Ink is the basic painting material of Chinese painting. According to the type, it is divided into: oil smoke ink, pine smoke ink, and lacquer smoke ink.
⑴ Oil smoke ink: It is fired with tung oil extracted from tung tree seeds. The black color contains brown. Types of oil smoke ink: Shanghai oil smoke 101, 104, Anhui Hu Kaiwen top smoke or top paint smoke. How to use oil fume ink: Use oil fume ink when using ink to draw outlines in fine brushwork. You cannot use ink instead, because oil fume ink has good water resistance and is not easy to dissolve during the dyeing process.
⑵Pine smoke ink: fired from pine branches, black and matte, suitable for rendering hair, men, eyebrows, and feathers, but cannot be used for drawing lines.
In ancient ink making, pine ash was often used as raw material, hence the name. "Dongtian Mo Lu": "The ancient ink was only made of pine smoke. Cao Zi wrote a poem: 'Moshan Green Pine Smoke'." Mrs. Wei's "Bi Zhen Diagram": "The ink is based on the pine smoke of the Lushan Mountain, and the deer glue of the group. Those who are as strong as stone for more than ten years. "Tu Long's "Kao Pan Yu Shi" Volume 2: "I have said that the pine smoke ink is deep but not charming, and the oil smoke ink is beautiful but not deep." The characteristic of pine smoke ink is thick. Black and dull, easy to dissolve in water. It is suitable to draw figures, eyebrows, feathers, butterfly wings, etc. Smoke is a gaseous product produced by the unfinished combustion of animals and plants. When the smoke is cooled, it solidifies to form soot. Soot can be divided into pine soot and oil soot. Smoke is an important raw material for making ink. The smoke materials used in Chinese ink making can be divided into two categories: pine smoke and oil smoke. Among them, the use of pine smoke has the longest history. The production of pine smoke ink involves cutting down pine branches, burning smoke, sifting smoke, melting glue, pestling, hammering, etc. The process is relatively complicated, and it is characterized by thick ink that is matte, fine and easy to grind. Pine smoke ink needs to be used for three winters and four summers, and a lot of spices, tobacco leaves, etc. must be added to prevent insects.
In the history of Chinese ink making, the Han Dynasty and the Song Dynasty are two important historical stages that connect the past and the future. Before the Han Dynasty, natural ink (graphite) was mainly used, and artificial ink was rarely used. In the Han Dynasty, due to the development of ink-making technology, pine smoke ink in the true sense appeared. The emergence of pine smoke ink was a huge leap in the history of Chinese ink making. From then on, people bid farewell to the era of using natural ink, laying the foundation for the future development of the ink industry. The ink-making industry of the Song Dynasty occupies an important position in the history of ink, among which the creation of oil smoke ink is the most prominent and proud achievement. Before the Song Dynasty, Chinese ink-making used pine smoke as the main raw material. To use pine smoke to make ink, fat and strong ancient pines had to be selected. As a result, many ancient pines were cut down, causing great damage to natural resources. Chao Guanzhi of the Song Dynasty described it this way in the "Mo Jing": "In the past, the pines in Dongshan were fat in color, heavy in nature, and of the highest quality. However, they no longer exist. The owner of the pines is only more than ten years old. Shen Kuo also wrote in "Mengxi Bi Tan": "Nowadays, in Qi and Lu, the pine forests are all gone, and gradually in Taihang, Jingxi, and Jiangnan, most of the pine mountains are full of children." In the case of increasing demand, it is urgent to seek new ink-making raw materials.
⑶ Lacquer smoke ink: Extracted from lacquer resin, the color is black, fine and shiny, and can be used as black pigment.
⑷Suspension ink: Overnight ink contains ink precipitation, which is suitable for freehand painting. Suspension ink cannot be used for fine brushwork, as it is easy to bleed.
Selection of ink sticks: The longer the ink sticks are stored, the better. The ink sticks should be delicate and moist, showing blue or purple light, otherwise they are poor quality ink sticks. When choosing ink sticks, lighter ink is better