Portrait of Zeng Xi at the age of sixty-three
Zeng Xi's calligraphy is bounded by the calligraphy and painting that moved to Shanghai in 1915, which can be divided into two periods. In the early stages, he studied, participated in the imperial examinations, became an official, and ran schools, received systematic feudal cultural education, and learned about the history of the classics. However, in the early period, whether in the imperial dynasty at the end of the Qing Dynasty or the government of the Republic of China, Zeng Xi, like the scholars of previous dynasties, had his own or the court or government of Feng Lu, living a life of a feudal scholar. The utility value of calligraphy in written communication is far greater than the artistic value of the literati Yaxing in his leisure time, so he does not pay too much attention to the visual form and artistic style of calligraphy. After 1915, Zeng Xi began his career as a professional calligrapher in Shanghai, studying more newly discovered calligraphy inkblots and documents, and the art forms of his works became more diverse, showing a distinct personal style from all aspects of calligraphy- with pens, knots, chapters, etc. At the same time, under the influence of the changes of the times, Zeng Xi's calligraphy and his understanding of the art of calligraphy also reflect the integration of inheritance and Dingge, showing a unique innovative style and leading the momentary trend of the Republic of China's book world.
1. Based on the "Stone Drum Text", take the seal book of the three generations of Zhong Ding inscriptions
Zeng Xi was different from ordinary ancient readers, and although he also learned to write in calligraphy as a teenager, he began to practice seal writing very early. In the autumn of 1929, Huang Xiaoting's "Sword MingLu School Monument Map" he recalled: "Yu Shaoxi learned the sword, and he was the same fool as the son. Abandon the sword and learn the book, seal the day and the snake. Forty years now, bittersweet and tired. "But unfortunately, I didn't write which seal book he practiced." What is known at present is that Zeng Xi was first known as the "Stone Drum Text", and in 1915, the Qing Daoists also called "Yu Xi Xue Ding Yi" and "Ji Zi Ze Xue "Stone Drum Wen" in the "Hengyang Zengzi Zhi In 1892, Zeng Xi entered Beijing to participate in the examination, during which he traveled to the capital, watched the "Stone Drum Text", admired its three generations of style, lingered and could not bear to leave, and finally sought to learn from the old Tuo. In 1894, he went to Beijing with Li Ruiqing, and during his time in Beijing, he obtained more than a dozen kinds of "Huangting Jing", "Crane Ming" and Zhou Qi rubbings, and studied calligraphy together, but at this time, the two of them still had different emphases on the seal book.
The Shiguwen has its own special place in the history of the development of mainland calligraphy, and has been unanimously praised by calligraphers of the Tang Dynasty and later generations since its discovery in the Tang Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, due to the rise of epigraphy, the "Stone Drum Text" received unprecedented attention, and learning it not only can catch up with the big seal and open the small seal, but also the study of other calligraphy is also particularly important. During the Republic of China period, inheriting the experience of studying and taking the fa of seal books at the end of the Qing Dynasty, great achievements were made in the study and creation of the "Stone Drum Text", and a group of calligraphers were influenced by it and achieved fruitful results. Although Zeng Xi's unique "Stone Drum" style seal book is now unavailable, the seal book works he left behind are rich in squares, starting and ending with the pen, all of which are Tibetan fronts, round and strong, knotted and long and short, well-proportioned, and gu MaoXiongxiu. The collection "Stone Drum Text" written in 1920 is recognized as follows: "The collection of "Stone Drum" text, this stone is rigorous, and scholars are prone to illness and cramping. Shi Deng's seal method chased after the "Stone Drum", then the pen was flattened and sharpened, and the ancient people's chaotic atmosphere had been lost, because they were written with Zhou Jin, and those who lost their flat cutting and stupidity were able to remedy it. From this, it can be seen that Zeng Xi believes that the "Stone Drum Text" is a carved stone of the Zhou Dynasty, although it has gone through vicissitudes and is serious, but the strokes are as strong as iron, thin and strong, and the pen is very neat in the center. Those who learn "Stone Drum" are easy to be regular and lack change. Therefore, Zeng Xi thought that only by changing it could he do it.
Zeng Xi (left) with Chen Sanli (center) and Li Ruiqing (right).
Zeng Xi (front row center), Zhang Daqian (back row right)
However, Zeng Xi's great achievement in the seal book came after 1915. In the same year, Zeng Xi was invited to Shanghai by Li Ruiqing, and did a lot of preparatory work until December before the official listing of the Book of Manes, and in terms of seal books, he visited the three generations of Zhong Ding inscriptions such as "Mao Gongding", "Sanshi Pan", "Song Ding", "Lu Ding", and "Hu Dun", and made a more meticulous study and speculation on the "Stone Drum Text". Later, Zeng Xi had a special love for the Zhong Ding inscription, and he was very diligent in writing, and there were many wonderful Zhong Ding inscription works passed down, and the subsequent "Stone Drum Text" works were also written with the brushwork of the inscription, which was frustrated and folded, making it changeable.
When Zeng Xi was about to write the three generations of Zhong Ding inscriptions, he also intended to change them and increase their interest, rather than remaining static. For example, in 1921, after writing the "Four Screens of the Scattered Pan", he said: "Scattered disks, the Daoist people have become a god with a vigorous pen. The hair is destroyed by the circle as a square, quite Xiao Mayuan freehand, slightly interesting. Such a saying not only writes the original meaning of his writing "Sanshi Pan" at that time, but also shows that he is not pursuing an artistic concept that looks like a god. Not worrying about simple shapes, but consciously copying them with their own intentions is the only way for the writer to innovate in inheritance. In 1891, Zeng Xi and Li Ruiqing were engaged to the Tianxin Pavilion in Changsha, and because the two were fond of calligraphy, they often studied together. At that time, Li Ruiqing held the theory of "north and south factions", and Zeng Xi did not think so. Later, in the title "The First Episode of the Four Kinds of Monuments of the Six Dynasties on the Day of the Qing Daoists", Yun said: "The Mei Dao people used Zhou Jin as a seal, the two Han Dynasty peeped into the Six Dynasties, the so-called Kunlun Guan Si Du zhi to the sea, each time a monument was approached, the sea was shocked, and there were several twenty-four years of study." The former Daoists still had the view of the north and the south, but now they obey the theory of yu, because the book follows. After their long-term study of seal books, they put forward the book theory of "learning seals must seek gold". Later, Zeng Xi taught his disciples to learn books, first to learn the seal, and then to learn the seal must be gold, and the credit must be sought from stone. Zhu Dake's compilation of "The Tale of the Heavenly Drama haimu Room" records that Zeng Xi said to him: "Seeking the seal must be in gold, and seeking points must be in stone." Two weeks of text, different from country to country. The knot body is also very different. Lu Ye, who is more graceful and solemn; Junjie Lian, Qi Ye; Dignified and Honest, Jin Ye; Arrogant and Wanton, Chu Ye. Looking at its style, you can also look at its national customs, read more and write more, and hope to know. ”
Group photo of the establishment of Hengyang Calligraphy and Painting Society (the middle seat is Zeng Xi)
Publications of calligraphy works
Inscription calligraphy book sign
After Li Ruiqing's death, Zeng Xi founded the Hengyang Calligraphy and Painting Society with the purpose of studying calligraphy, painting and poetry, and many students from the sea worshiped him. Zeng Xi's lectures are very meticulous, often demonstrating the copied works for the students in the classroom, and after copying, he does more small treks and writes wonderful comments or experiences, which is also very unique among many booksellers in Shanghai. Students or post-scholars, reading his small treks and looking at his works, can better understand Zeng Xi's writing intentions and writing status at that time.
Zeng Xi Seal Book Eight Words Lian 38× 168cm×2
Zeng Xi Seal Book Five Words Lian 31×130cm×2 1920
Zeng Xi's seal book pen is also used in paintings, and a "Plum Blossom Diagram" painted by La Yue in the year of Nong Shu (1922) is titled "Straight to the seal to write the tree, divide the writing flower ear". In 1923, during the Qixi Beggars Festival, Zhang Daqian's brother Zhang Shanxiao visited his mentor and talked with Zeng Xi about calligraphy and painting until early in the morning. Later, it was published in the "Declaration" with "Questions and Answers on Calligraphy and Painting with Zhang Shanxiao". One of the passages reads: "In the words of the seal method, the calligrapher's pen and brush are all drawing methods, and the pen is turned to make the sudden, and it is strange to write about ancient pines and dead trees." It is also said: "Making a seal is like a painting, but it is interesting to use the wrist technique." Zeng Xi entered the painting with the seal method, and then used the painting method as a seal, and melted the calligraphy and painting in one furnace. His seal book is elegant, wide-bodied, and strong in penmanship, forming his unique style.
2. The premier letter of affiliation at the beginning of the Republic of China
The earliest Lishu work of Zeng Xi that can be seen now is the word "Yayuan" written on the Lishu plaque written in the seventeenth year of Qing Guangxu (1891). In the autumn of that year, Zeng Xi took part in the township examination under the name of Zeng Rongjia, and was named second in the list. "Ya Yuan", with its majestic pen strength and vivid rhyme, is derived from He Shaoji's Lishu and is very imposing. When it comes to Zeng Xi's calligraphy, in addition to Li Ruiqing, a close friend of his peers, there is one zeng who cannot be avoided, that is, his fellow countryman He Shaoji.
Zeng Xi Seal Book Seven Words Lian 25× 130cm×2 1920
He Shaoji (1799-1873), born in Jiaqing, died in Tongzhi, Zizhen, Dongzhou Resident, Late Dragon, an ape arm. People from Hunan Daozhou, the world called He Daozhou. He shi is proficient in Jinshi calligraphy and painting, especially known for calligraphy, and is known as the first person in the Qing Dynasty. Ma Zonghuo's "Shulin Zaojian And Shulin Chronicle" quotes He Shaoji's grandson He Shisun as saying: "Xianfeng Pengwu (1858), the first eldest father in his sixtieth year, in Jinan Luoyuan Academy, began to specialize in eight books, Tokyo monuments, sub-written, self-reliant courses, Gengshen (1860) returned to Xiang, the main lecturer Chengnan, the class is still uninterrupted, and the two monuments of "Ritual Instrument" and "Zhang Qian" have worked particularly deeply, each of which is Linbaitong. "In the field of Lishu in the Qing Dynasty, lishu people like He Shaoji who studied hard and visited the Han tablets were unparalleled in both depth and breadth. Through a large number of temporary writings and extensive methods, his Lishu draws on the calligraphy creations of Zheng Mo, Jin Nong, Gui Fu, Deng Shiru, Yi Bingshou and others in the Qing Dynasty, creating a Lishu that is very different from that of his predecessors.
Zeng Xi Jie Lin "Driving Fang Ding" Vertical Axis 51× 123cm 1920
Zeng Xi and He Shaoji, both from Hunan, highly regarded this calligraphy predecessor, and Zeng Xi believed that He Shaoji's Lishu used the method of sealing to write eight points, which was better than the Lishu of Yi Bingshou and Deng Shiru. From Zeng Xi's calligraphy works, it can indeed be seen that the most influenced by He Shaoji is Lishu. However, Zeng Xi's study of He Shaoji's lishu is not static, but with the knotting and brushwork of the "Xia Chengbei" and "Huashan Stele", he forms his own unique style. Kang Youwei once commented: "The peasant hair is the same as the Daozhou, and its eight points can also inherit the beauty, and its most powerful ones are in "Huashan" and "Xia Cheng", all of which are round pens." From the round pen below the poor south stele, so its line is easy in all bodies, the body is strong to see the bone, and the body is easy to see the temperament. The so-called yin and yang are strong and soft. For example, when Zeng Xi Xinhai (1911) taught in the Jinggong Ancestral Hall, the Lishu "Zeng Jinggong Ancestral Hall" was inscribed, each word was more than two feet, with a pen horizontal and vertical, the knot body was also upright and serene, and the writing was very ancient, with the weather of the Han Stele.
Zeng Xi Jie Lin "Shi Ding" vertical axis 51× 103cm
In December 1915, Li Ruiqing wrote "Hengyang Zengzi Zhi Shu Zhi Zhi Zhi Zeng Xi's Lishu is indeed based on the "Huashan" and "Xia Cheng" stele, and it has been changed and produced, with diverse styles and postures. Zeng Xi believes: "The Xia Chengbei is yin and yang shu, the clouds are terrifying, gaizhong lang takes the essence of the ancient qi to enter the eight points, and the divine product is also." ""Huashan Monument" makes good use of folding pens, reverse in and out, and "Xia Cheng" is soft in pen, which is strong. Once he entered Wei, he was stagnant and uninteresting. "Since its excavation, the Huashan Stele has been highly praised, and it is known as the first Han Stele and has many scholars. But the only person who can get the true essence of "Huashan" is Zeng Xi. It is precisely because of Zeng Xi's outrageousness that Li Ruiqing praised Zeng Xi's Lishu with a dongda qi comparable to Cai Zhonglang's.
Zeng Xi Seal Book Eight Words Lian 39× 173cm×2 1921
There are two main parts of the inkblots of Zeng Xilishu that have been handed down, one part is the copy of the Han stele he left behind for his disciples, there are more than 20 kinds, as well as "Cao Quan", "Fenglong Mountain", "Huashan", "Shimen Song" and so on. From these works, we can not only see Zeng Xi's ideas and ways of learning Lishu, as well as his teaching philosophy, but also can be seen that when Zeng Xi demonstrated for his disciples, he did not stick to the shape of the original stele, but focused on the aura of the original stele. The other part is Zeng Xi's poems, texts and couplets. In these works, there are such as the joint sentence "Qingqi Ni Gaoshi, the demeanor of Dong Huating", with a round pen, a wave of three folds, the knot body is still flat, and the charm of "Huashan" is still flat; there are also such as the book axis "Qi Zhou", using the pen to seal the book as the front, with the ink thick and full, the pen is powerful, horizontal and vertical, full of ancient meaning; there are also such as the joint sentence "The world should be five hundred years old, there are three thousand people", the knot is like a seal book, rectangular, long and large, without the meaning of swallowtails, the face is simple, and the wind of the old man in the mountain is awe-inspiring.
In 1917, the "Declaration" praised Zeng Xi's lishu in the article "Shujia Rare Like Morning Star": "Tongcheng Zhang Di Xianjun Ancestral Wing, old and rare, long-lived lishu. The former moon even picked up a slight disease, returned to the Road Mountain, and the art garden regretted it. According to the scribe's seal is the most difficult to do, most of the famous masters can write the real grass, and most of them are also working on the seal. It is because the connoisseurs regard the seal as more precious than the real grass, but recent scholars who have studied the characters have seen it less and less, and there are very few and far between. As far as the reporter knows, the current Shanghai Gong seal subordinates, when the Famous Scholar Zeng Nong, is the first to be the one in Shanghai. On November 19, 1918, Shanghai's "Times" and "Current Affairs New News" also published "Masterpieces of the Art World", saying that "Zeng Junnong's hair is the fine Cai Zhonglang Book, and the two monuments of "Xia Cheng" and "Huashan" are no less than the authentic works of Zhonglang, and the Qing Daoists say that since wei and Jin, they can pass on the best scholars of Zhonglang, and only one person can pass on Zhonglang." It can be seen that at that time, Zeng Xi was known as Cai Zhonglang in Shanghai, and he inherited the Eastern Han Dynasty's Cai Yong's letter of affiliation, and was pushed as "second to none"...
(Excerpt from the journal Rongbaozhai)
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