Appreciation of pictures of seal script calligraphy works

Seal script can be said to be the oldest but youngest form of calligraphy. Chinese characters originated from pictograms and are tenaciously rooted in pictograms. They do not simply use sound symbols for written records. What I bring to you below are pictures of seal script calligraphy works to appreciate. I hope you like them. Appreciating pictures of seal script calligraphy works

Appreciating pictures of seal script calligraphy works 1

Appreciating pictures of seal script calligraphy works 2

Appreciation pictures of seal script calligraphy works 4

Appreciation pictures of seal script calligraphy works 5

History of the evolution of seal script style

Seal script can be said to be the oldest but youngest form of calligraphy. Chinese characters originated from pictograms and are tenaciously rooted in pictograms. They do not simply use pictograms. Sound symbols are used to record text. Hieroglyphics themselves have requirements for modeling, so Chinese characters have been the work of artists from the beginning. Starting from the earliest oracle bone inscriptions, this kind of hieroglyphics has been called seal script. Oracle bone inscriptions retain very obvious pictographic traces, and the addition and subtraction of strokes are relatively random. , therefore it cannot be considered a mature script. Later, the bronze inscriptions or bell and tripod inscriptions, that is, the inscriptions on bronzes and stone drum inscriptions, are collectively called Dazhuan. The standardization of the writing has been further strengthened, the glyphs and compositions have become more regular, and the vocabulary has become more regular. It increases, so there can be long inscriptions. It was not until the Qin Dynasty unified the world that Li Si implemented the "script with the same text" and completely standardized the writing method of seal script, known as Xiaozhuan in the world. This is a fully mature script. The zigzag pictographic strokes of seal script are straightened horizontally, which is actually official script (of course the actual situation It will be more complicated, such as official script, which existed among the people at the same time as seal script. The cultural relic evidence includes silk scripts and bamboo slips from the Warring States Period, etc.). Official script further removes the decorative strokes and becomes regular script. It is called traditional Chinese in Hong Kong, Taiwan and other places. 2 The structure of writing has not changed significantly for thousands of years. Therefore, seal script is considered the originator of Chinese writing. Therefore, the ancients were accustomed to using seal script for inscriptions on stele foreheads or album cover inscriptions to show solemnity; however, calligraphy works such as Zhenxingcao must not use seal script for margins. Therefore, the seal script has the saying that Ten Thousand Buddhas came to the ancestral line, and there is no doubt that it is the oldest. It is precisely because of this status of ancestors that seal scripts have become self-contained; at the same time, seal scripts, starting from oracle bone inscriptions, bronze inscriptions, stone drum inscriptions, and Mount Tai stone carvings, are all official political or religious propaganda tools, requiring a certain degree of decoration, and even In pursuit of complex and gorgeous effects, such as the bird seal script in Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, seal script did not pay attention to writing from the beginning. Therefore, after the fall of the Qin Empire, seal script mainly existed in inscriptions and seals on the foreheads of stele or album pages, etc. On tiles and other utensils. It was not until the late Qing Dynasty that Deng Shiru changed the method of seal writing for nearly a thousand years and started a revolution in the writing of seal script. He made full use of the specialties of the brush to express the meaning of seal script, making the strokes of raising and closing the strokes in writing more varied. , in terms of structure, it also broke the fixed pattern of the past, and its influence has become a trend. Since then, famous seal script calligraphers have emerged in large numbers, making seal script a calligraphy art that can keep pace with Zhenxingcao. Therefore, from the perspective of pen and ink calligraphy, seal script is indeed the youngest calligraphy art among all calligraphy styles. It has only been 200 years since Deng Shiru. In the remaining years, it is precisely because of youth that it shows great vitality.

1. Oracle bone inscriptions:

Oracle bone inscriptions (late Shang Dynasty, 14th century BC to 11th century BC) are written in the Shang Dynasty, about 3000-4000 years ago, "Book of Rites?" "Biaoji" records: The Yin people respected gods and led the people to serve gods, putting ghosts first and then etiquette. ?The Shang Dynasty was a very superstitious dynasty. Everything from national wars to whether it would rain today, as well as things such as dreaming and travel, required divination first. The divination materials were mainly tortoise shells and animal bones such as cow shoulder blades. Wait, and then the diviner will carve the inscriptions on the oracle bones. Therefore, the oracle bone inscriptions are carved with a knife. This is very important. When appreciating oracle bone inscriptions and seal script calligraphy works, whether they have the taste of a knife or not is one of the elements of appreciation.

Oracle bone inscriptions should be said to be a writing system that is not yet fully mature. It still retains a large number of iconographic elements, so the addition and deletion of strokes is somewhat arbitrary, and there are still many borrowed common characters. Therefore, when appreciating oracle bone calligraphy creations, you will find that it is difficult to create longer poems unless you create your own characters.

Oracle bone inscriptions are sometimes classified as large seal scripts, and sometimes they are classified as ancient inscriptions.

2. Bronze inscriptions: Bronze inscriptions and stone drum inscriptions belong to the large seal script, which is different from the "small seal script" of Qin Dynasty. This kind of writing became popular in the Western Zhou Dynasty about 3,000 years ago. The inscriptions that can be seen now are mainly the inscriptions on bronze vessels such as bells and tripods. In ancient times, bronze was called gold, so it is also called "Zhongding Wen" or "Ji Jin Wen". ?, "Knowing money and writing". Bronze inscriptions are already a relatively mature writing system. The glyphs and structures are relatively stable, so long inscriptions can be written. Most of the bronze inscriptions are first engraved on the mother model and then cast. As for whether the characters on the mother model were written with a pen first and then engraved, ancient scholars believe that there was no pen and ink in the pre-Qin Dynasty, so they were carved directly on the mother model with a knife. , but some modern scholars believe based on the unearthed cultural relics that it may have been written first and then engraved. The mother model is usually made of clay, so even if it is carved directly with a knife, it can still show a certain degree of calligraphy.

After high-temperature casting, the strokes of the glyphs should be greatly deformed. Coupled with the rubbings, the rubbings we can use today from Lamou will have even greater stroke deformations. Therefore, when we understand the ancient meaning, we should first pay attention to it, and do not have to stick to its shape. Overemphasis on the taste of metal and stone or the so-called ancient and clumsy brushwork may lose the ancient meaning of the ancients striving for elegance and integrity. After all, bells and tripods are very solemn aristocratic artifacts. Naturally, the inscription must be in a very elegant official style. Unearthed cultural relics have confirmed the existence of pen and ink in the pre-Qin Dynasty, such as bamboo slips and silk scripts during the Warring States Period. Therefore, the writing system of Dazhuan was also divided into refined and popular at that time. For example, the bronze inscriptions in the bell and tripod inscriptions should be the official traditional script of Dazhuan. , while texts such as bamboo slips and silk scripts are more simply called "Gu Li" or "Zhuan Li", "Li Bian", etc., which should be popular among the people. Therefore, it would be inconsistent with the ancient intention to write a traditional Chinese seal like bronze inscriptions in a wild and simple manner. If you are looking for wildness and clumsiness in the seal script, it seems appropriate to seek it from the ancient official script. Although the Sanshi Pan is called Cao Seal Script, it is just because the writing is more skillful and faster, and because the number of inscriptions is large and the writing area is limited, the arrangement is like a paving stone, and it is by no means a random piece of grass. The strokes are thick and rough, which is actually the effect of recasting. The actual font written on the mother model should be much slimmer.

3. Stone Drum Inscriptions:

It is a text written in Shigu during the pre-Qin and Warring States periods, about 2,300 years ago. Its style is the transition period from large seal script to small seal script. Learn from "Shigu Inscriptions" You can pursue the big seal script at the top and learn the small seal script at the bottom. Those who learned seal script in later generations all regarded it as authentic and practiced it on a daily basis. The real appearance of Shiguwen is relatively elegant and square. Among the later masters who practiced Shiguwen, the most famous one is Wu Changshuo. However, Wu Changshuo's seal script style is still far from that of Shiguwen. On the contrary, Wang Fu'an and Yang Yisun are closer to the ancient style, especially Wang Fu'an.

The reason why stone drum inscriptions are important is not only that they are the ancestors of small seal scripts, but also the ancestors of stele inscriptions. The difference between stele inscriptions and bronze inscriptions is that stele inscriptions are written first with pen and ink and then carved, so the tip of the pen can be seen through the blade. There are still traces of how the ancients used pens that can be followed. If you don’t start with Shigu inscriptions, learning bronze inscriptions will be incomprehensible. If you don’t learn Xiaozhuan and don’t learn stone drum inscriptions, you obviously won’t be able to understand the ancient meaning.

IV. Qin Xiaozhuan

Qin Xiaozhuan should be said to be the official calligraphy style of the Qin State during the Warring States Period. During the Pre-Qin and Warring States Period, various countries or regions should have had their own seal script style. There was a big difference, so after Qin Shihuang unified China, Li Si led a standardization of the country's writing system. On the basis of Qin Zhuan, he deleted the complex and simplified it, forming a standardized writing system that is still in use today without much change in the past 3,000 years. It can be imagined that its writing system is mature and stable. This maturity is the basis for the inheritance of our Chinese culture. Therefore, the cultural significance of Xiaozhuan cannot be underestimated. The significance of our modern seal script is not only the inheritance of national culture, but also has risen to our A cultural symbol of the Chinese nation, it has the cultural significance of Chinese national identity. Although the political power of the Han nation has changed hands several times, with these cultural symbols, the scholar-bureaucrats of the Han nation will always raise the banner of restoration from time to time and rectify the seal script. , thus gathering the soul of the nation. Such as the restoration of Wu Qiu Yan and Zhao Mengfu in the Yuan Dynasty and the revival of epigraphy and stone tablets in the late Qing Dynasty.

Qin Xiaozhuan is a calligraphy style strongly promoted by the government through administrative means. Its great achievements in history and culture are not to mention, but from an artistic point of view, like the pavilion style of later generations and the current printing style, the form The absolute unity of seal script has eliminated individuality and the innovative ability of this art form. Therefore, the calligraphy art of seal script has entered a long night after Qin Xiaozhuan. Among them, there are occasionally masters of seal script such as Li Yangbing, but their small seal script style has not broken away from the barriers of iron wire seal script and jade tendon seal script.

5. The restoration of Han seal script and the seal script of Wu and Zhao in the Yuan Dynasty.

In the Yuan Dynasty, Wu Qiu Yan and Zhao Mengfu advocated the restoration of the ancient Chinese seal script and practiced the writing of Han seal script. It is characterized by being more square, with a flatter structure than Qin seal script, and more square strokes. This should be due to the influence of the structure of official script. The most typical example is the CHENG stele of Tianfa Shen in the Three Kingdoms period, which was written in official script. The seal script has square folds and thick strokes, and the straight line ends in the shape of a hanging needle. Later generations called it hanging needle seal script. Calligraphers have always spoken highly of this stele and its influence has been profound. However, some questions may also be affected by the arrangement of the rules and must be carefully prepared. However, Han seal script is limited to a few words on the forehead of some tablets, Chinese seals, bronze mirrors, coins, tiles, etc., like the claws of snow and mud, and it is ultimately difficult to compete with the official script and regular script. However, in terms of the original Qingyuan of Xiaozhuan script, worshiping the Han Dynasty is the main content of the retro traditional script. Therefore, Han seal script has gradually been sought after and valued since it was advocated by Wu Qiu Yan, Zhao Mengfu and others in the Yuan Dynasty.

Especially Wu Qiu Yanzhi's "Thirty-Five Jus", although it is the originator of seal theory, actually also involves the orthodox consciousness of seal script. For example, the first one says: "Ke Dou (tadpole) is the ancestor of characters" , shaped like a toad. People today don't know, but they draw the shape cleverly and lose the original intention. In ancient times, there were no pens, so bamboo sticks were used to paint the bamboo for writing. The bamboo was hard and the paint was greasy, so the painting could not be shaped, so the head was thick and the tail was thin, just like its ears. ?Although this form of discursive discussion is not systematic, the style it cites also has profound meanings. This first move makes it clear that the characters in ancient times are also written naturally by pen and ink, rather than "smartly drawn shapes". The second move immediately follows and proposes "modern times". The articles are the blunt words of ancient times; the seal scripts of today are the ordinary characters of the ancients. They have been changed over the years, so we can see their differences.

?He believes that the seal script that can be seen in later generations is actually the font used by the ancients. It is naturally written and cannot be as difficult to write as the tadpole script and iron wire seal script in later generations. Therefore, he emphasized the idea that books value nature in many works. This idea of ??"ordinary words" is very important and has a far-reaching influence. On the one hand, some people are inspired by this and work hard to improve writing tools, such as making flat pens to make it easier to write evenly round seal script strokes; on the other hand, there are also people who understand seal script from the perspective of "ordinary" writing. Simply put aside the evenly rounded lines and write the seal script directly with cursive ink, such as the cursive seal script of Zhao Huanguang in the Ming Dynasty. In addition to "ordinary characters", "Thirty-Five Jus" also clearly states that the seal script should be square and straight. For example, "Eighteen Jus" says: The Han Dynasty had seal script imitations, and its method was only square, and the seal script method was consistent with the official script. ?Qiju?: Seal script plaques are the best, which are called Fu plaques and stone drum inscriptions. This flat person actually also means square, as in the stone drum script. Therefore, the formal style of seal script proposed by Wu Yan should have the above two concepts, namely "ordinary character" and "Fangzheng". "Pingyuan character" refers to the noble nature of the calligraphy and emphasizes the naturalness of pen and ink writing; while "Fangzheng" refers to the structure of seal script. The body should be square and upright. Later, the development of seal script just reflected Wu Yan’s retro thought.

VI. Cao Zhuan of Zhao Huanguang in the Ming Dynasty

As for the limitations of the seal script writing paradigm, there are actually many knowledgeable people in the past dynasties, and some people have tried to change and innovate, such as converting the seal script into ?Introduce?and carry it forward, and the result will be like a Taoist talisman. In the Ming Dynasty, Zhao Huanguang was a well-educated scholar. He incorporated the cursive writing style into the seal script and established his own line with the ?cursive seal script. In modern times, some scholars have begun to pay attention to Zhao Huanguang's cursive seal scripts, believing that Zhao was the initiator of introducing brush and ink into seal scripts. However, as mentioned above, Xiaozhuan is actually a kind of regular script, and elegance and correctness are still the most basic requirements. However, Zhao Huanguang's cursive seal is indeed too willful and loses the ancient meaning, so it has been widely criticized by later generations. Perhaps this can explain its Calligraphy is not prosperous. But Zhao Huanguang's attempt to use seal script as "ordinary characters" is still meaningful.

Zhao Huan Guangcao Seal

7. Deng Shiru’s contribution to the reinvention of seal script

By the end of the Qing Dynasty, Deng Shiru inherited Han seal script and used the official pen to enter the seal script. The seal script has the writing quality of "ordinary characters", and it also maintains the elegance and straightness of the seal script. Therefore, it changes the "depicting seal script" such as iron wire and jade chopsticks that have been used for thousands of years to become "written seal script", truly making the seal script a A calligraphy style suitable for the characteristics of pen and ink, thus creating a new era of seal script, just as Kang Youwei said in "Guang Yizhou Shuangji? Shuofen Sixth": "The people of Wanbaishan came out, taking advantage of the ancient and modern, and formed a new embryo." , there are many seal characters in the Han Dynasty, so they can cover the ages at the top and open hundreds of sacrifices at the bottom. There are later authors, but they are not related to Beijing! What is the advantage of the people of Wanbaishan who use the official pen as seal script? Before the people of Wanbaishan came out, the world was divided into Qin Dynasty and it was impossible to write books. Since I am not a scholar who loves the ancient times, it is rare to be able to do it. . After the completion of the white seal, the three-foot vertical boy, with only the interpretation of the brush, could be used for seal script. What Kang said is true. The Qing Dynasty's liberation of the small seal script technique changed the kind of tracing of the head and feet that is close to the imitation of patterns. The writing is done according to the prompts, written calmly and unhurriedly, and the pen and ink are free and interesting. The creation of Xiaozhuan has also entered a more comfortable state of writing such as Ruye, Shuye, Sanye, Zuye, etc., which is based on the nature of the pen. "Creation") This is exactly the retro idea of ??"ordinary characters" advocated by Wu Yan. We cannot verify whether Deng Shiru was influenced by Wu Yan's "Thirty-Five Examples", but "Thirty-Five Examples" is a must-read book for seal engraving studies. As a master of seal cutting, it is impossible for Deng to be ignorant of it. On the other hand, in Deng Shiru's time, many rubbings of Chinese seal scripts such as the "Tianfa Shen Chen Stele" can be seen, and Deng Shiru made intensive research on this stele. Therefore, his understanding of the ancients' pen usage is far deeper and richer than that of Wu Yan and others.

At this point, Xiaozhuan finally stepped down from the aristocratic altar, and began to keep pace with Zhenxing Caoli and other calligraphy styles, showing great vitality. Since then, seal calligraphers in the late Qing Dynasty have emerged in large numbers, such as Wu Rangzhi, Yang Yisun, Zhao Zhiqian, Xu Sangeng, etc., each with its own characteristics and expertise. The modern kings Fuchang, Wu Changshuo, Xiao Tuian and his disciple Deng Sanmu and other great masters continued to lead a period of fashion, and the lingering influence spread and was in the ascendant. Basically, they follow the orthodox ideas of "ordinary characters" and "square characters".

8. The Creation of Contemporary Xiaozhuan

I would like to quote Mr. Li Shumin’s comments from the article "The Creation of Xiaozhuan under the Exhibition Mechanism from Si Weng to Contemporary Times". In addition to the Xiaozhuan works in the exhibition, Except for a few who borrowed Qin imperial edicts and bamboo slips, the vast majority of them borrowed pure seal scripts such as jade chopsticks and iron wire seals, and Qing seal scripts from Deng Shiru, Wu Xizai, Zhao Zhiqian and others who combined official script and Wei stele brushwork. type. The former uses the engraved stones of "Yishan" and "Kuiji" as well as Li Yangbing's "Three Tombs", "Prajna Terrace" and "Qian Gua Inscription" as models, and uses the golden branches and beautiful flowers and jade in different colors to express the gentleness of this kind of small seal script. It has a beautiful, vigorous and refreshing, smooth and swaying aesthetic style. The extreme ones even adopt the method passed down to Qu Lingwen's "Yutai Inscription" and a type of iron wire seal seal, using a brush as thin as a hair, a line as thin as a hanging needle, and a strict and stable knot to create a sense of precision. Extremely beautiful. However, since most writers in today's calligraphy world do not know much about ancient characters and are not as knowledgeable as the calligraphers of their predecessors, the creation of this type of "Gongbi" and Xiaozhuan mainly demonstrates the skill of the calligrapher. Relatively speaking, the pen used for small seal scripts such as jade chopsticks and iron wire is relatively simple, and the main control is to use the center and flat pen.

As long as the author has good finger and wrist movement skills, can endure and be calm, he can write even, symmetrical, graceful and slender fonts, and then write more words with colored paper, External forms such as collage and decoration are easy to make mistakes. Of course, there are also masters among them, who quietly reveal the rhythm of lifting and pressing, the quick breath, the charm of ink, the texture of lines, etc. in the horizontal strokes, making this type of small seal script more subtle, simple, quiet and balanced. Rich aesthetic connotation. Another type of people who imitate the seal script of the Qing Dynasty. The integration of official script and Wei stele writing greatly facilitates the movement process of starting, collecting, running and turning the pen. It frees the author from the constraints of neatness and can better express the calligrapher's ideas. Temperament endowment, emotional perception. ?Using official script, regular script and other writing methods into Xiaozhuan can enrich the outline of the original even and slender lines, so that the dots and lines of Xiaozhuan can better express the gesture, meaning and interest of the pen, and strengthen the elasticity, strength and texture of the dots and lines. Improve the rhythm and rhythm of dots and lines. The author can integrate more emotions and talents into the creation of Xiaozhuan, and better realize the aesthetic fashion conveyed by popular art in the context of popular culture. Although his style, taste, and state of mind can no longer be compared with those of his predecessors due to his lack of education and even his pretensions to superficial forms and fake decorations. He has no choice but to enter a period of dwarfing, and it is difficult to achieve personal style and beauty and develop. Everyone from the Zongli sect appears, but after all, this is an active choice that keeps pace with fashion. ?

These two categories can roughly describe the current creation of small seal scripts. As for the creation of large seal scripts, the situation is relatively complicated. Most of the previous bronze inscription works are created with a collection of characters, so it is difficult to have a long work. Modern seal script works often include long-form works. This should benefit from the achievements of modern epigraphic archeology. There are enough vocabulary to choose from, but there may also be problems with word creation. Emphasis on ancient clumsiness, the charm of metal and stone, and the interest of pictograms are the keynotes of the creation of large seal scripts. However, if the emphasis is too much, it will inevitably become rustic and vulgar, and lose the elegance and integrity of bronze inscriptions, especially the pictographs. If we pursue it too much, it will almost become a painting symbol. Moreover, since the seal script reform in the late Qing Dynasty, the ink charm of seal script has been increasingly accepted by academic circles and the public. Therefore, the creation of large seal scripts should still return to establishing its own style based on the opposition and unity of bone and flesh.