Ming Zhu Yongming's "Red Cliff Ode": A Tutorial on Copying and Practicing Grass Script by Famous Artists Through the Ages

Author: Chen Ruo Hai
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: "Calligraphy Practice for Famous Masters of Grass Script" is specially written for calligraphy enthusiasts who love grass script. "Hastily, there is no time for grass script." Grass script originated from practical needs. But now, it has completely shed its practical constraints, making its aesthetic quality its only characteristic. Recently, many people have been learning grass script and using it for calligraphy creation because of its unique aesthetic feature of expressing emotions deeply. However, learning grass script is not easy, and it is even harder to create calligraphy with it. The learning process and the creative process will always encounter various problems, especially for beginners. This series of books focuses on techniques and is a technical tutorial that covers brushwork, character formation, structure, and layout in grass script. This tutorial emphasizes making these techniques micro and specific, analyzing them in detail from the micro level to make the readers' study of grass script techniques more comprehensive and thorough. In addition to techniques, this tutorial also covers grass script symbols and distinguishing similar characters, both of which are related to beginners' recognition of grass script. Only by passing the recognition hurdle can the path of learning grass script become smoother. This tutorial consists of five books, selecting representative grass script masterpieces from different dynasties, including Wang Xizhi's "Seventeen Pieces" from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Sun Guoting's "Shupu" from the Tang Dynasty, Huai Su's "Thousand Characters" in small grass script, Huang Tingjian's "Zushangzuo Tie" from the Northern Song Dynasty, and Zhu Yunming's "Red Cliff Ode" from the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Yunming is known as the greatest master of grass script in the Ming Dynasty. He deeply studied and mastered the famous grass script works of predecessors. In his later years, his calligraphy style evolved, integrating and comprehensively mastering various techniques. His large grass script is characterized by a free and unrestrained spirit, with a natural and unrestrained charm. "Red Cliff Ode" is his representative work. This piece features a bias in brushwork, with hard and firm strokes, diverse and dynamic structures, and a bold and unrestrained atmosphere.