East Asian calligraphy

The art of calligraphy is widely practiced and revered in the East Asian civilizations that use or used Chinese characters. These include China, Japan, Korea, and to a lesser extent, Vietnam. In addition to being an artform in its own right, calligraphy has also influenced ink and wash painting, which is accomplished using similar tools and techniques. The East Asian tradition of calligraphy originated and developed from China, specifically the ink and brush writing of Chinese characters. There is a general standardization of the various styles of calligraphy in the East Asian tradition. Calligraphy has also led to the development of many other forms of art in East Asia, including carving, ornate paperweights, and inkstones.

Tools : The Four Treasures of the Study

The paper, ink, brush, and inkstone are essential implements of East Asian calligraphy: they are known together as the Four Treasures of the Study in China, and as the Four Friends of the Study in Korea. In addition to these four tools, desk pads and paperweights are also used by calligraphers.

Paper, paperweight and desk pad

;Paper

Special types of paper are used in East Asian calligraphy.

In China, ''Xuanzhi'' , traditionally made in Anhui province, is the preferred type of paper. It is made from the Tartar wingceltis , as well as other materials including rice, the paper mulberry , bamboo, hemp, etc.

In Japan, ''washi'' is made from the ''kozo'' , ''ganpi'' , and ''mitsumata'' , as well as other materials like bamboo, hemp, rice, and wheat. Sometimes the brush is used to put ink on a pen.

;Paperweight
Paperweights are used to weigh down paper. Paperweights come in several types: some are oblong wooden blocks carved with calligraphic or pictorial designs; others are essentially small sculptures of people or animals. Like inkstones, paperweights are collectible works of art on their own right.

;Desk pad
The desk pad is a pad made of felt. Some are printed with grids on both sides, so that when it is placed under the translucent paper, it can be used as a guide to ensure correct placement and size of characters. These printed pads are used only by students. Both desk pads and the printed grids come in a variety of sizes.

Ink and Inkstick

The ink is made from lampblack and binders, and comes in Inksticks which must be rubbed with water on an inkstone until the right consistency is achieved. Much cheaper, pre-mixed bottled inks are now available, but these are used primarily for practice as stick inks are considered higher quality and chemical inks are more prone to bleeding over time, making them less suitable for use in hanging scrolls. Learning to rub the ink is an essential part of calligraphy study. Traditionally, East Asian calligraphy is written only in black ink, but modern calligraphers sometimes use other colours. Calligraphy teachers use a bright orange or red ink with which they write practice characters for students and correct students' work.

Inkstone

A stone or ceramic inkstone is used to rub the solid inkstick into liquid ink and to contain the ink once it is liquid. Chinese Inkstones are highly prized as art objects and an extensive bibliography is dedicated to their history and appreciation, especially in China.

Brush

The brush is the traditional writing implement in East Asian calligraphy. The body of the brush can be made from either bamboo, or rarer materials like red sandalwood, glass, ivory, silver, and gold. The head of the brush can be made from the hair of a wide variety of animals, including the wolf, rabbit, deer, chicken, duck, goat, pig, tiger, etc. There is also a tradition in both China and Japan of making a brush using the hair of a newborn, as a once-in-a-lifetime souvenir for the child. This practice is associated with the legend of an ancient Chinese scholar who scored first in the Imperial examinations by using such a personalized brush.

Today, calligraphy may also be done using a pen, but pen calligraphy does not enjoy the same prestige as traditional brush calligraphy.

Seal and Seal paste

Works of calligraphy are usually completed by the artist putting his or her at the very end, in red ink. The seal serves the function of a signature.

Study

How the brush is held depends on which calligraphic genre is practiced. For Chinese calligraphy, the method of holding the brush is more special; the brush is held vertically straight gripped between the thumb and middle finger. The index finger lightly touches the upper part of the shaft of the brush while the ring and little fingers tuck under the bottom of the shaft. The palm is hollow, and you should be able to hold an egg within that space. This method, although difficult to hold correctly for the beginner, allows greater freedom of movement, control and execution of strokes. For Japanese calligraphy, the brush is held in the right hand between the thumb and the index finger, very much like a Western pen.

A paperweight is placed at the top of all but the largest pages to prevent slipping; for smaller pieces the left hand is also placed at the bottom of the page for support.

In China, there are many people who practice calligraphy in public places such as parks and sidewalks, using water as their ink and the ground as their paper. Very large brushes are required. Although such calligraphic works are temporary , they serve the dual purpose of both being an informal public display of one's work, and an opportunity to further practice one's calligraphy.

In Japan, smaller pieces of Japanese calligraphy are traditionally written seated in the traditional Japanese way , kneeling down. In modern times, however, practitioners frequently practice calligraphy seated on a chair at a table. Larger pieces may be written while standing; in this case the paper is usually placed directly on the floor, but some calligraphers use an easel.

Calligraphy takes many years of dedicated practice. Correct stroke order, proper balance and rhythm of characters are essential in calligraphy. Skilled handling of the brush produces a pleasing balance of characters on the paper, thick and thin lines, and heavy and light inking. In most cases, a calligrapher will practice writing the Chinese character ''yong'' many, many times in order to perfect the contained within the character. Those who can correctly write the ''yong'' character beautifully can potentially write all characters with beauty.

Basic calligraphy instruction is part of the regular school curriculum in both China and Japan and specialized programs of study exist at the higher education level in both countries.

Noted calligraphers

Nearly all traditionally educated men in East Asia are proficient in calligraphy. The most famous are:

China

*Wei Shuo 衛鑠 衛夫人
*Wang Xizhi 王羲之
*Wang Xianzhi 王獻之
*Huai Su 怀素
*
*Yu Shinan 虞世南
* 張旭
*Yan Zhenqing 顏真卿
*Liu Gongquan 柳公權
*Ouyang Xun 歐陽詢
*Su Shi 蘇軾
*Huang Tingjian 黄庭堅
* 宋徽宗 趙佶
*Zhao Mengfu 趙孟頫
*Liu Bingsen 劉炳森
*Mao Zedong 毛澤東
*Chiang Kai-Shek 蔣中正
*Kang Youwei
*Zheng Banqiao 鄭板橋
*Huang Ruheng
*Shi Kefa 史可法

See also

Japan

*Kūkai 空海
*Emperor Saga 嵯峨天皇
*Tachibana no Hayanari 橘逸勢
*Ono Michikaze 小野道風
*Fujiwara no Sukemasa 藤原佐理
*Fujiwara no Yukinari 藤原行成
* 本阿弥光悦
*Konoe Nobutada 近衛信尹
*Shokado Shojo 松花堂昭乗
*Ryōkan 良寛
*Yamaoka Tesshu 山岡鉄舟
*Igaki Hokujo 井垣北城

Korea

*Choi Chiwon 崔致遠
*Kim Saeng ??
*Tan Yeon ??
*Yi Aam ??
*Yi Yong ??
*Bak Jega ???
*Kim Jeonghee 金正喜
*Kim Myeong-hui 金命喜
*Han Seokbong ???
*Sejong the Great 世宗大王
*Grand Prince Anpyeong ????
*Kang Sehwang 姜世晃
*Yun Sun ??
*Yi I 李珥
*Yi Hwang 李滉
*Yi Sun-sin 李舜臣
*Shin Saimdang 申師任堂
*Jeong Yak-yong 丁若鏞
*Kim Okgyun 金玉均