Chinese people like to say "shou kao", and have a tradition of respecting the old and loving the old, so when people reach the age of 91, we call it "one hundred years old"; when people are close to a hundred years old, we call it "century old man". In fact, very few people can live for more than a hundred years. Among these very few, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan is one of them.
Yuan Xiaoyuan
Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan was born in 1901 and died in 2003. In her later years, she devoted herself to the creation of calligraphy and painting and the promotion of culture, so many people know her identity as a calligrapher and painter. In fact, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan herself is very legendary, in addition to being a calligrapher and painter and a linguist, she is also the first female diplomat and female tax official in the mainland.
Yuan Xiaoyuan calligraphy
Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan was born in a famous family, his grandfather and uncle were celebrities in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, influenced by the family education atmosphere, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan began to contact poetry, painting and calligraphy at the age of three, laying a good foundation for traditional culture. However, with the accumulation of knowledge, Yuan Xiaoyuan was influenced by progressive ideas, coupled with his strong personality, and resolutely threw himself into the revolution at the age of ten.
In 1930, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan went to France to study international relations, and after returning to China, he was sent to India as vice consul in Calcutta, becoming the first female diplomat in China. Because Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan was dissatisfied with the corruption of the Nationalist government and called for cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, he was accused by the Kuomintang and had no choice but to live in the United States.
Yuan Xiaoyuan sent a letter of enlightenment
During his time in the United States, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan taught at the university while immersing himself in the study of Chinese character reform. In a letter written by Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan to Mr. Qi Gong later, the establishment of the "Beijing International Chinese Character Research Association" mentioned was an activity led by it, aiming to enhance the interest in international research and learning Chinese characters.
After the reform and opening up, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan still canceled his American citizenship and returned to the embrace of the motherland. Since then, the Beijing Chinese Character Research Association, the Magazine of Chinese Character Culture, and the Beijing International Institute of Calligraphy and Painting have been established in Beijing.
In his later years, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan, in addition to participating in some necessary conferences or social welfare activities, spent almost all his time on the creation of calligraphy and painting. When she was 100 years old, the relevant departments held an exhibition of poetry, calligraphy and painting for her, and the hundred exhibits symbolized consummation.
Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan's calligraphy has the demeanor of a scholar of the Republic of China - not to win with skill, but to fight for learning and experience. Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan has been influenced by traditional culture since childhood, and has been in contact with Western education for a long time, and has traveled to many countries in his life, whether it is learning or experience, it is difficult for ordinary people to compare.
Therefore, her calligraphy has a straight posture in the slender writing posture, and there is dexterity and luster in the thick pen and ink. Her words are difficult to find, but they are all within the law. Someone once specifically asked her to learn calligraphy and he ti, and her answer was "I wrote it casually." This is casual, not casual, but more casual to choose your favorite style and inscription, and then synthesize your own pen and ink.
Contemporary calligraphy is becoming more and more exquisite, and the delicate, refined, and fluent fashion has made the craftsmanship of calligraphy more, and there is a great danger of becoming a "craft". It is admirable that a calligrapher like Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan, who came from the old era, still adheres to the "skill", "temperament" and "connotation" of calligraphy.
As a woman, Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan's calligraphy is not pursued by beauty, but by atmosphere, vastness and majesty. She is good at making big characters, and in her centennial calligraphy and painting exhibition, there is a pair of "leaves falling back to the roots" large character list book, the single word diameter is nearly one meter, the momentum is shocking, even if it is a male hand, it may not be able to reach.
The ancients said that "books are like their people", where did the majestic atmosphere in Mr. Yuan Xiaoyuan's calligraphy come from? Her rebellious spirit from an early age and extraordinary life experiences are the key elements that make her calligraphy. This also proves that calligraphy competes not only in writing skills, but also in experience, insight and cultivation.
Mr. Yuan, who has experienced the dynastic changes at the end of the Qing Dynasty and lived in several different societies in the East and the West, has finally lived a hundred years of longevity. Maybe there is.