Li Shu 隶书 “Clerical Script”(aka “Chancery Script”) Book arrives

 

The latest in my collection of calligraphy books

The Li script is one of the earliest standard writing styles in China, dating back to around 300BC. There's plenty more online, like here. It's the latest style I'm studying in my calligraphy efforts. I've done a fair bit of classical Chinese texts in Cao Shu, or grass-cursive script, and in Kai Shu, the traditional or standard script, kind of like copperplate writing, more here.

I'm working on a piece of calligraphy, a classical Chinese saying about turning 70, for a friend who just has. I've decided to do it in several styles. And send all off. It's a fair bit of work. The practice, the practice. Then I've added to the task: by carving my own stone seals. If you've ever seen a Chinese painting or piece of calligraphy, you'll usually see a red mark at the bottom, right or left. Sometimes several of these seals. So, courtesy Mx Amazon, I've got a soapstone carving kit and have done several. It's both easier and more difficult than I thought. Easier in that you can quickly get carving. Harder in that to get something really good is going to be tough. So I'm just calling my efforts "guai zhuang", or "weird seals", an honourable way of carving, kind of free form, kind of devil-may-care.

This is the third of my latest batch of books on different calligraphic styles, put out by the Jiangxi Art Publishing co, in China. They give you various versions of each character as done by famous calligraphers over the ages. These are works of great scholarship. Or at least of great effort. 

Here's a typical page, with the character Gao (高), meaning "high" or "tall", as done by 15 different calligraphers. 

You might call a few of these "guai zi", "weird characters", done
deliberately strangely off, like naive kids' work, like the bottom
left by Wu Weihan

And here's a pic of my study, with the latest batch of calligraphy brushes, ink, papers, carving tools, seals, etc...

Painting on the all is by Yu Chen. The one above the filing cabinet by
Ding Yan-yong, the one by the window by Zhong Biao. Chairs and
tables Chinese. Outside is our bamboo garden. So, all-up, pretty much Chinese