Today, when the world of calligraphy is becoming more diversified, the art of calligraphy has been sublimated to a high level of conceptual change, which is undoubtedly a big step. The modernity of calligraphy does not simply depend on the external appearance of the art of calligraphy, such as form, structure, and lines, but on the modernization of the inner spirit. The spirit of calligraphy modernity refers to the value trend of modern society embodied and transmitted by contemporary calligraphy art.

In the modern book world, the stele school is still the dominant position. However, unlike the late Qing stele school, there were more calligraphers who took the Han stele and the ancient seal script in this period.

Many calligraphy masters such as Lin Sanzhi, Sha Menghai, Lu Weizhao, etc., were engaged in calligraphy creation before 1949, but they were not famous for calligraphy until they were close to their old age after the Cultural 1st Revolution. For nearly 30 years from 1949 to the death of Mao Zedong 1, calligraphy was largely ignored. At that time, the people were building a new China with great enthusiasm. Calligraphy is considered a representative of the old tradition.

The colorful art of modern calligraphy is directly related to the unprecedented complexity of its calligraphers. Perhaps because of its proximity, the landscape is clearer than at any time before.

Seal script is a general term for large seals and small seals. The oracle bone inscription, which has a history of 3,000 years, is the earliest recognizable script handed down from generation to generation, mainly used for divination. The brushwork is thin and straight, and there are many straight lines. There are square pens, round pens, and sharp pens, and there are more "hanging needles" in the hand. The Great Seal refers to the Jinwen, Zhouwen, and Liuguo scripts, which preserve the obvious characteristics of ancient hieroglyphs. The small seal is also called "Qin seal", which is the general text of the Qin State, and the simplified font of the large seal, which is characterized by uniform and neat shape, and the font is easier to write than the Zhou text.

Lishu, also known as Han Li, is a kind of solemn font common in Chinese characters, the writing effect is slightly wide and flat, the horizontal drawing is long and the straight drawing is short, it is rectangular in shape, and pays attention to "silkworm head and goose tail", "wave and three folds". Lishu originated in the Qin Dynasty, sorted out by Cheng Miao, reached its peak in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and had a non-negligible influence on later generations of calligraphy. For example, "Han Lu Xiang Han Miao Confucian Temple Ritual Tablet", also known as "Han Ming Mansion Confucius Temple Tablet into "Lu Xiang Han Ming Fu Yan's Hair Tablet", "Han Ming Tablet" and so on. Engraved in the second year of Han Yongshou (156 years), Lishu. It is 227.2 centimeters long and 102.4 centimeters wide. Confucius Temple in Qufu, eastern Tibet. None. Engraved on four sides, all are official scripts. Sixteen lines of stele Yang, thirty-six words, there are nine inscriptions such as Han Meng after the text. The inscription on both sides of the stele is inscribed.

Regular script is also called regular script, true book, and regular book. It gradually evolved from the official book founded by Cheng Miao, and became more simplified, horizontal and vertical. Regular script has the meaning of model, which has been mentioned in Zhang Huaijun's "Book Break". The people of the Six Dynasties are still accustomed to using it, such as Yang Xin's "Cai" text, Wang Shengqian's "On the Book of Wei Dan Biography" Zhongyun: "The birth character Zhongjiang, Jingzhao people, good Kaishu." That's an abbreviation for the "eight-point method." It was not until the Northern Song Dynasty that it replaced the name of the main book, and its content is obviously different from the ancient name.

Xingshu is developed and originated on the basis of official script, a font between regular script and cursive script, which was produced to make up for the slow writing speed of regular script and the difficulty of cursive script. "Xing" means "walking", so it is not scribbled like cursive and not as upright as regular script. In essence, it is a cursive or cursive italization of regular script. The one with more regular law than the grass method is called "line Kai", and the one with more grass method than the regular method is called "line grass".

Cursive is a type of Chinese character that is characterized by a simple structure and continuous strokes. Formed in the Han Dynasty, it evolved on the basis of official scripts for the sake of simplicity of writing. There are chapter grass, present grass, and wild grass, and it feels beautiful in the madness. In "Shuowen Jie Zi", it is said: "Hanxing has cursive writing". Cursive began in the early Han Dynasty, and its characteristics are: the outline of the words, the rules of the damage, the longitudinal run, the speed of urgency, because of the meaning of the cursive, called cursive.

Ancient Chinese characters are the name of a type of calligraphy, and they are also the oldest surviving Chinese script. Engraved on the oracle bone, it was first used for divination (the Yin Dynasty people used tortoise shells and animal bones for divination. After divination, the divination period, the name of the diviner, and the divination are engraved with a knife next to the divination, and some even engrave the auspicious and evil fulfillment after a certain number of days. Scholars call this kind of record divination), which is the divination of the outcome of future events, and flourishes in Yin Shang. The oracle bone inscription was discovered in 1889 and is a record of royal divination in the late Yin Shang dynasty, which was discovered in the area of Xiaotun Village in Anyang, Henan Province, more than 3,000 years ago. The oracle bone inscription is the first treasure in the history of Chinese calligraphy, and its brushwork has changed in thickness, lightness, and speed, and the next pen is light and fast, the line of the pen is thick and heavy, and the pen is fast and fast, with a certain sense of rhythm. The strokes turn and the prescription are round, the square is steep, and the round is soft. Its lines are more harmonious and smooth than those of Tao Wen, setting the tone and rhythm for the art of lines unique to Chinese calligraphy. The oracle bone inscription is rectangular and lays down the font of Chinese characters. The knot of the oracle bone is alienated with the body, and it is left to its own devices. Its chapters are different in size, square and round, long and flat with the shape, scattered and colorful and harmonious and unified. The so-called Chinese character writing principles of later generations, such as jagged and staggered, interspersed and avoided, echoing towards the court, and covering the heavens and the earth, have been largely possessed in the oracle bone inscriptions.

One of the ancient Chinese character calligraphy. The general name of the inscription font on bronze ware in the Shang, Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn Period, and Warring States Period. It flourished in the Zhou Dynasty. Jin Wen is another monument in the history of Chinese calligraphy. Attached to the bronze, the casting tripod is intended to "make the people know the traitor", so it is a ritual vessel of religious sacrifice. Jin Wen is also known as Zhong Ding Wen, Qi Wen, and Gu Jin Wen. The inscription lines cast together with the bronzes are thicker and more powerful than the oracle bone inscriptions, and the pictographic meaning of the words is also stronger, and the earliest gold inscriptions can be found on the bronzes unearthed in the middle of the Shang Dynasty. The Zhou Dynasty was the golden age of Jinwen, with the most inscriptions unearthed.

Stone inscriptions

Inscription generally refers to the inscription of stone characters or patterns. The earliest inscription is the first to recommend the "stone drum text" of the Qin Dynasty.

Stone inscriptions were produced in the Zhou Dynasty and flourished in the Qin Dynasty. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the Qin State carved stone characters. On the 10 granite drum-shaped stones, each engraved a poem of four words, the content sings about the hunting situation of the monarch of Qin, so it is also called hunting. The earliest stone carving in the legend is the "Monument" in the Xia Dynasty, and the style of the carved poems is similar to the size and elegance of the "Book of Songs". The font is close to the Zhou text contained in the Shuowen Jie Zi, and its calligraphy has always been highly evaluated. The main works are: "Stone Drum Text", "Yishan Stone Carving", "Taishan Stone Carving", "Langyu Stone Carving", "Huiji Stone Carving" and so on.



Yishan stone carvings

Many outstanding calligraphers and painters such as Yang Yisun, Wu Dacheng, Wu Changshuo, Zhu Xuanxian, Wang Fu'an, etc., have long studied the art of stone drum writing, and regarded it as an important nutrient for their own calligraphy art, and also integrated it into their own painting art.

Epitaphs, which are stone carvings stored in tombs containing the biography of the deceased. It is to condense the deceased's family history, morality, learning, skills, political achievements, merits, etc., into a personal historical file to make up for the deficiencies of family history, local history and even national history. It is also the conclusive evidence of the epitaph. The epitaph consists of two parts: the epitaph and the epitaph.

Rubbing, posting

This is the part with the largest number of rubbings, involving famous monuments of the past dynasties, and is the main reference for calligraphy copying today. Calligraphy is a model for people who learn calligraphy to copy, and most of them are stone rubbings, woodcut prints or photocopies of famous ink. Calligraphy can be divided into inscriptions and inkblots according to whether they are authentic or not. The inscription is based on the handwriting engraved on the inscription. Ink is the ink trace written directly by the writer on paper, silk and other media. Famous posts of the past dynasties such as, Chunhua Pavilion post, Sanxi Hall.

Jane Silk

The art of calligraphy is the most authentic, but the authentic calligraphy before the Qin and Han dynasties can generally only be seen in the books of the Silk League. The ancient brochure is mainly made of bamboo, and the simple rope is made of cow tendon, silk thread, and hemp rope. Archaeological discoveries of earlier silk ink blots include: Qin Jian unearthed in Yunmeng, Hubei, the Warring States League Book (League Book, that is: written on the text on Shice or Yuce) unearthed in Houma, Shanxi, and the Warring States Silk Book unearthed in Mawangdui, Changsha. Chinese calligraphy from oracle bone inscriptions, gold inscriptions, to the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, due to the division of the princes, so the writing since the Yin Shang Dynasty, in the princely countries of the differentiation into different development paths, this period, the form and skills of calligraphy also presented a situation of a hundred schools of thought. For example, the "tadpole text" of the Jin Kingdom in the north, and the "bird book" of Wu, Yue, Chu, Cai and other countries, the strokes are tortuous, and the tail is long. The Jin Wen of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period is no longer as thick as the Jin Wen of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and is replaced by a slender body, showing a kind of mellow and beautiful, such as "Attack on Wu Wangfu Chajian". A large number of inkblots left in this period are Jane, Silk, and League Books.

Aesthetic

The overall shape is beautiful

The basic form of Chinese characters is square, but through the expansion and contraction of dot painting and the twisting of the axis, a variety of different moving forms can also be formed, so as to combine into beautiful calligraphy works. The form of the knot is mainly affected by two factors: one is the need for the expression of calligraphy interest; The second is the formal factor of calligraphy. As far as the latter is concerned, it is mainly reflected in three aspects: one is the influence of the book style, such as the vertical rectangle of the seal; the second is the influence of glyphs, some characters are flat squares, and some characters are rectangular; The third is the influence of the law. Therefore, it is only under the control of the above two types of factors that the creation of a beautiful knot can be created by actively creating a form.

There are two main ways to construct the structural beauty of dot painting, one is that all kinds of dot paintings are directly combined into various beautiful single characters and radicals according to a certain combination method. The second refers to the combination of various radicals into various glyphs in a certain way. The radical combination of Chinese characters is nothing more than left and right, left, middle and right, upper and lower, upper, middle and lower, enveloping, semi-enveloping and so on. These principles are mainly the principle of proportion, the principle of balance, the principle of rhythm, the principle of rhythm, the principle of conciseness, and so on. The principle of proportion, in which the golden ratio ratio is a very important ratio, is very important for the structural beauty of dot painting.

The artistry of the combination of ink and color mainly refers to the order of the combination. As an art of calligraphy, its various colors can no longer be chaotic, but should be very orderly. There are also some common aesthetic principles that the writer is required to follow. Such as the principle of emphasis, the principle of gradual change, the principle of equilibrium, and so on. The combination of ink color of calligraphy knots mainly involves two aspects: one is the division and combination of background color. People often say that "counting white as black" is the content of this aspect. The second is the combination of ink colors in the stippling structure. From the perspective of the overall effect of the work, we should not only pay attention to the plane structure of the dot painting, but also pay attention to the layering effect of the dot painting, so as to enhance the depth of expression of calligraphy.

The famous calligrapher Li Si presided over the sorting out of the small seal. "Interpretation of Mountain Stone Carvings", "Taishan Stone Carvings", "Langyu Stone Carvings", "Huiji Stone Carvings" are written by Li Si, and have been highly praised in all dynasties.

Zhong 繇 (yáo) (151-230), the character Yuan Chang. Yingchuan Changshe (now Changgedong, Xuchang, Henan) people. During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Wei was a famous calligrapher and politician. Zhong Xuan is quite accomplished in calligraphy, is the founder of regular script (small Kai), and is respected as the "originator of regular script" by later generations. Zhong Xuan had a profound influence on later generations of calligraphy, and later generations of calligraphers such as Wang Xizhi had devoted themselves to studying Zhong Xuan's calligraphy. Together with the Eastern Jin Dynasty calligrapher Wang Xizhi, he is called "King Zhong". Yu Shouwu of the Southern Dynasty listed Zhong Xuan's calligraphy as "above the top grade", and Tang Zhang Huaijun commented on his calligraphy as "divine product" in "Book Break".

Zhang Zhi (AD?) —192) character Boying, a great calligrapher of the Eastern Han Dynasty, known as the "Grass Sage". A native of Yuanquan County, Dunhuang County (now east of Anxi County, Gansu). Zhang Zhi's cursive script originated from Du Du and Cui Ying, and later, he set up his own door. It was rated as "kung fu first, natural second" by Yu Shouwu's "Book Products". It is listed as a "top" product with Zhong Xuan and Wang Xizhi.

Wei Shuo, also known as Mrs. Wei, was a famous calligrapher in the Jin Dynasty. Wei Shuo is the wife of Li Ju, the Taishou of Ruyin, and is known as Mrs. Wei. The Wei family has been working for generations, and Wei Shuofu Li Ju is also good at writing. Mrs. Wei studied under Zhong Xuan and passed on her method. Wang Xizhi learned from him when he was young, and Mrs. Wei was the enlightenment teacher of the "Book Sage".

Wang Xizhi (303-361 Eastern Jin Dynasty) was known as the "Sage of Books". Calligrapher of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the word Yi Shao, the number of Zhai, originally from Langyu Linyi (now Shandong), and later moved to Shanyin (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang), famous calligraphy works such as "Orchid Pavilion Preface" and so on. In his later years, he lived in seclusion in Jinting, Yanxian County, and successively served as secretary Xun, General Ning Yuan, and Jiangzhou Thorn History. Later, he was the internal history of Huiji, leading the right general, known as "Wang Youjun" and "Wang Huiji". His son Wang Xian's calligraphy is also good, and the world is collectively known as the "two kings"[2] . Therefore, the "Book Pedigree" is summarized as: "The Han and Wei dynasties have Zhong and Zhang Zhijue, and the late Jin Dynasty has the wonder of two kings." The four are known as the "Four Sages" of ancient calligraphers.

Wang Xianzhi, the word Zijing, Langya Linyi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, calligrapher, poet, famous for calligraphy and cursive writing. Wang Xianzhi learned calligraphy with his father Xizhi when he was young, and also studied Zhang Zhi. Calligraphy is all fine, especially famous for the grass, dare to innovate, not confined by his father, since the Wei and Jin dynasties, the grass has made outstanding contributions, in the history of calligraphy is known as the "little sage", and his father Wang Xizhi is called "two kings".

Ouyang Xun (557-641), a native of Linxiang, Tanzhou (now Changsha, Hunan). Ouyang Xunkai's calligraphy is rigorous, the pen power is steep, and the world is unparalleled, and it is called the first regular script of the Tang Dynasty.

Yu Shinan, the word Boshi, Yuyao people. He was a politician, calligrapher, and writer in the early Tang Dynasty. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was an official living houser, and in the Tang Dynasty, he successively served as a secretary and supervisor, and a bachelor of Hongwen Hall. Tang Taizong called him virtuous, loyal, erudite, literary, and scholarly as the five uniques ("Shinan is a person, and he has the talent to be born, so he has the five uniques. One is loyalty, the second is friendship, the third is Bowen, the fourth is rhetoric, and the fifth is Shuhan. ”）。

Chu Suiliang (596-658), a politician and calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, was a native of Qiantang (now Hangzhou, Zhejiang), and a native of Yangzhai (now Yuzhou, Henan); Chu Suiliang is erudite and talented, proficient in literature and history, at the end of the Sui Dynasty, he followed Xue Ju as a generalist, and later served as a counselor in the Tang Dynasty, Zhongshu Ling, etc., Zhenguan 23 years (649) and the eldest grandson Wuji were jointly assisted by Taizong's edict; After resolutely opposing Wu Zetian, he was demoted to the governor of Tanzhou (Changsha), and after Empress Wu ascended the throne, he was transferred to the governor of Guizhou (Guilin), and then degraded Aizhou (now Thanh Hoa in northern Vietnam) to assassinate the history, and died in the third year of Xianqing (658); Chu Sui Lianggong calligraphy, the first to learn Yu Shinan, and later take the law Wang Xizhi, and Ouyang Xun, Yu Shinan, Xue Ji and called "the four masters of the early Tang Dynasty"; The hand-me-down inkblots include "Master Meng's Tablet", "Wild Goose Pagoda Holy Order" and so on.

Xue Ji (649-713) was a Chinese painter and calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty. The great-grandson of Xue Daoheng, the historian of the Sui Dynasty, and the son of Xue Yuanchao in the Tang Dynasty. Han nationality, Puzhou Fenyin (now Wanrong, Shanxi) people. He served as the waiter of the Yellow Gate, the counselor of the machine, the prince Shaobao, and the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, and was later given to death in prison. Gong calligraphy, under the tutelage of Chu Suiliang, and Yu Shinan, Ouyang Xun, Chu Suiliang are the four major calligraphers of the early Tang Dynasty.

Yan Zhenqing (709-784, 709-785), a Qing minister, was an outstanding calligrapher in the middle of the Tang Dynasty. Born in Jingzhao Wannian (now Xi'an, Shaanxi), his ancestral home is Linyi County, Langya (now Fei County, Linyi, Shandong). He founded the "Yan Ti" regular script, and Zhao Mengfu, Liu Gongquan, and Ouyang Xun were called the "Four Masters of Regular Script".

Liu Gongquan (778-865), the name Cheng Han, a native of Jingzhao Huayuan (now Yaoxian, Shaanxi), was the official to the prince and the prince, known as "Liu Shaoshi", and was the last famous calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty. He is good at regular script, and his representative works include "Shence Military Tablet", "Mysterious Tower Tablet" and so on.

Zhang Xu (675-750?), a native of Wu (now Suzhou, Jiangsu) in the Tang Dynasty. Zengguan Changshu County Lieutenant, Jinwu long history. Good cursive, good wine, known as Zhang Dian, is also one of the "Eight Immortals in Drinking". At that time, his cursive script was called the "Three Uniques" along with Li Bai's poetry and Pei Min's sword dance, and the poems were also unique, known for their seven uniques. Together with Li Bai, He Zhizhang and others, he is listed as one of the eight immortals in the drink. Tang Wenzong once issued an edict to Li Bai's poetry, Pei Min's sword dance, and Zhang Xu's cursive script as the "three uniques". He also wrote poems, and He Zhizhang, Zhang Ruoxu, and Bao Rong were known as the "Four Scholars of Wuzhong".

Huaisu (725-785) was a native of the Tang Dynasty, the word Zangzhen, the monk's name was Huaisu, the common surname was Qian, Han nationality, and he was a native of Lingling (Lingling, Hunan). He was a good Buddha at an early age and became a monk. He is the history of calligraphy to lead a generation of coquettish cursive writers, his cursive is called "wild grass", with the pen round and powerful, so that the turn is like a ring, unrestrained and smooth, in one go, and another cursive calligrapher Zhang Xu in the Tang Dynasty is equally famous, known as "Zhang Dian Su madness" or "Bumpy drunken element".

Su Shi (January 8, 1037 - August 24, 1101), a native of Meizhou (now Meishan, Sichuan, Meishan City in the Northern Song Dynasty), the word Zizhan, also known as Hezhong, called "Dongpo Jushi", the world called it "Su Dongpo". Ancestral home Luancheng. A famous writer, calligrapher, painter, poet, gourmet, one of the eight masters of the Tang and Song dynasties, and a representative of the bold lyricists. His poems, lyrics, fu, and prose are all highly accomplished, and he is good at calligraphy and painting, and is a rare all-rounder in the history of Chinese literature and art, and is also recognized as one of the most outstanding literary and artistic attainments in China's thousands of years of history. His prose is called Ou Su together with Ouyang Xiu; The poem and Huang Tingjian are called Su Huang; The word and Xin Qijian are called Su Xin; Calligraphy is one of the four major calligraphers of the Northern Song Dynasty, "Su, Huang, Mi, and Cai"; His paintings created the "Huzhou School".