The list of books was called "signature book" in ancient times, also known as "big characters in the nest". Fei Huan of the Ming Dynasty wrote in "Da Shu Chang Yu": "The Qin Dynasty abolished the ancient writings, and the books are in eight styles. The person who signed the book used large characters to inscribe the palace plaque. When the front hall of Weiyang Palace was completed, Emperor Gao of the Han Dynasty ordered Xiao He to inscribe...this sign... "The beginning of calligraphy." Xiao He, the prime minister of Han Dynasty, was the first calligrapher to use the art of calligraphy to decorate the imperial palace, but he was not the first calligrapher to write calligraphy. List books appeared long before the Qin Dynasty unified writing. According to the stone carvings and documents of "Taishan", "Langxie", "Yishan" and "Kuiji", the first calligrapher to write the list was Qin Prime Minister Li Si.
How to write a list book, Fei Ying said: "It must be taught by a master. Pay attention to the eight methods, the eight diseases, the brushwork, the lapel and other methods one by one. When you get the idea, then write down a little. Every painting comes from the rules... When writing, those who are proficient in calligraphy can give some hints, and the mind will become clearer and the vision will be longer. The work of Linchi will change with each day and the moon, and it will be as good as the ancients. "That's it." After mastering the "Eight Methods" writing technique, eliminating the eight diseases, being able to follow the rules in pointillism, and mastering the model writing skills, you can start practicing with characters that are about 10 centimeters in size, and gradually increase the size of the characters.
Having corresponding theoretical knowledge of calligraphy will be of great benefit to improving the writing skills of calligraphy. Take cliffs and stone carvings as examples. The stone carvings on the banks of the Yishui River in Luoyang, Henan, are written in square-brush calligraphy. Although the "Three Han Odes" (see the three pictures on the right) on Baoxie Road in Shaanxi and Gansu are on the same road, the styles of "Ode to Shimen", "Ode to Xizhao" and "Ode to Yingge" are very different: the former is purely The two are written with a round pen, which is unrestrained, lively and unrestrained, and full of interest; while the latter two are mainly written with a square pen, which is square, strong, dignified and beautiful, and the pen used in "Ode to Yige" is especially strong. Although the stone inscription "Zheng Wengong Stele" in Laizhou, Shandong was also written by Zheng Daozhao, the "Zheng Wengong Stele" (lower stele) engraved on Yunfeng Mountain has clear handwriting and is less weathered and corroded. Among the many publishing houses that printed "Zheng Wengong's Stele" (Xiabei), only the "Zheng Wengong's Stele" (Xiabei) in the "Self-study Series" of Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Publishing House ranks among the best in terms of style, word clarity and rubbings used. . Although the "Zheng Wengong Monument" is written in a round and vigorous style with connotative meaning, it is too formal and should not be chosen as a model. If you have the above knowledge or master more calligraphy theories, as well as other related knowledge of painting pens, inks, water, colors, etc., you will get twice the result with half the effort.