Liu Gongquan's calligraphy of the Stele of Xuan Mi Ta

Author: Ji Lin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Liu Gongquan (), styled Chengxuan, was a native of Huayuan (now Yaoyuan, Shaanxi). He passed the imperial examination during the Yuanhe era of Emperor Xianzong of Tang and initially served as a secretary in the Secretariat Department. Later, he was appointed as a Right Supplementary Officer and served as a Scholar-in-Advisory in the Hanlin Academy. During the reign of Emperor Wenzong, he was promoted to Vice Director of the Chancellery and Counselor. He was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Hedong and later became the Vice Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince of Jin. He was also known as "Vice Grand Master Liu" and was one of the "Four Great Calligraphers of the Tang Dynasty."
The Xuanmi Tower Stele, also known as The Epigraph and Preface for the Stele of the Late Left Street Monk, An Imperial Attendant of the Three Teachings, and the Great Master of An'guo Temple, Who Was Granted the Purple Robe, Dada, was written by Pei Xiu of the Tang Dynasty and inscribed by Liu Gongquan, who also designed the title. It was erected in the twelfth month of the first year of the Huaihong era () and consists of twenty-eight lines, each with fifty-four characters. It is currently preserved in the Stele Forest of Xi'an, Shaanxi. Despite its age of over a thousand years, the characters remain clear and well-preserved.
The Xuanmi Tower Stele was written when Liu Gongquan was sixty-four years old and is a representative work of the Liu style of regular script. Its structure is restrained yet expansive, conveying a sense of tightness and vigor. Its brushwork is strong, smooth, and precise, with a sense of tendons and bones, embodying both roundness and strength. Its script is upright, elegant, and well-balanced, fully reflecting Liu Gongquan's unique style.
Scholars of calligraphy have had mixed opinions on this stele. Wang Shu of the Qing Dynasty praised it as "a work of great refinement by Chengxuan." In contrast, Zhu Changwen of the Song Dynasty, in The Continuation of the Book of Calligraphy, described Liu's style as "graceful, rich, and full," stating that "even the swift flight of a swan or the fierce descent of an eagle cannot compare to its sharpness and urgency."
Therefore, when learning the Liu style, one must pay attention to both roundness and sharpness, avoiding stiffness and lack of flexibility, and preserving the artistic charm of Liu's round and graceful brushwork.