National First Fan Calligraphy Exhibition Works Collection

Author: Rongbaozhai Publishing House
Publisher:
Publication Date: 1998-12-01
Features:
Though folding fans are primarily used for cooling, they have long been intertwined with calligraphy. The story of Wang Xizhi writing calligraphy for an elderly fan seller can be considered one of the earliest legends related to fan surface calligraphy. Among the ancient calligraphic traces on fans that can still be seen, the cursive script "Poem of Swallow Skimming Water Holding a Fan" by Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty, Zhao Ji, is perhaps the earliest. During the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, fan surface calligraphy and painting flourished to a glorious extent, becoming a distinct form alongside albums, scrolls, hanging scrolls, and couplets. It was rare for literati and artists not to practice calligraphy or painting on fans. Fan artworks became cherished pieces to be held and admired, with works by renowned masters often mounted as individual pieces for long-term preservation.
With the widespread use of electric fans and air conditioners in modern life, hand-held folding fans have become increasingly rare. Paper fans with handwritten calligraphy or painting are even rarer. As a result, contemporary calligraphers and painters have few opportunities to write or paint on fans. If it weren’t for visiting Shaoxing to the Lu Xun Memorial Hall in 1981 to commemorate the centennial of Lu Xun’s birth and purchasing a Wang Xingji fan, I probably would not have taken up fan surface calligraphy. Later, I wrote several fans for others, but only because people saw the folding fan in my hand and asked me to create one for them. Compared to Japan, where calligraphers have largely preserved the tradition of writing and using folding fans, Chinese calligraphers rarely have the chance to do so. When Japanese calligraphers visit China, they often gift folding fans or round fans to their Chinese friends, and writing and exchanging fans sometimes become special events in Sino-Japanese calligraphy exchanges.
Writing on fan surfaces, especially folding fans, differs from general calligraphic works, requiring special techniques and considerations. First, careful layout is essential. Based on the number of ribs in a folding fan, one must determine the content and number of characters, then allocate the appropriate number of characters per line. Second, selecting the right brush is crucial. Depending on the number of characters, one must decide the size of the characters and choose a suitable brush to ensure precise strokes. Third, a steady approach is necessary. For fans with ribs, the surface must be leveled, and the floating wax wiped away with soft paper. Then, rotating the fan around its axis, one must align each line to face oneself before writing them one by one with steady precision. Clearly, writing on a fan is far more cumbersome than writing on hanging scrolls or couplets, and with folding fans becoming rare, fan surface calligraphy has declined unexpectedly. It is rarely seen in exhibitions, let alone exquisite masterpieces.
To preserve this art form, which has thrived independently for millennia, the China Calligraphers Association organized the National Fan Surface Calligraphy Exhibition, supported by the Jilin Calligraphers Association and Jilin Aohua Co., Ltd. The calligraphy and selection process went smoothly. Since daily-use folding fans are handheld, not all fan surface artworks meet modern exhibition requirements. Therefore, this exhibition primarily featured fan-shaped Xuan paper works created and trimmed by the artists themselves, essentially becoming a fan-shaped calligraphy exhibition. These large-scale fan-shaped works differ from the traditional small folding fans and round fans in writing techniques, being less cumbersome and thus more accessible to a wider range of artists. As a result, thousands of submissions were received, laying a solid foundation for the exhibition.
Though most fan-shaped works are not overly difficult to create, they still retain their unique characteristics compared to other calligraphic forms. Overall, the works in this exhibition exude a light and lively tone, with certain decorative appeal. Traditional folding fan and round fan calligraphy, on the other hand, generally prioritize neatness and precision, emphasizing elegance. Compared to them, self-made fan surface works offer better display potential while still retaining aesthetic value. Since this is the first fan surface calligraphy exhibition, the creative features of fan-shaped works are not yet fully distinct. How to differentiate them from typical hanging scrolls, square frames, or horizontal scrolls, while absorbing traditional fan surface techniques and increasing the difficulty of specialized works, remains a subject for future research and improvement.
Regardless, this fan surface calligraphy exhibition has sparked audience interest and encouraged calligraphers to explore new forms and techniques. Thus, it serves to preserve and promote the fine tradition of fan surface calligraphy. If it achieves this goal, the exhibition will be both successful and meaningful, demonstrating its vitality.