For example, when the branches of plum blossoms are old and bent, they will spread like seals; If the grass leaves of orchids are curly, the flowers will be longer; Bamboo stems are round like seals and leaves like pecks; Chrysanthemum leaves are like mud spots on a book list, and flowers are like official books. From this point of view, the connection between Mei Lan and Zhu Ju and calligraphy is exactly the same. Therefore, Chinese painting should emphasize calligraphy with a pen, which can be seen. It is not without reason that the basic training of freehand brushwork flowers begins with calligraphy and Mei Zhu Lan.
Of course, when practicing from these four kinds of flowers, we should first understand and master the basic skills of calligraphy, and properly apply the techniques in calligraphy pen, such as "wanting to be left first and then right", "wanting to be vertical first and then horizontal", "not hanging and shrinking", "walking well all the way" and "twists and turns" to the painting. For the modeling training of these four kinds of flowers, one is to observe and sketch frequently, and the other is to copy and think more. Everything in the world is born, and everything has a spirit. Knowing its nature can draw its depth. The sages of China deeply understood the essence of plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, and wisely chose these four kinds of flowers as the basic training objects of flower painting.
Of these four kinds of flowers, drawing orchids and bamboo is the most difficult. Historically, literature and paintable bamboo are realistic, with first-class techniques, but not clever enough. Shi Tao painted bamboo all over the paper, and you can get the true meaning of bamboo. Zheng Banqiao specializes in painting Zhu Lan. He is more skilled than others, but he doesn't want to get into machinery and routines. Pu Hua's bamboo painting is very vivid, I can see it. Wu Changshuo's bamboo painting has also entered the routine. Painting orchids is particularly wonderful. Qi Baishi basically doesn't paint orchid bamboo. Pan Tianshou refers to the unique paintings of Zhu Lan in the world. Tang Yun described Zhu Lan in his own way, with both form and spirit. Therefore, it can be seen that I have forgotten everything about painting. Zhu Lan is me, and I am Zhu Lan. After hundreds of years of careful calculation, only a handful of painters can reach this standard.