European style is a regular script font created by Ou Yangxun, a great calligrapher in the Tang Dynasty. It is characterized by the combination of harmony, strong stippling and cohesive brushwork. It is steep and rigorous. Keep the side stable, compact and sparse.
Further analyzing the characteristics of European calligraphy, we can see that,
European style originated in Han Li, with strong personality and strict laws and regulations. See danger in peace, see elegance in rules, interspersed with strokes and properly arranged. Zhang Huaiguan in the Tang Dynasty said in the "Introduction": "It's hard to inquire about the eight styles, and the brushwork is dangerous. The seal character is particularly refined, flying white, as steep as the ancients, like a dragon and snake fighting, with light clouds and light wind, and the wind is thundering and the exercise is like a god. " The decay of the true line comes from the big order, so don't become one. As dense as an armory spear and halberd, Shen Feng is stricter than wise water and less polished than Shinan. His cursive script is circulated, which can be regarded as two kings, and can be used as a dynamic color, but it scares him to jump, does not avoid danger, and hurts elegance. "
Regular script: No matter whether you use a pen or not, the structure has a very serious procedure, which is the most convenient for beginners. The Thirty-six Methods of Ouyang's Structure, which was circulated by later generations, is a structure writing method summarized from his regular script. His regular script "Zhang Hansi's Lu Tie" is long and vigorous. Ink handed down from generation to generation is especially precious. Ou Yangxun's son Ouyang Tong has a family of calligraphers. Both father and son are very famous in the book world and are called "Ouyang". Xiao Ouyang's "Taoist Monument" has a stronger sense of propriety, but it is too revealing and implicit.
What is particularly prominent is that the European style is drawn from ancient Li with a pen, so it can be dignified and calm, and the turning point is clean and neat; The heart is tight and the founder is muddy. Therefore, there is an extremely strict tolerance. In favor and generosity, there are dangers and benefits. The characteristics of European books can be summarized by the word "risk and strength"
The so-called "what kind of brush to use" is based on this feature of European regular script.
Writing with a soft brush represented by sheep hair can create a graceful feeling, but it is not easy to show the skeleton, let alone the rigidity, which may make the words look bloated and heavy. However, the use of hard brushes, represented by wolf's hair, makes the European style lose its Fiona Fang and dignified momentum, while its bones and muscles are exposed and meaningless, thus losing the value of European style calligraphy. Therefore, it is more suitable to choose double-sided brush. Bai Juyi's poem Purple Pen reveals Ou Yangxun's use of purple pen at that time. The purple brush is made from the back of a wild rabbit's neck, so it is named for its deep purple color. It is harder than wool, and of course it is softer than wolf hair.
What kind of pen to choose is generally used by novices. After writing to a certain extent, you can basically master typical European calligraphy, and you can adjust your pen according to different requirements.
Yu Shinan commented on Ou Yangxun's calligraphy, saying that he "can get what he wants without choosing a pen and paper"-that's what a generation did.