Zheng Banqiao

Author: Zheng Banqiao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-10-01
Features: Since the birth of Chinese characters, calligraphy has existed in China. Humans have always created the world according to the laws of beauty from the beginning. Ancient oracle bone script and bronze inscriptions, with their unique material conditions and brushwork structures, left behind beauty that later generations could never match. Later followers' pursuit of calligraphic beauty became conscious, infusing it with artistic elements that predecessors had not. However, this was not always the continuous advancement often mentioned, nor was it, nor could it ever be, a comprehensive advancement. Due to the inherent characteristics of calligraphic art, evaluations of it have often relied on overly abstract and uncertain terms. This can even be said to be related to the ambiguity in Chinese linguistic habits, but it is also inseparable from the abstract nature of Chinese calligraphy. Additionally, traditional calligraphic history has often emphasized lineage relationships when discussing specific schools or masters. While discussing lineage is necessary, it sometimes becomes overly simplistic, falling into a linear thinking pattern, which inevitably restricts creative consciousness. In terms of its practical significance, we should strive to study artists and their works from multiple perspectives, doing better than the ancients. We should view the activities of a specific calligrapher as a manifestation of both social essence and the essence of calligraphy. Contemporary calligraphy has entered a historically unprecedented situation. On one hand, material conditions have changed the writing conditions on which calligraphy depends. On the other hand, calligraphy has flourished within a limited scope and stubbornly survives. Our stance undoubtedly must be that of a promoter of calligraphic prosperity. Contemporary calligraphers, facing the dilemmas of engaging with the times and exploring the future, seek inspiration from theoretical and historical research. This inevitably gives calligraphic history a contemporary nature. It does not involve arbitrary of history but rather summarizes patterns from the past to explore new life and new vitality.