Online calligraphy is not ancient, it is the product of the computer network era, which first appeared in the 199s. Since the end of last century, human beings have entered the era of computers and the Internet, and computer networks have entered almost every corner of China society. People's production and life need text communication, which no longer depends on manual writing, including pen words, and the text transmission between them no longer depends on paper and other physical objects as carriers, but instead of computer typing and network communication; At the same time, the network tide has changed the traditional mode, customary procedure and thinking in reality, and replaced the traditional linear thinking mode with the thinking mode of big time and space and no boundary. This is another unprecedented impact on the ancient China calligraphy art after the introduction of the pen into China in the 192s, and the traditional calligraphy is facing the crisis of inheritance. The main manifestations are as follows:
1. Calligraphy is out of the need of daily production and daily communication, and its practicality is greatly weakened. Especially in the future, with the solution of the technical and legal effects of online signing, the handwritten signature of important documents will be replaced by online signing, and the practicality of calligraphy may face complete disappearance.
2. Although the traditional calligraphy photos in black and white are pasted on the Internet, they have certain communication and publicity functions, but they cannot meet the needs of the colorful online world. This monochrome art form often appears pale in the network art garden.
3. Traditional calligraphy is increasingly divorced from the vast majority of social members who use computer networks, losing the participation of the people who use Chinese characters, and gradually losing its foundation for survival and development, which also poses a direct crisis to the inheritance of calligraphy.
4. As online communication replaces correspondence, the communication channels of traditional calligraphy works as physical objects are actually narrowed except for special calligraphy exhibitions and a few documents signing. As for the online calligraphy photos, they already belong to virtual objects.
As a result, people began to think about the inheritance of calligraphy in the era of computer network, and explored the computer network expression forms of China's calligraphy. As far as we know, Tang Yonghua, a Guangdong calligrapher, founded this kind of online calligraphy. He first introduced computer network elements into the process of calligraphy creation. Since 1995, he took the lead in using computer software technology to process calligraphy works. At first, he sent them to foreign friends through E-mail. With the development of software technology, he constantly practiced and created a new style of calligraphy with the characteristics of the times, which was suitable for the display and dissemination of the Internet. He not only created a large number of online calligraphy works, but also spread them to the online public in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and other places through various online carriers, which is refreshing and highly appreciated by online and calligraphy lovers. He also made a systematic study in theory and put forward a set of online calligraphy theory framework, which is unique in the world of online calligraphy.
The Chinese Calligraphers Association, Haixiange and other organizations and websites set up columns to promote and display the online calligraphy works and theoretical articles of Tang Yonghua, Dahai and Zeng Qiulin.