How to introduce elegant and unique calligraphy seal cutting?

The following is an article written by myself, "On the relationship between China's calligraphy and seal cutting and its cultural attributes", which was published in the August 20 15 issue of China Seal Cutting magazine. I hope I can help you.

China's calligraphy and seal cutting have always had a very close relationship, and they are two inseparable sister arts in the traditional culture of China. In Qing Dynasty, Deng once put forward the creative idea of "printing from calligraphy", that is, seal cutting should draw essence and nutrition from calligraphy (especially seal cutting). Without calligraphy, seal cutting would become a tree without roots. If we trace back to Oracle Bone Inscriptions, the oldest writing form in China (at present, archaeology proves that Oracle Bone Inscriptions is the oldest writing form in China), it is hard to tell whether it was printed from a book or from a book. Just like the classic question of "chicken" or "egg" first, it is intriguing and inconclusive. As we all know, Oracle Bone Inscriptions was written on tortoise shells and animal bones. In ancient times, before the writing brush was born, our ancestors used stones as the main tool to record history on tortoise shells, animal bones and stone walls. Although this recording method is not seal cutting, it is closely related to the later seal cutting.

Calligraphy and seal cutting, which we are talking about today, originally appeared for practical purposes, and do not have the artistic characteristics and mission endowed by people today. Through the study and research of China's calligraphy and seal cutting, we can easily find that calligraphy and seal cutting, through their respective carrier forms, inherit and carry forward the profound China culture and play a similar role in embodying artistic beauty; On the other hand, they show their own artistic characteristics because of their different connotations and extensions. Calligraphy and seal cutting, as two different art forms rooted in China traditional culture, are bound to have certain commonness, which is more and more prominent because of the common carrier of Chinese characters.

1. Calligraphy and seal cutting are both art forms with Chinese characters as the main carrier.

The development of China's calligraphy art is closely related to the development of Chinese characters, which is an art form of recreating Chinese characters according to formal beauty and intrinsic beauty. With the evolution of seal script, official script, official script, running script and cursive script, as well as the stage change of Chinese characters, the artistic style of China's calligraphy tends to be diversified. China's seal cutting is based on the form of seal script in ancient Chinese characters. Seal script is the oldest writing form in China, with high pictographic meaning and strong plasticity, which provides a strong guarantee for seal cutting to show the myriad weather between squares. There are two kinds of seal script: big seal script and small seal script. Big seal script refers to all written forms before Qin Shihuang unified the six eastern countries, such as Oracle Bone Inscriptions, inscriptions on bronze, Warring States script and Shi Guwen. Xiao Zhuan refers to the characters developed on the basis of pre-Qin characters after Qin Shihuang unified the six eastern countries.

Ceng Yun, an ancient sage, said, "You must learn seal cutting first, so that you can learn the brushwork of seal cutting, and get the rules of brushwork to follow.". "If you manage a printer, you must be a prophet, otherwise the scale will be unstable and the situation will be between square inches. It is difficult to be suitable." It can be seen that seal script is extremely important for seal cutting. The development of calligraphy and seal cutting is closely related to the development of Chinese characters, and the development of calligraphy art is relatively synchronous with the development of characters. However, the development of seal cutting has remained in seal script for a long time, and the printed characters have not changed significantly with the changes of Chinese characters. Although the form of seal script has been slightly adjusted and changed, it has not changed substantially. In the official seal stage of Sui, Tang, Song and Yuan Dynasties and after entering the literati seal cutting, although there were many new attempts, such as using official script, regular script, cursive script and even fine calligraphy, the printed characters and borders could not be better sealed because of the weakening of pictographic and physical plasticity of these characters, and this printing style was not recognized and accepted by too many people. But as far as the inheritance and innovation of contemporary seal cutting are concerned, this printing style has left more exploration space for future generations because of its imperfection.

Calligraphy and seal cutting are mutually inclusive and influential in the process of historical development. From symbols and characters carved on tortoise shells, animal bones and pottery, to auspicious characters carved on bronzes, and Shi Guwen carved on stones in the pre-Qin period, the evolution of these characters is closely related to the main "writing" tool-knife (or hard object), which shows the quaint beauty of carved characters. With the evolution of Chinese characters, writing brushes, paper, ink and other stationery for learning have appeared one after another, and calligraphy has become popular all over the world with colorful faces. Li Xueqin, a famous historian, further confirmed in The Origin of the Seal of China [1] that the bronze seals of the three parties now in the National Palace Museum in Taipei are "ancient seals of Shang Dynasty". In the Chinese Confucian classic Shangshu, it is recorded that Shang Tang gave Yi Yin a seal; According to relevant records in Li Zhou, local officials and officials "all bribes are in and out by printing chapters", which shows that seals have a long history. China's practical seal reached its first historical height in Qin and Han Dynasties. The appearance of printed style in Qin and Han dynasties is closely related to the evolution of political culture and writing form at that time.

Second, calligraphy and seal cutting are both artistic forms that gradually transition from practicality to artistry.

Art comes from life and is higher than life. Any art form is the crystallization of wisdom formed by human beings in their long-term life practice. The original calligraphy and seal cutting are completely different from the calligraphy art and seal cutting we understand today. Characters are tools to record history, and Chinese characters are symbols to record the history of the Chinese nation. The word "calligraphy" first appeared in Zuo Zhuan Gong Xuan Two Years written by Lu historian Zuo Qiuming at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period: "Donghu is good at history, but calligraphy is not hidden". At that time, the meaning of the word "calligraphy" refers to the principles and styles of ancient historians in compiling history, rather than the art of calligraphy as we say today.

What is calligraphy? No one can explain it clearly for thousands of years, and there is no standard answer so far. But different people can tell what calligraphy is in their hearts. As the saying goes, different people have different opinions, and there is 1000 Hamlet for every 1000 readers. This may be the charm of China's calligraphy. There are countless people who love and love calligraphy If calligraphy is the law and method of writing, then there is no doubt that it comes from people's daily life and has unparalleled practicability. If calligraphy is an art, it is gradually endowed with artistic characteristics with the continuous development of civilization in the historical evolution of China. Its artistry is mainly manifested in many aspects, such as proper brushwork, tangible structure, proper white cloth, clear spirit and expressing feelings. The beauty of calligraphy is manifested in two aspects: external formal beauty and internal beauty. The external beauty of form and quality is manifested in the black and white space created by pen and ink, rhythmic lines, changeable modeling structure, diverse composition and white cloth forms. Implicit inner beauty is embodied by external lines, structures and rules, which enables people to gain spiritual aesthetic pleasure and emotional fluctuation in the process of appreciating calligraphy. The beauty of calligraphy is not like painting, drama, movies and other art forms to shape concrete and vivid beauty. It is based on Chinese characters, which are highly abstract products of life, so calligraphy is abstract lines and plastic arts. The beauty embodied in calligraphy art is the beauty of contrast, which is harmoniously organized by countless seemingly contradictory factors, such as size, Fiona Fang, length, shade, wet and dry, reality, opposition, pitch and so on. Without contrast, there is no beauty. How to organize these contrasting factors organically and harmoniously is the key, which requires artists to have superb aesthetic ability and artistic treatment means, which is the commonality of all arts.

Compared with the art of calligraphy, seal cutting is also an art form with Chinese characters (seal script) as the main carrier, but because he uses a knife instead of a pen, his tools have changed, which should be both brushwork and knife interest. Seal script is an abstract art with lines and structural shapes, which fully embodies the pictographic and plasticity of seal script characters. The ancients had the habit of wearing seals, which was a symbol of status and power. Seal cutting originated from seal, and the appearance of seal is still due to the needs of life. In ancient times, seals were divided into official seals and private seals. Due to the influence of politics, economy and culture at that time and the restriction of writing form, the styles of seal script in different historical periods are different. Although the official seal and private seal in Qin and Han Dynasties were made by craftsmen, their artistic level was quite high, which ushered in the first peak in the history of China seal-Qin and Han seal stage. From the appearance of Shang seal to the end of Yuan Dynasty, most seals in the world were cast and chiseled by Indian officials and craftsmen. According to legend, Zhao Mengfu was the first person to design Yin Gao by himself in Yuan Dynasty, and Wang Mian was the first person to use Elastase as a printing material. By the appearance of Wen Peng and He Zhen in Ming Dynasty, they began to enter the era of literati seal cutting. Seal cutting has gradually developed from simple practicality to artistry. After that, more and more scholars began to like and study seal cutting deeply. Since then, seal cutting in China has entered the second peak-the printing stage of Ming and Qing schools. Literati began to carve seals on their paintings and letters, and they were able to design and carve corresponding seals according to their different styles of painting and calligraphy. A number of famous calligraphers and seal engravers such as Wen Peng, He Zhen, Deng, Zhao, Wu Changshuo appeared, which pushed seal cutting in China to a new height of combining practicality and artistry. With the rapid development of science and technology, the use and promotion of publishing, printing, photography, internet and other propaganda media, and the increasing prosperity of archaeological research results, China seal cutting has reached the third peak-the contemporary seal cutting stage. During this period, the practicality of seal cutting gradually weakened and gradually developed to pure artistry. In addition to being used in the circulation and printing of calligraphy and painting works, stone tablets and utensils, there are also some pure collections and appreciation, which have gradually evolved into the same art form as Chun Xue. However, the practical value of seal has not completely disappeared, and it still plays an important role in signing contracts, documents and other important links. Most of these seals are printed in relatively stable and dignified characters such as regular script and official script, and most of them are mechanical seals.

Third, calligraphy and seal cutting have strong cultural characteristics.

Writing is an important symbol of mankind's progress from barbarism to civilization. Chinese characters are the crystallization of thousands of years of history and culture in China. China's calligraphy and seal cutting, as artistic forms with Chinese characters as the expression carrier, are bound to bear specific cultural connotations. These two art forms show their unique cultural characteristics everywhere in writing tools, expression methods, expression contents, personal qualities of creators and so on.

Writing and engraving tools

Calligraphy is an art, and Four Treasures of the Study is the main tool to express emotions. The particularity of tools makes calligraphy unique. Pen, ink, paper and inkstone fully reflect the performance of tools and are an important part of calligraphy techniques. Without Four Treasures of the Study, there would be no calligraphy art. Pen, ink, paper and inkstone are China's great creations and inventions, each of which shows its unique cultural significance. The reason why China's calligraphy art has such great charm is inseparable from the writing tools. Cai Yong in the Eastern Han Dynasty said in "Nine Potentials": "When the potential reaches a deep valley, the potential will be unstoppable, but the pen is soft and strange" [2]. This means that calligraphy hides the front with a pen, returns to the front with a pen, and concentrates on painting. The application of the front shows enough strength, and the font will present beautiful light color. When the situation comes, you should be free to play and stop without hesitation; In the end, let nature take its course and avoid emergency suppression. Only a soft pen can write this mysterious calligraphy. The unique brush stroke structure and changeable brush strokes have created colorful calligraphy art, and China ink stick's invention and application have played a unique role in promoting the development of calligraphy. The ink is pure, shiny and never fades. The variation of ink color enhances the artistic expression of China's calligraphy. With the invention of papermaking and the continuous improvement of papermaking technology, the invention and use of Xuan paper, the brushwork of ink cloud has been better displayed and displayed on Xuan paper, which makes the art of calligraphy have the best presentation form. The discovery, excavation and utilization of different stone species have promoted the development of stone carving art and formed a stone culture of "no stone in the house" and "the most pleasing stone" in China. China's calligraphy seal cutting not only uses pen, ink, paper and stone, but also uses other materials. With unique manufacturing techniques and techniques, it shows a certain cultural meaning and shows the infinite charm of China's traditional culture.

(2) Expression method

China's calligraphy is a kind of line and plastic arts with brushwork, ink painting and composition as the means of expression. Different writing styles have different pen skills; There are contrast changes in dry, wet, thick and light ink methods; There are many forms of composition and white cloth, and the changes from white to black are endless. Seal cutting shows thousands of changes between square inches through seal cutting, composition and knife cutting. The so-called seal method means that the words used should conform to the "six books" without typos, and the printed words should be coordinated and harmonious; The layout of rules and regulations should be properly arranged and interspersed to seal the printed words; On the surface, knife method refers to the method of using a knife, but it also includes the method of using a pen. Looking at the nib through the blade, the knife and the pen should be integrated, which has both the charm of pen and ink and the interest of knife and stone.

(3) Performance content

Calligraphy can be written not only on paper, but also on wood, stones, bamboo slips and inscriptions. It can also be engraved after writing, which is convenient for circulation and preservation. Calligraphy has a strong performance space, but also expands the richness of its performance content. Booksellers can freely write what they like according to their hobbies and literary attainments. Poetry and songs, scripture quips, famous sayings and aphorisms, and prose essays can all be created as writing contents. On the other hand, seal cutting is different. Seal cutting is an art, which shows countless weather between squares. Compared with calligraphy, the space of seal cutting is limited, which greatly limits the content that seal cutting can express. In the use of "trust", whether it is an official seal or a private seal, the contents engraved on the seal are generally nothing more than the name and year number. With the invention and development of seal cutting tools and materials, seals are widely used in calligraphy, painting and other works of art. Compared with the previous simple names and house numbers, the engraved content has richer performance content, and noun phrases and auspicious words can be printed. However, the narrow printing surface is still very difficult to handle multi-character printing, especially the freehand brushwork style of ancient seal, which is difficult to integrate in composition and create excellent works of multi-character printing. China's calligraphy and seal cutting have a common feature in content. Most of the contents used for artistic creation are good nouns and sentences with high style, all of which show superb cultural connotations.

(4) The moral quality and cultural accomplishment of the creator.

Throughout the history of China's calligraphy and seal cutting (except the practical seal cutting stage), all those calligraphers and seal carvers who remain immortal in the history books have noble personality charm and profound cultural accomplishment. Wang Xizhi's Preface to Lanting Collection is called "the best running script in the world", not only because of its good handwriting, but also because of its beautiful words and hearty feelings, which also has high literary value; The reason why Yan Zhenqing can be learned and admired by later generations is inseparable from his integrity and charisma, besides his artistic accomplishment. Mr. Qi Baishi is a famous contemporary artist who has made remarkable artistic achievements in poetry, calligraphy and printing. However, the old man is engraved with the seal of "the old man is also in the fur category" for his own use, showing his low-key self-deprecating character. As two sister arts rooted in China traditional culture, it can't go far without the support of moral character and the nourishment of cultural behavior. Maybe someone will appreciate the scenery in a certain stage and historical period by clever means, but if you put it in the long river of art, after a period of time, you will not see any trace of him at all.

To sum up, China's calligraphy is closely related to seal cutting. Both of them are traditional China art forms with strong cultural connotations, with Chinese characters as the main form of expression, and gradually transition from practicality to artistry. They are the crystallization of China's culture and wisdom for thousands of years. Seal cutting is inseparable from the support and nourishment of calligraphy, and today's calligraphy art is also inseparable from the contrast and rendering of seal cutting. Seal cutting in calligraphy works has become an indispensable content, and seals with appropriate content and high style will add a lot of color to calligraphy works.

References:

1. Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Publishing House. Selected calligraphy papers of past dynasties [M]. Shanghai: Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Publishing House, 1979, 1 Edition, July 2004, the sixth printing;

2. Han Tianheng. Selected Papers on Indian Studies in Past Dynasties [M]. Hangzhou: Xiling Publishing House, 2nd edition, August 1999, 4th printing, April 438+04, 2065;

3. He Bingwu. On Calligraphy and Seal Cutting (J). Journal of Xi 'an Institute of Aviation Technology, 2006, (3) 6-9;

[1] China Heritage Newspaper was published on July 6th, 1992, and was later included in Bamboo Valley Collection, 78-8 1 page, Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1998.

[2] Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Publishing House. Selected calligraphy papers of past dynasties [M]. Shanghai: Shanghai Calligraphy and Painting Publishing House, the sixth printing in July 2004, P6.