kuangcao master he most admired, had been active in Luoyang for many years. Although he had passed away long ago, Huaisu still made a special trip to Luoyang to commemorate his predecessor. Unexpectedly, I happened to meet Zhang Xu's disciple and calligrapher Yan Zhenqing in Luoyang. Yan was passing through Luoyang to attend to personal matters. He believed deeply in Buddhism and liked to associate with monks. Moreover, Huai Su was a disciple of his classmate Wu Tong, so he thought highly of Huai Su. Seeing that Huaisu's cursive calligraphy was as beautiful as that of his predecessor Zhang Xu, he was even more impressed. So he responded to Huaisu's request and wrote a preface to the "Collection of Songs in Cursive Script by Master Huaisu". On the basis of this collection of songs, Huaisu wrote a volume of "Autobiography" in the eleventh or twelfth year of the Tang Dynasty (776 or 777).
In "Zi Xu Tie", Huaisu changed the cursive method of Jin people and creatively integrated the seal script brushwork into the cursive script. Later generations called it "Cao Zhuan", and many famous cursive calligraphers in later generations used it for reference.
"Zi Xu Tie" is a complete denial of Shangfa's calligraphy style. This negation is the inevitable result of the development of calligraphy art and calligraphy concepts to a high level. From today's historical perspective, what "Autobiography" creates is the "modern spirit" that is advertised today, a personality force full of individual creativity and contempt for the aesthetic principles of the predecessors.
"Zi Xu Tie" has been a popular calligraphy in the field of cursive script since the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties. It has connected the past and the future in the history of Chinese cursive script and has a profound influence in the field of calligraphy art. Today, the practicality of calligraphy has long been relegated to a secondary position, and the aesthetic attributes are becoming increasingly apparent. The influence of cursive script represented by "Zi Xu Tie" will be even more powerful.