Skills and points for attention in the layout of banners in calligraphy couplets

Skills and points for attention in the layout of banners in calligraphy couplets

What is a composition? Composition is layout and planning. Here is a piece of writing paper for you, please write it out. If you want to write calligraphy works, you must think it over. Some people only know how to write, but they don't know how to lay out and plan articles, which is not enough. Composition in calligraphy should be a whole concept, involving a wide range of aspects, such as the style of the work, the use of brushwork, the arrangement of word groups, the lines and ink colors, the blank space between lines, the words used in the upper and lower paragraphs and the use of seals. And all aspects should be considered in advance. Art gives people a sense of beauty, and calligraphy art is no exception, and it also gives people a sense of beauty. With so much content, it is difficult to arrange it perfectly in the concept of composition at once. In fact, composition is like the art of war, and different battles have different ways of playing. Different styles of calligraphy works have different rules, so we can't cover everything. We must grasp this whole concept from a rational point of view. Let's start with different styles of works and make some concrete explorations with examples.

I. Composition Skills of "Couplets" It is said that there are countless antithetical couplets, even sentences and rhyming couplets in the Ancient Book of Songs. Before the Tang and Song Dynasties, the second sentence and the third sentence were opposite. However, couplets were used in calligraphy in the late Ming Dynasty and did not become popular until the Qing Dynasty. Couplets emphasize the beauty of symmetry. At the beginning, it was neat, mainly regular script and running script, and it developed into various styles of couplets after the Qing Dynasty. The contents of couplets generally include "feeling mountains and rivers, expressing feelings, satirizing the country, living and reading". The number of words in couplets varies, including "four-character pairs, five-character pairs and seven-character pairs", and later there are long couplets with hundreds of words across. In terms of money, couplets started from a single paragraph and later fell to the next paragraph. In terms of use, couplets have also developed from elegant play to pavilions. Some couplet styles are listed as follows: 1, with two paragraphs and one line. Under normal circumstances, the title, name and font size of the recipient should be inscribed in the upper paragraph of the couplet. However, the previous paragraph of this work did not find a place. Because he has inscribed "The Day Before Yang May" in the first part of the book, and the position of the topic is relatively low, it is not appropriate to inscribe the recipient's name again. Therefore, the author wrote the recipient's name at the top of the bottom couplet and his own name at the bottom to show his respect for the recipient. This is a way to accompany, although there are mistakes, but it also shows a brilliant idea, admirable.

Second, the composition skill of "square" refers to the works written by the whole rice paper. Generally, the length-width ratio of rice paper is 2: 1, which is subject to the vertical style. The size of the whole rice paper is three feet, four feet and six feet. The earliest existing calligraphy is a seven-character quatrain written by Wu Ju in the Southern Song Dynasty. Nave appeared much later than the hand-scroll, which is a plaything in the hands of literati, while nave is always used for hanging and can be appreciated by more people. So nave is a very popular calligraphy work. However, the form of nave is stylized, so we should pay attention to a breakthrough in composition and highlight novelty. 1, binding format. When writing a neat work, you should mark the boundaries before writing, and the lines that mark the boundaries should be thin and stiff. However, don't draw a line where you sign, but be sure to connect the gas well.

2. Shu Lang style. Calligraphy works emphasize truth, and meeting each other late is empty but not real, which is called emptiness. They are all real but not empty, so they are called cramped and stuffy. There is emptiness and reality, which is called chic and ethereal. Calligraphy creation should be enjoyable, comfortable and natural, and cleverly arranged.

3. Casual style. The so-called following style means that there are not enough words to write, and the redundant words are written in inscriptions, which are unified to the end. This style of writing is very casual. When there is no paper, words are written as inscriptions and mixed with words.

4. Checked letter type. Letters are letters, and many letters are combined into a picture of nave, which is fascinating.

5, literacy is half-style. The paragraph and the text are half and half respectively. Although it's a paragraph, it's actually the same as the text, but it's a little smaller, and it has a great interest.

6, group fan couplets. There are four round fans in the middle and couplets on both sides. They are round inside and outside, which is very creative.

Third, the rules and skills about "banners" Banners are based on nave. Under normal circumstances, banners are half that of nave, and the style is basically the same as that of nave, but the momentum is more unrestrained and slender than that of nave. Like nave, banners are also used for hanging and can be enjoyed by more people. So banners are also one of the styles of calligraphy works that people like very much. Next, I will introduce some forms of banner composition to you. 1. The official script banner of Wang in Qing Dynasty is divided into three lines. The signature does not need to be delimited, it is tall and straight, and it is printed in the paragraph.

2, Shen Xingshu banner, the text uses three sets of album pages with vertical grids, with a banner work, unique.

3. Lu's running script banner, with unbounded words, was written in only two and a half lines. The inscription starts from the bottom of the text, but it is slightly spaced, and the whole paragraph is intermittent and unique.

4. In the Qing Dynasty, the banner of Mei Qing's running script was unbounded, the upper paragraph was higher than the main text, and the three lines were orderly. The next paragraph is directly below. The lower left corner of the work is covered with pentagonal seal, and the lower left corner is corner seal.

Fourth, the techniques of "banners" calligraphy works are usually horizontal and vertical. Banners are still popular today, especially horizontal works are called hand scrolls. Banners, also called horizontal curtains, are longer than the height, so they should be hung horizontally. The momentum of the banner is different from that of the straight one, and it is very big. The momentum of banners is similar to watching widescreen movies, giving people the feeling of "majestic"; The momentum of Naichi has the feeling of "flying over the eaves and walking over the wall, three thousands of feet, and it is suspected that the Milky Way has fallen for nine days". Because the banner is short in the vertical direction, sometimes there is only one word in a line, the line feed frequency is high, and the front and back distance is long, so the most difficult thing for the banner is breathing. In addition, banners are good at writing big names. In terms of composition, a large character list is different from a small character list. They are independent in character and character, but they emphasize internal connection and echo. From the style, banners are more flexible, such as in front of the text, behind the text, before and after, and under the text.

5. The skill of "fan" has a long history in China, which can be traced back to primitive society. In the Ming Dynasty, Luo Xin's Wuyuan said that "the fan was initially formed", while Shen Congwen's Fan History explained the role of the fan: "People invented the fan for various needs, such as attracting wind to cool off, expelling mosquitoes and dust, and igniting to keep warm." Judging from the unearthed cultural relics, the earliest fans in the Warring States period were woven with thin bamboo strips. Later, with the continuous development of handicraft industry, the materials for making fans were diversified (such as Arundo donax, feathers, silk cloth, silk, paper and so on). ) to a variety of fan-shaped materials (rectangle, ellipse, palm, polygon, arc, begonia, etc.). ), and gradually completed the historical process from practicality to art. I don't know who initiated the inscription on the fan, and there is no way to verify it now. This legend should have predated Song Huizong. After Song Huizong, fan calligraphy appeared, such as round fan.

2, folding fan calligraphy folding fan calligraphy creation is difficult to other calligraphy creation, the reasons are: first, the volume is small, second, the surface is uneven, third, the paper does not absorb water, and fourth, the beginning is irregular. Among them, the problem that paper does not absorb water is well solved, and it can be solved by rubbing with talcum powder. The picture below shows the work of Zhai Yi, a calligrapher in Qing Dynasty. He is famous for his official script. This work gives the impression that the sky is vast and soaring at will.

Sixth, about the composition skills of "strip screen" Strip screen is also called screen strip, screen, sea curtain, sea curtain and one hall. It connects four or six banners into one, which is called four screens and six screens. Legend has it that it began before the Tang Dynasty. It is worth mentioning that the cloth strips are detachable, that is, they can be hung together, reflecting a big theme. When disassembled, it can be hung separately. Because the screen is detachable and separable, when signing a screen work, you can sign a sum at the end, or you can sign every screen.

7. About the composition skills of Dou Fang, half of the main hall is called Dou Fang, and the size of the work is square. From the perspective, the square gives people the feeling that it is too formal and solemn, and it is a composition with the help of painting. I'm afraid it's difficult to find out when the fighting started. However, due to the relatively low architectural space, fighting has become a new aesthetic taste for people, and it has also stimulated the creative enthusiasm of calligraphers. But the bucket is not necessarily square, and sometimes it is a little flat. The picture below shows Zhao's work, which is characterized by the way of inner circle and outer circle.

Matters needing attention in the layout of calligraphy creation

Calligraphy works consist of three parts: text, inscription and seal. Layout is an overall arrangement that organically combines the three parts. Pay attention to the following points when creating. (1) Leave a blank around the line. Writing should not be written on the whole surface. Leave a certain blank around it to form a white edge, and the work will form a whole. At the same time, there should be appropriate white space between words, the spacing between words should be smaller than the line spacing, and the line spacing should be smaller than the border to show the emptiness. Calligraphy works are arranged vertically according to traditional habits, from top to bottom and from right to left. The first line does not need spaces, and the first word should be capitalized; It is not advisable to fill in the blanks without underlining, and leave appropriate spaces under the last few words. Works generally do not need punctuation marks, and traditional Chinese characters and simplified Chinese characters cannot be mixed. (2) The first word and the last word in the text of a work, that is, the first word and the last word, should be slightly larger or heavier than other words. It is extremely important to start with the first word and end with the last word. At the same time, the center of each word should be on the center line of each grid, so that the work can be more neat. (3) For works of moderate size, each word has its own size, weight and shape, and it cannot be forced to be exactly the same. However, the whole work, especially the regular script, can't have words that are "particularly prominent and conspicuous" (that is, extra large, extra small, extra light and extra heavy), so as to achieve appropriate size, moderate weight and overall coordination. (4) consistent fonts and unified styles. All words in the text of a work should be of the same font. In other words, the works of "Yan Ti" are all Yan Ti characters, and the characters of "Liu, Ou and Zhao" can never be pieced together. In writing, the method of using pen and structure is completely consistent, achieving the unity of style. On this basis, it must be different in shape, weight and size. In particular, the same radicals and words in a work should be corrected to avoid similarities. (5) The big characters and small characters in a calligraphy work are printed with each other, and the signed characters are smaller than those in the text. Regular script works can be signed with regular script or running script, especially with running script, which can obtain the effect of change. Seals are commonly used for seals and seals. The name stamp and the letterhead are the right size, generally slightly smaller than the letterhead, and the seal is covered under the letterhead. If two seals are used, the position of one seal between the two seals is empty. The opening forms are various, but they can be big or small. Generally, cymbals are printed on the right of the first word in the text.