Calligraphy is the art of writing words. To learn China's calligraphy, we must first understand the origin and structure of Chinese characters. The origin of Chinese characters in China can be traced back to 5,000 years ago, represented by image symbols. Three thousand years ago, there was a complete structure of Oracle Bone Inscriptions, Jinwen and Shi Guwen in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. Their writing skills and the use of tools all show some perfection. Writing has three important factors necessary for the art of calligraphy, namely "using a pen, structure and composition", and calligraphy began to be enlightened during this period.
(1) Oracle Bone Inscriptions
Oracle Bone Inscriptions is the earliest recognizable writing in China, mostly written or engraved on tortoise shells and animal bones. As long as the content of Oracle Bone Inscriptions discovered so far is Oracle Bone Inscriptions, there are a few notes. These characters are carved with sharp tools, and some are written in ink or Zhu calligraphy similar to a brush. The strokes are thin, hard and straight, and the lines are thick and solid regardless of thickness.
The sculptor is skilled in handling knives like a pen. The style of writing also varies from time to time, or it is slender and dense, or it is sloppy. Oracle Bone Inscriptions already has the structural rules of pictographic, knowing, referring, pictographic, phonological and other Chinese characters, and has already included many factors of calligraphy art. From its stippling, structure, style and composition, it is comprehensive and diverse, reflecting people's writing skills and artistic accomplishment in Shang and Zhou Dynasties.
Oracle Bone Inscriptions monolithic
(2) bronze inscription
Bronze inscriptions refer to inscriptions carved, written and cast on bronzes, including weapons and ornaments. Besides the functions of explanation and note-keeping, bronze inscriptions are more decorative, pay more attention to formal beauty, and are close to artistic forms, especially in the late Zhou Dynasty. The bronze inscriptions are more regular, more rigorous in structure and more symmetrical in layout. For example, the famous inscriptions of Dakeding, Xiaoke Dingding and Maogongding in Zhou Liwang period.
Jinwen monolithic
(3) Shi Guwen
Stone drums are used to record merits and demerits in ancient hunting. It is about 1 m high and 70 cm in diameter. Up to now, there are 10 stone drums * * in a drum shape. Each stone drum is engraved with a four-character poem and ten * * * poems, which describe the hunting of the King of Qin and are called "Shi Guwen", and are now in the Palace Museum in Beijing. Shi Guwen appeared in the era of Zhou Pingwang and was born in the state of Qin at that time. Shi Guwen has an important position in the history of calligraphy. Compared with Oracle Bone Inscriptions and Jinwen, Shi Guwen has made great progress in calligraphy, which can better reflect the effect of writing. Its structure tends to be square, its layout is spacious and elegant, and its style is simple and elegant, which has a far-reaching influence on the calligraphy art of later generations, especially seal script and seal cutting. Later generations called Shi Guwen and other fonts "Da Zhuan".
Shi Guwen monolithic
Second, the Qin dynasty unified writing and calligraphy started clearly.
During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, it was a place because of the warlord regime. There are many regional fonts, some of which have more than 100 ways to write a word. After Qin Shihuang unified the whole country, it was a great achievement in the cultural history of China. After the unification of Qin Dynasty, the script was called Qin Zhuan, also called Xiao Zhuan. The structure of Xiao Zhuan is vertical, with strict and steady ends, concise strokes and symmetrical lines. The strokes are rounded when turning, slightly thicker when starting, and slightly thicker when going back. When the pen is closed, the strokes are arranged in a simple and complicated way, symmetrical and coordinated, echoing up and down, and dense. This book is very rigorous, regular and rich in gestures.
Yishan north place
Third, the official script flourished in the Han Dynasty.
The Han Dynasty is a crucial period in the history of China's calligraphy, especially in the Eastern Han Dynasty, when official script entered a stage of skillful form and various schools. At present, there are more than 100 fonts left over from the Han tablet, showing a dazzling and brilliant face. The brushwork is not only getting better and better. And the styles of books are diverse. At the same time of the maturity of official script, the change of official script appeared, and it developed into Cao Zhang. In addition, running script and regular script have sprouted. By the Han Dynasty, not only the stroke structure of Chinese characters was basically finalized, but also the writing rules were basically formed.
Fourth, during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the evolution of calligraphy was completed.
In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, although there were five styles: seal script, official script, cursive script, official script and official script, the modern cursive script, official script and official script were not mature. In the transitional stage, the three kingdoms and the Western Jin Dynasty inherited the changes of calligraphy style since the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the official intention began to weaken, and the independence of modern cursive script, official script and official script began to strengthen and become more mature. From the development of China's calligraphy. Wei and Jin Dynasties is an important historical stage to complete the evolution of calligraphy, and it is a generation with perfect seal, official, model, line and grass. Their stereotypes and beautification are undoubtedly another great change in the history of China's calligraphy.
Fifth, in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, calligraphy flourished.
The culture of the Tang Dynasty was profound and brilliant, reaching the peak of China's feudal culture, which can be described as "books flourished in the early Tang Dynasty". The whole Tang Dynasty made unprecedented achievements in calligraphy theory, especially regular script and cursive script, which inherited and innovated the previous generation. The all-round development of truth, grass, official script and seal script is an era of great promotion and prosperity, which has brought China calligraphy art into a new realm with outstanding characteristics of the times. The most prominent feature of calligraphy in the Tang Dynasty is that it is famous for respecting the law, paying attention to the rules of strokes, the perfection of structure and the rigor of statutes, which makes calligraphy embark on a highly regular road.
Yan Zhenqing's Sacrifice to the Draft
Sixth, the inheritance and development of China's calligraphy after the Song Dynasty.
After Wei, Jin and Tang Dynasties, the art of calligraphy in Song Dynasty once again showed a prosperous trend, forming another artistic peak of China's calligraphy. Book critics generally believe that "Jin people attach importance to rhyme, Tang people attach importance to law, and Song people attach importance to meaning". In Song Dynasty, calligraphy pursued the natural expression of individual mind based on poetry articles, consciously poured all kinds of feelings into calligraphy works, and wrote the true feelings of leisure and frankness. Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, Mi Fei and Cai Xiang, who were called "Song Sijia" by later generations, created a new trend in the history of calligraphy. At present, many of the calligraphy inscriptions we see are handed down from the Song Dynasty. After the Song Dynasty, China's calligraphy developed widely, and many excellent calligraphers and calligraphy works emerged. For example, Zhao Mengfu in Yuan Dynasty was one of the "four great calligraphers" in China. There were famous calligraphers such as Zhu Yunming, Wen Huiming and Dong Qichang in the Ming Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong, as well as Wang Duo, Fu Shan and Deng, also handed down many calligraphy works.
Su Shi's Huangzhou Cold Food Poems
From the evolution of calligraphy, we can make a basic summary:
Oracle Bone Inscriptions, Jin Wen and Shi Guwen are in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. It is the beginning of Chinese characters in China and calligraphy in China. After the long-term development and practice of Chinese character culture, Chinese calligraphy has mainly formed five styles, namely seal script. Official script, regular script, running script, cursive script.
(1) Before the Qin dynasty unified the font of Chinese characters, it was collectively called Da Zhuan. After the Qin dynasty unified the characters, the script was Xiao Zhuan. Dazhuan script evolved from Oracle Bone Inscriptions, which is also called Zhou Shu script. The inscriptions handed down from ancient times mainly include large, small, Mao, Pan and so on. Small seal script evolved from big seal script, including Taishan stone carving, Yishan stone carving and Langya stone carving.
(2) Official script Official script is developed from seal script. At the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty, official documents began to use official script, and at the same time, official script was also widely used in all kinds of inscriptions, including sacrificial tablets, Shi Chenbei, ode to Xiqiao, Zhang Qianbei, Cao Quanbei and so on 100.
(3) Regular script is also called authentic (Weibei font also belongs to regular script). Regular script developed from official script, formed in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and matured in Jin and Tang Dynasties. It mainly emphasizes the standardization and strict statutes of calligraphy. His main works include On Le Yi and Huang Tingjing by Wang Xizhi, Jiucheng Palace by Yu Shinan, Monument to Confucius Temple by Yan Zhenqing, Monument to Li Qin by Yan, Monument to Mysterious Pagoda by Liu Gongquan and Monument to Shence Army. Zhao Mengfu's Danba North and so on.
(4) Running script also evolved from seal script and official script, which began in the later Han Dynasty and matured in the Jin Dynasty. This way of writing is easier to use and more popular, so people call it running script. His main works are Preface to Lanting by Wang Xizhi, Preface to the Holy Religion by Yan Zhenqing, Poems on the Theme of Runan Gong by Yu Shinan, Meng Zhaotie by Liu Gongquan, Poems on Dongting Spring by Su Shi, Poems on Cold Food in Huangzhou, Poems on Songfengge by Huang Tingjian and Poems on Mi Fei.
(5) Cursive cursive script is divided into Cao Zhang and Jincao. Cao Zhang first appeared between Qin and Han Dynasties, and his style still has the French style of official script. This grass evolved from Cao Zhang in the post-Han period, and its outstanding characteristics are firm brushwork, consistent brushwork and bold brushwork. There are two styles of modern grass, one is the big grass (wild grass) represented by Zhang Zhi, Zhang Xu and Huai Su; Second, represented by Wang Xizhi, Zhi Yong and Sun. As long as there are cursive scripts in history, Zhang Zhi's autumn cool good post, year-round post, Suo Jing carrying a demon post, four ancient Zhang Xu cursive poems, Wang Xizhi's seventeen posts, Wang Xianzhi's clothes post, Jiangzhou post, Zhi Yong Qian Zi Wen Zhen Cao, and Sun.