Chinese character evolution data

A Brief History of China's Calligraphy

Pre-Qin calligraphy that laid the foundation for China's calligraphy.

China's calligraphy, with a splendid art garden, has lasted for thousands of years. History can be roughly divided into: Shang and Zhou Dynasties, Qin and Han Dynasties, Wei and Jin Dynasties (Southern and Northern Dynasties), Sui and Tang Dynasties, Song Dynasty, Yuan Dynasty, Ming Dynasty, Qing Dynasty and Republic of China.

When it comes to the history of calligraphy in China, there is an unavoidable question, that is, what was the earliest calligraphy like? After writing is born and put into use, it needs a mature process. Oracle Bone Inscriptions is the earliest calligraphy that can be seen at present. Its content is mostly "Oracle", which records events such as good or bad luck. Oracle Bone Inscriptions, focusing on engraving, has already possessed the basic elements of composition, structure, pen and so on from the perspective of calligraphy. Qin: It is the earliest stone carving calligraphy seen at present. His calligraphy style is between Gushan and Qin Zhuan. Neat and versatile, the style is muddy and vivid. It is a masterpiece in the transitional period from Dazhuan to Xiaozhuan.

Calligraphy in Qin and Han Dynasties was the first of its kind.

Today, we can still see bamboo slips and silk books in the ink of Qin Dynasty, bidding farewell to the support of Zhong Ding artifacts, and making calligraphy appear systematically in the form of ink. These ink calligraphy styles changed from long to flat and from round to square, which opened the first sound of official transformation. Qin Shihuang unified the six countries, practiced "the same calligraphy" and formulated a standardized and unified calligraphy style, namely "Xiao Zhuan". The imperial edicts of unified measurement issued by Qin Shihuang in the twenty-sixth year, such as Ban and Qin, have a regular atmosphere, but the characters are colorful, random in size and mostly parallel in strokes. Carving Stone on Yishan was written by Li Siqi when Qin Shihuang climbed Yishan. This seal script is standard and is the ancestor of Xiao seal script in later generations. From the end of the Warring States to the Qin Dynasty, although Lishu had already appeared and was used by the people, it was in the Han Dynasty, especially in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Western Han Dynasty steles, such as those of Cao Quanbei, Zhang Qianbei and Zhang Shou, are simple or ingenious, square or round, implicit or ostentatious, each with its own brilliance. Although these official documents are called "silkworm-headed swallowtail"

It is the main modeling symbol, but it has its own characteristics and distance, which is amazing to the artistic creativity of Han people. As far as a style of calligraphy is concerned, Lishu reached an unprecedented peak in China's calligraphy history in the Eastern Han Dynasty. In addition to the dominant official script, the official script of the Han Dynasty also developed on the basis of Qin Zhuan. What is more noteworthy is that the inscriptions in the Han Dynasty and the official script were also transferred, creating a decorative style all the way. In addition to the official seal, Cao Zhang cursive script, as the source of modern cursive script, matured in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and its representative works include You's urgent chapter, Zhang Zhi's August post and autumn cool post. Moreover, all the calligraphy styles of later generations, such as cursive script, regular script and running script, were almost conceived in this period.

Calligraphy in Wei and Jin Dynasties completed the evolution of calligraphy style.

After the Han Dynasty, which was dominated by official script, calligraphy reached the Wei and Jin Dynasties, which was an unprecedented harvest season. At this point, all calligraphy styles came out in an all-round way, especially cursive, regular script and running script. The changes of calligraphy in this period are also the most complicated.

Cao Wei and Zhong You's "Declaration Form" and "Recommended Season Table" are the pioneering works of regular script classics. Lu Ji's Ping Fu Tie is a model of a cursive script. In the history of calligraphy, the so-called "two kings" are Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The most innovative and valuable of the "Two Kings" are their elegant cursive scripts, such as Wang Xizhi's First Month Post, Mourning Post and Preface to Lanting Post, which are known as "the best running script in the world".

The most outstanding achievement of the Northern and Southern Dynasties is regular script, which is mainly found in epitaphs. This period continued Han and Wei Chuantong, and started the rhyme of regular script in Sui and Tang Dynasties. Famous calligraphers in Southern Dynasties are Yang Xin, Wang Sengqian, Tao Hongjing and Xiao Ziyun. Famous calligraphers in the Northern Dynasties are Zheng Zhaodao and Zhao.

The heyday of calligraphy in Tang Dynasty

Ou Yangxun, Yu Shinan, Yan Suiliang and Xue Qi.

The first regular script in the world: Ou Yangxun's regular script model in Jiuchenggong Liquan and early Ming Dynasty.

During the prosperous Tang Dynasty, calligraphers came forth in large numbers with different styles. As soon as Zhang Xu's cursive script came out, it completely changed the cursive script of the "two kings" and experienced ups and downs. If Abdominal Pain Post and Four Ancient Poems have both, they are called Zhang Dian and Cao Sheng. Yan Zhenqing's regular script casts ancient and modern times, such as Many Pagodas, Painting in Praise of Dong Fangshuo and Yan Liqin. , majestic and heroic, with the breath of the Tang Dynasty; As for his cursive ink, there are famous "three drafts"-"Sacrifice to my nephew" and "Sacrifice to my uncle". Based on the model law, it is properly collected and strictly implemented, which is highly respected by later generations, among which "Sacrificing a Nephew" is even known as "the second running book in the world". Huai Su's "Autobiography Post", "Eating Fish Post" and other wild grasses are called "crazy elements" together with Zhang Xu. As for his Notre Dame Post, it is harmonious and elegant, with a hint of Cao Zhang, which can reveal the root of the changes in his cursive calligraphy. Sun's Mo Shu Pu is not only a cursive script, but also an unprecedented calligraphy masterpiece.

Liu Gongquan, a calligrapher in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, has magnificent works such as Mysterious Tower and Shence Army.

Calligraphy in Song Dynasty insisted on learning big lines.

Song Sijia, namely Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, Mi Fei and Cai Xiang, represented the achievements of calligraphy in Song Dynasty. Su Shi was the most influential scholar and artist in Song Dynasty. His calligraphy is far from the "Two Kings" and close to Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan. His masterpiece is Huangzhou Cold Food Poetry. Mi Fei's calligraphy has won the essence of the "two kings", and its structure is changeable. He uses his pen to "attack from all sides", which is changeable and brilliant. The representative works are "On the cursive script".

Tang Daizong Jin's Calligraphy in Yuan Dynasty

Zhao Mengfu is good at both calligraphy and painting, and his calligraphy is excellent in all aspects, especially regular script and Cao Zhang, whose masterpiece is Danba Monument. Together with Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan in the Tang Dynasty, they are also called "Yan, Liu, Ou and Zhao".

Calligraphy in Ming Dynasty from Song, Yuan, Jin and Tang Dynasties

In the middle of Ming Dynasty, the appearance of Zhu Yunming, Wen Zhiming and Wang Chong revived the book circle in Ming Dynasty. Of these three people, Zhu Yunming made the greatest achievement. His lower case caught up with the Jin and Tang Dynasties, while his running script, cursive script, Cao Zhang and Cao Jin were all good. Representative works include Cao Zhang Changmen Fu and Cursive Red Cliff Fu.

By the end of the Ming Dynasty, Xu Wei, Xing Dong, Dong Qichang and others followed suit, and really set off a retro movement, so the style of calligraphy gradually returned to its true nature from vulgarity to elegance. Xu Wei's calligraphy is mainly based on Fiona Fang, which is light and heavy, and the pen and ink are vertical and horizontal. It seems to be wild and uninhibited, but in fact it implies order, which is imitated by later calligraphers. Representative works include cursive seven-character poems and cursive poetry collections.

Calligraphy in Qing Dynasty and the Revival of Calligraphy and Taoism

The history of calligraphy says that Qianlong used to be a "post semester" and later a "monument semester". The habit of learning posts has a long history. In Qing Dynasty, Kangxi was good at Dong Qichang's calligraphy, and Gan Long was good at Zhao Mengfu, so learning calligraphy was very popular.

In addition to the achievements of stele study, calligraphy in Qing dynasty also lies in the personality characteristics of calligraphers. For example, Wang Duo's pen is vigorous and powerful, and his pen and ink pay attention to rhythm; Fu Shan's pen is turning and his spirit is ups and downs; Zhu Da's bald running script is capable and restrained; Among the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou, Jin Nong's Lacquer Book uses Fang Bi, which is lofty and cold, while Zheng Xie's Six Books and a Half is a mixture with obvious personality.

Active modern calligraphy stage

A whole new era has begun. Social revolution will inevitably affect the changes of culture and art, and calligraphy as one of them is no exception. After thousands of years, the history of calligraphy art has become a grand view, especially in the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China.

The calligraphy circle in the Republic of China was deeply influenced by Kang Youwei's theory. Kang Youwei is famous for his exquisite calligraphy. Kang Youwei influenced his four proud disciples-Liang Qichao, Xu Beihong, Liu Haisu and Xiao Xian. The titles of his first three students were all covered by literary or painting titles. Xiao Xian is the best female calligrapher in this century. Other successful calligraphers include Yu Youren, Zeng and others. Their works are soft, greasy, stiff and fluent.

Many calligraphers (such as Lin Sanzhi, Liu Haisu, Xiao Xian, etc. ) They had been engaged in calligraphy creation until 1949, but it was not until the end of the Cultural Revolution that they were nearly 80 years old and became famous for their calligraphy. 1949 in the nearly thirty years after Mao Zedong's death, calligraphy was basically ignored. At that time, people were building a new China with great enthusiasm. Interestingly, Mao Zedong himself is a very good calligrapher. His calligraphy is influenced by Huai Su's Wild Grass and Beibei's calligraphy style, full of romantic temperament and leadership temperament. In these thirty years, there are generally three most famous calligraphers in China, namely Mao Zedong, Guo Moruo and Shu Tong. Guo Moruo, who won by running grass, is a typical scholar calligraphy. Shu Tong, senior officer, 198 1 the first chairman of China Calligraphers Association. His calligraphy originated from Yan Zhenqing's boldness and boldness.