Wen Zhengming's Cursive Calligraphy of the Thousand Characters

Author: Zhen Shi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-08-01
Features: couplets, as a unique literary form in China, are said to have first appeared on peach symbol boards at the door of the sleeping quarters of Emperor Meng Chang of the Later Shu during the Chinese New Year's Eve with the inscription "New Year brings accumulated blessings, and festivals celebrate eternal spring." They were approximately used on pillars during the Song Dynasty, hence the name. Couplets flourished in the Ming and Qing dynasties, not only appearing on pillars in halls but also widely used on door porches, study rooms, flower halls, living spaces, kitchens, and more, reflecting the owners' sentiments and elegance. Also known as couplets, they consist of two symmetrical upper and lower lines that must match in word count, meaning, tonal patterns, and parts of speech to be considered well-crafted. Common word counts include five, seven, or eight characters, while some are as few as three or four, and others can be over a hundred. The content often includes poetic verses or maxims, compiled from predecessors or self-composed, with calligraphy styles ranging from regular script, cursive script, clerical script, to seal script, all equally suitable. Over a thousand years of development have produced countless exquisite couplets, many of which are still in use today. Since the reform and opening-up, people's living and development environments have undergone tremendous changes. New concepts like the knowledge economy and revitalizing the nation through science and education, along with traditional virtues such as propriety, integrity, shame, loyalty, filial piety, and honesty, have together formed new social behavioral norms. A large number of new couplets involving new things and content have emerged in line with the times, meeting the practical cultural needs of modern people. Therefore, compiling these practical couplets into a book and using computer technology to collect characters from famous calligraphy works through the ages to form couplets is a win-win situation, benefiting both learners in practicing calligraphy and those who wish to engage in actual creation. This is also the original intention behind compiling the "New Concept Calligraphy Series" and the fundamental reason for its repeated reprints and wide market popularity.
This book selects characters from the representative cursive script work "Thousand Characters" by the Ming Dynasty calligrapher Wen Zhengming. Wen Zhengming, a native of Wu County, Jiangsu, once served as a court painter in the Hanlin Academy and was one of the "Four Wits of Wu" alongside Zhu Yunming, Zhao Yin, and Xu Zhenqing. His running and cursive scripts are vigorous, elegant, and refined, reflecting the style of Zhi Yong. During the compilation of this book, all characters from the original work were carefully selected, and for those not available, elements of related strokes were used to construct them according to the structural rules of the existing works, striving for accuracy to complete the set.
Couplets, as a unique literary form in China, are said to have first appeared on peach symbol boards at the door of the sleeping quarters of Emperor Meng Chang of the Later Shu during the Chinese New Year's Eve with the inscription "New Year brings accumulated blessings, and festivals celebrate eternal spring." They were approximately used on pillars during the Song Dynasty, hence the name. Couplets flourished in the Ming and Qing dynasties, not only appearing on pillars in halls but also widely used on door porches, study rooms, flower halls, living spaces, kitchens, and more, reflecting the owners' sentiments and elegance. Also known as couplets, they consist of two symmetrical upper and lower lines that must match in word count, meaning, tonal patterns, and parts of speech to be considered well-crafted. Common word counts include five, seven, or eight characters, while some are as few as three or four, and others can be over a hundred. The content often includes poetic verses or maxims, compiled from predecessors or self-composed, with calligraphy styles ranging from regular script, cursive script, clerical script, to seal script, all equally suitable. Over a thousand years of development have produced countless exquisite couplets, many of which are still in use today. Since the reform and opening-up, people's living and development environments have undergone tremendous changes. New concepts like the knowledge economy and revitalizing the nation through science and education, along with traditional virtues such as propriety, integrity, shame, loyalty, filial piety, and honesty, have together formed new social behavioral norms. A large number of new couplets involving new things and content have emerged in line with the times, meeting the practical cultural needs of modern people. Therefore, compiling these practical couplets into a book and using computer technology to collect characters from famous calligraphy works through the ages to form couplets is a win-win situation, benefiting both learners in practicing calligraphy and those who wish to engage in actual creation. This is also the original intention behind compiling the "New Concept Calligraphy Series" and the fundamental reason for its repeated reprints and wide market popularity.
This book selects characters from the representative cursive script work "Thousand Characters" by the Ming Dynasty calligrapher Wen Zhengming. Wen Zhengming, a native of Wu County, Jiangsu, once served as a court painter in the Hanlin Academy and was one of the "Four Wits of Wu" alongside Zhu Yunming, Zhao Yin, and Xu Zhenqing. His running and cursive scripts are vigorous, elegant, and refined, reflecting the style of Zhi Yong. During the compilation of this book, all characters from the original work were carefully selected, and for those not available, elements of related strokes were used to construct them according to the structural rules of the existing works, striving for accuracy to complete the set.