"South" magazine all-media reporter 丨 shadow Liu Yanhui
Chen Chusheng was born in 1946 in Lianyuan, Hunan. Famous paleographer and calligrapher. In 1964, he enrolled in the Department of Chinese of Wuhan University; in 1978, he enrolled in the Department of Chinese of Sun Yat-sen University, where he studied ancient chinese characters under the guidance of Professors Rong Geng and Shang Chengzuo; after graduating in 1981, he served as a chair in ancient Chinese, spoken chinese, paleography and calligraphy at Jinan University; in 1988, he won the Young Linguist Award of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; in 1992, he founded the Art Center of Jinan University, and in the same year was rated as an expert enjoying special allowances from the State Council. He once served as the deputy director of the Education Committee of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, the vice chairman of the Guangdong Calligraphers Association, the librarian of the Guangdong Provincial People's Government Literature and History Research Museum and the first president of the Book Court. His major works include "Common Dictionary of Jin Wen" and "Reading Of Ancient Characters of Shang Zhou" (cooperation), "Collection of Inscriptions of Zhongshan King Instruments" (cooperation), as well as "Sanyu Zhai Qin Ming", "SanYu Zhai Poetry Linkage", "Asking Xue Yu Shi - Chen Chusheng Calligraphy Works Exhibition Collection", "San Yu Zhai Series Manuscripts" and many papers on philology, phonology, exegesis and calligraphy, among which "Jin Wen Common Dictionary" won the first Chinese Dictionary Award.
Filming: Lu Zhike Tang Yongjun Editor: Mo Liting
Fertile Lingnan, Salty Dogos. Or gallop in the world, or quiet in the city. Those who gallop in the world are easy to know, and those who are quiet in the city are hidden in the world or cannot hear it.
Yangcheng Chen's newborn is now more than ancient, the altar of Zhenduo has been forty years, and the peach and plum have been in the world several times. "Read shang zhou qin han tang, xi seal li true line grass; pro-gold wood water fire earth, Tibetan official brother Ding Ru jun." He summed it up this way about his lifelong study and art. "The square is like a brick, solid as a brick, frank and frank, nothing. Grinding and grinding, life is endless. "For the world, he distilled it in the inscriptions he made.
In the cold spring, Professor Chen Chusheng, wearing a black Chinese coat and a slight bow on his back, was interviewed by South Magazine at home. His clear thinking and humble speech make people realize that under the labels of fine identification, rich collection, and joyful rhythm, his background color is always a scholar-type bookmaker.
Serve society with art
In 2012, the Great Hall of the People in Beijing was fully renovated, and in the same year, the "Long Live the People" was cast and displayed in the conference hall of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the Great Hall. The seal of "Long Live the People" engraved in the middle of Baoding and the 95-character golden inscription on the inner wall of Baoding were written by Chen Chusheng.
For the national inscription, the mission is glorious and the responsibility is heavy. "After winning the bid for the Guangdong design plan, I considered finding someone to write among the academic descendants of Rong Geng and Shang Chengzuo, and they chose me after the investigation." The 66-year-old Chen Chusheng ushered in the "big test".
In the special status of traditional Chinese culture, calligraphy is not only artistic, but also academic and social. Chen Chusheng closely combines the exploration of calligraphy with professional research, ensuring that the use of characters is in accordance with the law when writing Dingming, and the style of writing refers to mao Gongding of the Western Zhou Dynasty. When he encountered words that were not in the golden text, he used scholarship as a support, selected the most appropriate words, explained them one by one, and then examined and approved them layer by layer until they passed. Taking the word "guo" as an example, the writing in the golden text is homomorphic with "or" "field", and there is no frame or half box outside, which is easy to cause ambiguity. Chen Chusheng decided to adopt a framed "country", one is easy to understand, and the other is more unified atmosphere of "state-owned borders", which is widely recognized for its undoubted academic strength.
"Half a lifetime of grinding is not wasted, and the thin skill can finally recommend Beichen." While chen chusheng's fame is great, he has a deeper thinking on "how calligraphy serves society": "Now it is not uncommon in the art world to compete for fame and profit, but a calligrapher should really serve the people and use what he has learned in his life to impart calligraphy knowledge and promote the art of calligraphy." ”
From Jinghua On Ding to the community, from holding calligraphy works exhibitions to Qinming art exhibitions, Chen Chusheng shows the style of literati and scholars, but he always does not depart from the original intention of the calligrapher, showing his artistic creation to readers and the society.
As early as 1970 to 1978, when Chen Chusheng was teaching at Huashifu Middle School, he served as a teacher for the Student Calligraphy Club and cultivated students' interest in calligraphy. In 1992, he founded the Art Center of Jinan University, specializing in art education that combines popularization and improvement, making Jinan University one of the ordinary colleges and universities that established art specialized education institutions earlier; at the same time, together with Professor Cao Baolin, he recruited master's degree students in art theory and calligraphy practice, so that the south has a high-level calligraphy education base. Since 1993, he has been invited to the Laogan University of the Guangzhou Military Region to teach seal calligraphy courses to the trainees, and for nearly 20 years, regardless of remuneration, he has been conscientiously preparing and attending classes. After his retirement, he was hired as a librarian at the Guangdong Provincial Research Museum of Culture and History, and he has also spared no effort to carry out artistic activities.
Chen Chusheng enjoyed it, and his works were not only exhibited in international exhibitions and museums, but also inscribed in scenic spots and integrated into the lives of the masses. In Guangzhou Huacheng Square, Jinshazhou Cultural and Sports Square, Yingde Tongtianyan, Shantou Tropic of Cancer Symbol Tower, Heyuan Zhao Tuo Ancient City and other places, you can see his elegant handwriting. Every ink treasure and every font is unique.
From the mountain riva to the great power book
Chen Chusheng has loved the art of calligraphy since childhood, and when he was in middle school, he showed great interest and first showed his talent. After studying at the Department of Chinese of Wuhan University in 1964, he studied under Professors Liu Zhao and Xia Shu and began to learn calligraphy and ancient characters.
"I quietly went to see him and took out the written words and asked him for advice." Recalling the picture at that time, Chen Chusheng remembered it vividly. Liu Zhao was a re-disciple of Zhang Taiyan and a famous calligrapher, who not only taught Chen Chusheng skills, but also paid more attention to passing on the qi of the literati to him. In order to always wake up Chen Chusheng, Liu Zhao gave him the work "No Blame" that had been hanging in his house for many years. "Including no blame" is said in the "I Ching", which means that the pocket is tightened without revealing flaws, which means that only by being cautious in words and deeds and being humble can we not invite disasters. This has become the golden stone words that Chen Chusheng has used so far.
At that time, Chen Chusheng was still a poor student, and the cotton in the cotton clothes in the winter often burst out, and the patches on the clothes in all seasons were all over the place. In addition to carefully teaching the seal book, Liu Zhao pointed out and corrected word by word, and was also very concerned about the students' lives, and gave his brush and posters to Chen Chusheng for practice. In this way, during the arduous and turbulent years, Chen Chusheng's skills advanced by leaps and bounds, and for several years the cold window was immersed in the "Yishan Carved Stone", "Three-Body Stone Classic", "Huashan Stele", "Shi Chen Stele", as well as Deng Shiru Seal and Divided Posts, laying a solid foundation for the study of ancient characters and calligraphy.
"The road to growth of our generation has not been smooth, but it is also fortunate that good opportunities have allowed me to catch up." In 1978, Chen Chusheng applied for the graduate school of paleography in the Department of Chinese of Sun Yat-sen University, but unexpectedly his father suddenly died of illness on the eve of the re-examination, which hit him so hard that many books were not finished, and the re-examination results were very unsatisfactory. During the interview, Mr. Rong Geng learned of the reason and asked the school to change the original plan of recruiting only two people: "The test is so hard, just add an extra pair of chopsticks!" After being admitted by Sun Yat-sen University, Chen Chusheng and Chen Yongzheng, Chen Kang, Tang Yuming, Zhang Guiguang, and Xu Weijian had the honor of becoming graduate students of ancient characters of Rong Lao and Shang Lao, and truly stepped into the field of paleography research.
For many years, in the middle of his study, there was always an old photo hanging, which was a group photo of Chen Chusheng with Professors Rong Geng and Shang Chengzuo. Under the careful guidance of the two mentors, Chen Chusheng went through the Oracle Bone Script, the Two Weeks of Jin Wen and the Warring States Qin and Han Jian Mu Shu during his graduate studies, forming his own unique style of writing, the golden text is ancient and elegant, pure and thick, and full of golden stone charm; Qin Li Ruo li ruo li, both restoring the ancient law and not limited to the ancient law, is unique in the field of modern calligraphy; xingshu xue er wang, Yan Zhenqing, Zhao Mengfu, Wang Duo, formed a fresh and unworldly, calm and elegant, full of book style.
There is no end to the sea of books, and Chen Chusheng does not think that he is bitter. For the study of ancient characters, copying is the main learning method, and in the face of hard-won learning opportunities, he is steady and steady, and he is happy in his suffering. "We borrowed books from the teacher, and then we copied them together, familiarizing ourselves with the ancient script and practicing calligraphy." Chen Chusheng couldn't help but sigh as to the great efforts made to copy the "Jin Wen Bian" in that year, "We have copied and written more than 9,000 words in the book, and they are all hidden in our minds. ”
"I'm making up dictionaries in my dreams"
Unlike the natural sciences, the study of paleography is discovery rather than invention, and beginners have three difficulties: the first difficulty in distinguishing glyphs, the second difficulty in pronouncing, and the third difficulty in knowing the meaning of characters.
Mr. Rong Geng's "Jin Wen Bian" is an epoch-making work, an important tool for studying paleography, but only contains glyphs, not sounds and meanings. Therefore, in the early 1980s, Chen Chusheng made up his mind to compile a golden dictionary containing shapes and sounds, and began to collect relevant materials. This plan was affirmed by Rong Lao.
In 1981, Chen Chusheng wrote his master's thesis on the topic of "On the Development of the Main Predicate Sentence Form in the Western Zhou Jinwen". He compared the main predicate sentence patterns of the Western Zhou Jinwen with the oracle bone script, and also compared the early, middle and late Western Zhou Jinwen periods, discussed some of the characteristics of its development and made many discoveries, enriching the history of Chinese grammar in the early antiquity. In this year, Chen Chusheng received a master's degree in literature and taught at Jinan University in the same year.
Opportunities are always given to those who are prepared. In 1984, the Fifth Academic Symposium of the Chinese Paleography Research Association was held in Xi'an, and Chen Chusheng's speech attracted the attention of Zhou Pengfei, editor of the Shaanxi People's Publishing House, who was also planning to compile a golden reference book. The two hit it off and invited Zeng Xiantong, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University, to serve as a reviewer.
After the meeting, Chen Chusheng wrote a sample note to the editor for the first time, but he did not expect to pass it at one time and officially start the compilation work. After compiling each volume, he first showed it to Teacher Zeng Xiantong, and then asked Zhou Pengfei to give advice from the editorial point of view, and every communication between the three of them was an academic debate.
Talking about the situation at that time, Chen Chusheng was still full of academic passion. At that time, the house was small, he put a desk in front of the single bed, sat on the bed to write, tired and fell straight to sleep, sleeping only three or four hours a day. "Dreaming is still compiling a dictionary, wake up and write it down." In such a state of excitement, Chen Chusheng lasted for nearly 15 months. "After the burning of the anointing letter, the night is still the time of the disease book. The feelings of the people returning to the flower market are warm, and I think about the weekly plate. Chen Chusheng wrote in the "Four Sentences of the Fu Zi Rate Question in the Common Dictionary of Jin Wen" that the obsession with learning for art can be seen.
In April 1987, the 650,000-word, all-hand-copied Dictionary of CommonLy Used Golden Texts was published, becoming the first ancient dictionary in mainland China that has both form and meaning. The book contains 1,000 words of commonly used gold text, each word is in italics, juxtaposed with small seals, and a variety of glyphs of gold text are included for easy reading by readers. Its academic breakthroughs and contributions are well-known, and the famous historian, paleographer and archaeologist Li Xueqin believes that this book is "really a creative contribution", and Tang Yuming, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University, believes that the book is "a successful and important work in the field of paleography, and also a fruitful result in the field of mainland dictionaries".
In 1988, Chen Chusheng won the second prize of the Young Linguist Award of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (the first prize was vacant). In the selection, Chen Chusheng received such an evaluation: "Whether in the examination of text interpretation or interpretation of the meaning of words, the different statements of each family can be carefully weighed, the good is selected and followed, the learning style is rigorous and simple, and there is a deep attainment and skill in paleography." ”
Under the profound academic nourishment of paleography and calligraphy, Chen Chusheng blossomed in many points: seal carving, poetry association, qin inscription, collection... Not only are they involved, but they are also highly accomplished. After arriving at the Guangdong Provincial People's Government Literature and History Research Museum, he studied the guqin from his teacher, paid attention to the circulation and collection of the guqin, and "inadvertently inserted willows into the shade" in the production of qin inscriptions, and produced more than 70 qin inscriptions, leaving many good stories.
"Long live the people" inscription
Dialogue with Chen Chusheng:
"Eye high and low" is not a bad thing
Chen Chusheng is known as "the watchman of China's excellent traditional culture". Talking to him is like peeling off the veil of traditional culture layer by layer, it turns out that it is so close to life and so deeply integrated into the experience of life.
He has his own views on traditional cultural innovation and enhancing cultural self-confidence.
1
Art education is difficult to "become a late bloomer"
"South" Magazine: You are very accomplished in all aspects of piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, how to define your identity?
Chen Chusheng: Academically, I am committed to the study, teaching and research of paleography, and I am barely a paleographer. The research direction is mainly to use ancient script materials to study philology, phonology, exegesis, grammar, and an important achievement is the compilation of the "Common Dictionary of Golden Texts", which is my academic characteristics and determined by various opportunities.
Looking back on most of my life, in addition to teaching and research, my spare time and energy is mainly used in calligraphy, and I served as the deputy director of the Education Committee of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, and I can also be regarded as a calligrapher or calligraphy enthusiast. A true calligrapher must have academic support and a deep understanding of the history of calligraphy, the structure of Chinese characters, and various traditional cultures. At the same time, it is necessary to have the ability to create, write with roots, law, and expression, in order to achieve a certain artistic height.
"South" magazine: Calligraphy contains a rich traditional cultural code, but it may also go to the "Yangchun White Snow". How to avoid becoming an unpopular niche behavior and truly serve the society?
Chen Chusheng: The question of why art is a fundamental issue and a question of principle. As an art, calligraphy should truly serve the masses of the people. On the one hand, it is necessary to impart calligraphy knowledge and educate people; on the other hand, it is necessary to have the reader in mind and impress people. The reader is in the reader's mind, which means that what words to write and what fonts to use depends on the object. For example, for the inscription of the boulder in Huacheng Square, I use simplified characters so that Chinese and foreign tourists, young and old can recognize it. The inscription for the Tropic of Cancer Tower in Shantou is in traditional Chinese characters to reflect its cosmopolitanism. The Long Live the People in the Great Hall of the People is a heavy weapon of the country, and the inscriptions must not be imitated by the Song Dynasty and xingshu, but must be written in ancient chinese and gold, which have both academic support and political intentions.
With art, I can have a good life in my life. Nowadays, all sectors of society are more or less aware of the importance of calligraphy education, but there is still a long way to go in the development of calligraphy. Art education is difficult to "achieve late success", it must start from children, but at present, there is a shortage of teachers, and even some schools use art teachers and Chinese teachers to replace calligraphy teachers. The good news is that at present, a consensus of "calligraphy is an independent discipline" has gradually formed, and we must also mobilize the strength of all parties to actively promote and solid research.
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Kung Fu is "outside the word"
"South" magazine: calligraphy has been passed down to this day, how to achieve innovative development?
Chen Chusheng: The innovative development of calligraphy is an ancient and novel topic. In fact, the ancients also pursued innovation, from oracle bones to gold texts, to the Warring States books, and then to the inscriptions of the Han Dynasty... The history of the development of calligraphy is a history of continuous innovation.
Vertically, each historical period has a different style of writing, but has a common feature - inheritance. For example, from the perspective of oracle bones, there are two styles in itself: knife carving and writing. In Jinwen, due to the change in materials, the writing flavor is more obvious, which is a gradual process.
Horizontally, each era has both a large main line and a different style. For example, under the "Zhengda weather" of the Tang Dynasty, different styles of calligraphers such as Yan Zhenqing, Chu Suiliang, and Yu Shinan appeared. Although there are many styles and different levels of styles in various eras, elegance has always been the mainstream, and "ugly books" are rare and popular.
The key to achieving integrity and innovation in the current calligraphy is to have a good idea of "righteousness". The art of calligraphy reflects the mainstream cultural values of a country and a nation, and must cherish tradition and pursue elegance, rather than easily denying or blindly seeking novelty and difference.
South Magazine: The more national, the more worldly. How to carry forward the excellent traditional culture and enhance cultural self-confidence?
Chen Chusheng: It is necessary to introduce excellent traditional culture and truly form exchanges with the West, rather than lowering standards and deliberately pandering to foreigners. This is a question of external dissemination, but also a long-standing question, and it is not easy to answer well.
There is still a lot of work to be done to inherit and carry forward the excellent traditional culture. First of all, we must raise awareness and do a good job in inheritance, without which we cannot talk about carrying forward. Calligraphy is an important part of Chinese character culture, and there is no chinese character foundation to develop calligraphy. Writing poetry is kung fu outside the poem, calligraphy is kung fu outside the "word", can not rely only on writing more, but to accumulate knowledge and improve aesthetics. I once said that "the eye is high and the hand is low" is not a bad thing, only if the eye is high, it is possible to have a high hand, and the eye is low and the hand is low. Art cannot stop at skill, education is essential. At the same time, the media, including self-media, should do a good job in popularizing and guiding the public, gradually improving the level of public awareness, forming a social consensus on excellent traditional culture, promoting truth, goodness and beauty, and resisting false evil and ugliness.
This article is responsible for editing 丨 Li Yanxin Jiang Yu
Co-ordinator 丨 Liu Shuqiang Zhao Meixia
Editor 丨Li Zhuohua Mo Qun
Proofreading 丨 Hua Chengmin
Source 丨Nanfang Magazine, No. 6, 2022