Subtitles: tools
Commentary: To learn seal cutting, you must first prepare a carving knife, inkpad (special inkpad for painting and calligraphy), Yin Chuang, brush, ink, extension bag, copy paper, sandpaper, toothbrush, mirror, scissors, glue and rice paper (subtitle: available in the market).
Subtitles: material selection
Commentary: Conventional lithographs suitable for everyone to learn seal cutting include Shoushan stone, feldspar stone and Qingtian stone. Beginners can practice with Qingtian stone. Subtitle: All kinds of stones can be bought in the market.
Picture: picture in picture
Commentary: The basic steps of learning seal cutting are: grinding materials, writing quotations, lettering, lettering, trimming, trimming and stamping (subtitle: it should be noted that trimming and trimming depend on the seal style, not all seals are required).
Subtitle: seal cutting
Commentary: First of all, let's understand the following seal cutting rules. Rules mainly refer to how to design and arrange seals. Single-character printing mainly separates strokes evenly. Two-character printing is divided into left-right type and up-down type. The left-right formula should be carried out from right to left, and the strokes should be even and flat. Pay attention to the density relationship between words in the upper and lower expressions. The ancients sometimes used the method of "wide strokes and dense needles" to deal with seals with large differences in the number of characters on the surface of seals. Instead of letting more strokes occupy more land, they give more status to fewer strokes, thus making the contrast between density and density stronger and giving people a deep impression. Sometimes we can adjust variant characters and traditional characters, and arrange the density artificially to make them unified. Three-character printing is divided into right-left two-type, right-left two-type and right-left three-character arrangement. When typesetting, you can change the font shape according to the size of the printed surface, so that the space appears relatively harmonious. Four-character printing is divided into: sequence, from right to left, from top to bottom. Right one left three, right three left one, right one middle two left one. The right-left-three layout and the right-three-left-one layout need to lengthen one word, and the other three words respond to contraction. The layout of right one, middle two and left one needs to lengthen the words on both sides and shrink the words in the middle. Be even, decent and decent. Make the sealing arrangement symmetrical and suitable. However, it is worth noting that strokes cannot fill the space in zigzag, nor can they be as rigid as type. Generally speaking, people with too many strokes don't realize their complexity, and people with too few strokes don't realize their scarcity (draw by themselves, do it offline, with examples).
Subtitle: Write Yin Gao.
Commentary: After understanding the rules of seal cutting, what you will write next is Yin Gao. When writing Yin Gao, you can write it directly on the printed surface or on copy paper according to your own situation. If the calligraphy is good, you can directly put the copy paper on the words to be traced for tracing. Let's take the word "seal" as an example. When drawing, use a pencil and draw down according to the outline edge of the seal. Note: Small details must not be missed. Then, use ink according to the outline of the word "seal", and be careful not to exceed the outline. Daub the word "seal" in order. Then write Yin Gao's words on the surface of the stone. There are two ways to put stones on it:
1. Watermarking method: firstly, prepare a transparent copy paper, then cover the copy paper on the stone surface of Yin Shi, press the trace on the paper along the edge of Yin Shi with your palm, then write down the Yin Gao to be carved in thick ink within the indentation range, and then dry the Yin Gao; Then turn the Yin Gao with wet ink over and cover it on the printing surface, dip it in some water with a brush and smear it on the copy paper, and then use clean rice paper or toilet paper to absorb excess water; After that, cover the Yin Gao with a piece of rice paper, scrape it gently and forcefully on the edge paper, and then take off the rice paper and copy paper. In this way, the words are printed on the surface of the stone. After spreading, if there is any unclear place, use a brush to trace it evenly below. When I was a beginner in seal cutting, I basically used watermarking to write Yin Gao.
2. The specific method of reverse writing is to write Yin Gao on transparent copy paper first, then turn the copy paper over, press it with lithograph, put a mirror on it, copy it on Yin Shi with a brush according to Yin Gao's reverse writing, try to write as close as possible to the original, and then compare it with Yin Gao in front of the mirror, and make appropriate changes to the shortcomings.
Subtitle: straight line practice
Commentary: After we learn the basic rules and write Yin Gao, for beginners, we can practice by carving straight lines first. Then take a piece of Qingtian stone, first put sandpaper on the glass, hold both sides of the seal with your middle finger and thumb, press the top surface of the seal with your middle finger, and rub it on the sandpaper, because all the stones bought from the market contain wax, so it is necessary to grind them off, otherwise it is not easy to ink. (Note: When grinding, you can only rub in one direction, not back and forth). Pick it up after grinding to see if it is smooth. If you can't confirm the smoothness of the printed surface, put it flat on the glass for comparison to see if it is smooth. Then, draw a straight line on the stone with a brush (the straight line is relatively simple, just draw it directly on the printing surface). When drawing, draw a line along the left edge of the stone, then turn to one direction and draw a line on the left edge, thus drawing the first big square. Then, draw the second and third squares in the same way, fill the printing surface, and then put Yin Shi on the printing bed and tighten it. Remember: Beginners must put Yin Shi on the printing bed to avoid hurting their hands. Next, you can start carving. There are two methods of lettering (subtitle: fist cutting method and pen punching method. The operation method of the fist-clenching knife method is: the thumb and the other four fingers clench into a fist shape, and the knife rod is pinched in the palm. The angle of holding the knife is straighter than the angle of punching, about 60. Use the direction of the knife, outward, with the arbor tilted outward, and feed the knife from the outer point. A little bit, a little bit more, get up again. Push forward a little. The line cut by the tool is very short, and the long line is divided by angle, and the chapter is completed by repeated actions several times. This method is usually used to carve giant seals or hard stones.
The method of punching holes by holding the pen is: the middle finger should be pressed against the side of the meat cutter, about 1 cm away from the blade. The index finger and thumb fingers hold the spindle, and the little finger is behind the middle finger, forming an angle of about 45. Push the knife forward with the lines that need to be carved at the corner of the knife, and the ring finger abuts against the edge of the lithograph to control the delivery speed. The punching angle is small, about 30. The tip of the knife enters the outer edge of the seal and rushes forward. The way to transport knives is from right to left. The stone can keep turning. This method is also the most commonly used knife method.
We practice straight lines with pen strokes. When carving, the ring finger should be pressed against the seal, and the outer edge of the knife point entering the printing surface should be rushed forward, and the knife should be transported from the right to the left. After carving a stroke, you can rotate the seal and carve a stroke. This method is the most commonly used, and it is easier to carve a straight line. The carved stone chips should be gently wiped off with the ring finger. Remember not to blow with your mouth, so as not to affect your health. In this way, until all the straight lines on the printing surface are engraved. Then check whether the corners are carved clean. If it is not trimmed again, finally brush the stone chips on the printed surface with a toothbrush. In this way, one party can carve the seal of practice and then cover it with a wok. The method is: find a piece of rice paper with a mule paper or a book under it. (Subtitle: You can't put rubber pads on office seals. In order to avoid the fuzzy and distorted effect of the seal cover, hold the seal with your right hand and the inkpad with your left hand, and gently touch the seal in the inkpad for a few times, so that the inkpad can touch every corner and cover the carved straight line. When covering, the force should be even and steady. Press down hard. Look, this is the stamp.
A flower: carved into white.
Commentary: After a period of practice, we have mastered the basic essentials of seal cutting, and we are going to carve white seals. The effect of stamping with cymbals is that the background color is red and the text is white, which is called white printing, also called negative printing. Let's take a newly written seal face and take the word "seal" as an example to illustrate how to carve a seal in white. We use the method of knife cutting to carve single-character seals. Let's carve a straight line first, cut a point from the top of the word "Yin", cut it off, connect the points into a line, and carve the printed matter on the strokes. When turning, we cut it in the same way and cut the other side of the line. When you encounter bends and small parts, cut them carefully. Don't have a T-head and a dovetail at the beginning of the pen. When engraving a white seal, the blade of the carving knife should be carved inward along the inside of the seal, and the strokes of the seal should be carved out to make the engraved seal characters concave. When you are a beginner, in order to avoid carving too much, you can leave a little amount. Carve the word in the same way. (Subtitle: It should be noted that this method is widely used in carving big seals or hard stones, and the most commonly used method is a punching knife. ) After carving, compare it with a mirror, or dip your fingers in thick ink and smear it on the printed surface. The place where the knife was not given was black, and the carved place was white. If you are dissatisfied, you can make some changes. Then brush off the stone chips with a toothbrush, thus carving a white seal. That's what it looks like when the clock is covered.
Piece flower: engraved with Zhu
Commentary: Zhu is sealed with cymbals. The background is white and the text is red. Also known as Yin. Let's take "An Xiu" as an example to show you how to carve the word "Zhu" with the effect of stones and bones. Let's smooth the stone first, and write the word "An Xiu" directly on the printing surface according to Yin Gao's composition and writing. First, draw a border. When drawing, stick the right edge of the brush on the left side of the seal. Draw four sides well. Then use a pencil to divide the printed surface into two parts and write from right to left. Because the word "An" is dense, and the dense places are concentrated in the lower part, we must pay attention to the relationship between density and coordination with the word "An" when writing. The upper horizontal line and the lower horizontal line of the word "Xiu" must cross a horizontal line at the same position as the word "An". The proportion between words should be appropriate. After writing, we use the pen-punching knife method, first insert the knife from the blank inside the frame, and slowly advance the knife from right to left. If it is difficult to advance, we can shake the handle a little. Zhu's lettering is to engrave the superfluous parts other than words. According to the order of strokes when writing Yin Gao, we should follow the principles of top-down and right-to-left to carve blank parts. At the end of each stroke, be extra careful when you touch the joint of the strokes. When carving a large area of blank, we should pay attention to carving deeper, so as to avoid being covered by the wok when it touches the inkpad. In the same way, we should also engrave the modified words. Because to make the effect of stone and bone characters, it is necessary to do dating treatment after engraving. First of all, you should use a knife to carve strokes in the dense places, and then hit the printed surface with a knife pole. Tap from the four corners first, and then tap the strokes and borders, parallel or repeated parts in the printed matter. The pattern and corners of this artificial seal are similar to natural protrusions. There is an antique natural beauty. When finished, brush the stone chips with a toothbrush, dip them in the inkpad and cover them on the printing paper. Look, this way, the seal side is ready. Is there anything wrong with the original? Make the following changes. Do you think it is very similar to the original?
Piece of flowers: engraved with small seals
Commentary: After learning to engrave single-character white printing and double-character Zhu Wen printing, engraving three-character printing and four-character printing can also be operated in the same way. However, in daily life, we sometimes encounter the need to carve small shapes because of seals. Xiao Zhuan is generally based on the style of stone reliefs, so from painting Yin Gao to using a knife, it is mainly flexible. Every point is not required to be exquisite, but the picture on the printed surface must be harmonious and vivid. Let's take "riding a donkey backwards" as an example to illustrate the carving method of small seals. Prepare a pattern first (you can draw it yourself or buy it in the market), and write it on the polished stone surface according to the method of writing Yin Gao mentioned above. Here, the method of drawing directly on the stone surface according to the pattern is selected. Draw a border first, and then construct the outline of the image with a pencil. First, draw some points on the blank of the printed surface as the ground. Then draw the outline of "riding a donkey backwards" according to the pattern, and then paint the outline black with a brush. After writing, we carved with Zhu's method, carved with pen from the border, and cut off the white part. Then, start with the animal's head, because the head is oval, so use a knife to slowly advance according to the outline of the ellipse, the direction is from right to left, and turn the seal slightly when encountering an arc. Then carefully carve an arc and carve an animal's leg like a straight line. The method of engraving is similar to that of carving animals. The blank part left should be boldly carved away, and unnecessary residual points should not be left. After the carving is completed, it should be broken to show the quaint style, and then the stone chips should be brushed off with a toothbrush and covered on the printed paper (covering on the printed paper can show a three-dimensional effect). You see, it would be great if one side "rides the donkey backwards" in a small shape.
Flower fragments: carved edges
Commentary: After one party seals, it is sometimes necessary to engrave the above paragraphs. Boundary section refers to the characters carved on the side of Yin Shi or the top of Yin Shi, which is also an important part of seal cutting. The knife method used for carving boundary paragraphs is the same as carving. The border characters are all Chinese characters being written, and the font is generally small. The method of writing Yin Gao can be written directly on Yin Shi with a brush. Note: No matter which side of the seal is written, it should start from the right and end on the left. We only carve one side now. Let's take "Bing Xu's late winter, Shi Gan's carving in Yunshuizhai" as an example to illustrate the carving method of the boundary part. We also use the pen-holding punching knife method, but the blade and middle finger are vertical. In addition, the specific engraving method of line strokes should follow the following principles: when engraving "points", insert the corner of the knife into the stone and press it hard from bottom to top. When carving "horizontal", first press the angle of the knife on the stone surface, and carve the charm of drawing a pen horizontally. Then, cross the knife from right to left until it is finished, and bend it slightly to the left with the corner of the right knife. When carving a "vertical" stroke, first cut the appropriate knife angle into the stone surface and move the knife forward from top to bottom until the stroke is over. The carving method of stroke "skimming" is also to insert the right corner of the knife into the stone, first heavy and then light to the left. When carving a vertical hook, cut down from the top and press the tip of the knife at the end. Press out the effect of the hook. When carving a cross hook, it should be broken down into several parts. First horizontal carving, then vertical carving, then horizontal carving, * * * to complete the horizontal hook. There are few strokes of "si" in the running script, and the strokes of "si" in the border paragraphs are often replaced by long dots. When carving the border, you should pay attention to it moderately, otherwise you will carve "flowers" because of excessive force. According to this method, carve all these words in turn and brush off the stone chips with a toothbrush. Look at this side. It's engraved.
Font: maintenance of seal
Commentary: After learning the blade width, you will master the basic knowledge of seal cutting techniques. If you want to learn more deeply, you should learn the skills of edge extension. Because edge extension is not commonly used by beginners, I won't introduce it in detail here. Next, I will introduce the maintenance of the following seals. If the carved seals are not used for a long time, we will dip some walnut oil with a brush and brush the surfaces of several seals.
Through the above study, I believe you must have mastered the basic skills of seal cutting. As your technology becomes more and more skilled, I believe you can carve beautiful and exquisite seals.