The reason why it is not recommended to practice facial expressions is that some facial expressions are difficult and not suitable for beginners.
The first choice for learning calligraphy is still Yan Zhenqing’s regular script. For beginners, learning regular script is mainly to strengthen the concept of law. What needs to be mastered is the basic rules of writing and composition. From this point of view, not all Yan Zhenqing's regular scripts are suitable for beginners.
It can be seen from Yan Zhenqing's early regular script that he used the pen in a disciplined manner at that time and his strong personal style had not yet been formed. By the time of "Duobao Pagoda Stele", Yan Zhenqing had basically completed the shaping of his personal style, and expressed the concept of regular script to the extreme, with meticulous penmanship and smooth and straight structure.
Moving forward, we reach the calligraphy style of "Yanjia Temple Stele". At this time, Yan Zhenqing has reached the highest state of being both old and calligraphy. He is no longer bound by the law, and his pen is strong and powerful. Sometimes the meaning of seal script and official writing is mixed into it, which makes it appear solemn and ancient. If a beginner starts with "Guojia Temple Stele", he will feel confused when writing. This is also the reason why it is not recommended for beginners to learn "Yanjia Temple Stele".
Yan Zhenqing’s important position in the history of calligraphy
The high attention Yan Zhenqing receives is directly related to the artistry of Yan Zhenqing. Apart from Wang Xizhi, Yan Zhenqing may be regarded as the most innovative calligrapher in the history of calligraphy.
Using dual division method, refer to the Chinese philosophy of yin and yang. If we say that Chinese calligraphy can be divided into two types by internal extension and external extension, Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi are the ancestors along the way, including Ouyang Xun, Yu Shinan, Chu Suiliang, Mi Fu, Su Shi, Zhao Mengfu, Dong Qichang, etc. Most of the regular scripts in the history of calligraphy and calligraphers are all included in this list; this is Neichao Road.
The second path is Yan Zhenqing. This path includes calligraphers who studied Yan style and took Yan style as their basic aspect. There are not many people in this path in the history of calligraphy; this is the Waituo path. From this point of view, the creativity of Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy is the only one who can compete with the calligraphy of the calligraphy sage Wang Xizhi. But from this point of view, it also proves that Yan Zhenqing established a set of composition methods and brushwork methods that are different from, or even contrary to, Wang Xizhi and mainstream calligraphy traditions.