The "Xiling Eight Schools" is the founder of the Zhejiang school, and it is precisely because the Zhejiang school has so many seals with similar printing styles, but each has its own characteristics, the Zhejiang school has truly become a seal carving school that has lasted for more than two hundred years in the Chinese printing altar, and the Zhejiang school was founded by Ding Jing in Qiantang (now Hangzhou) during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, "Ding Jingyuan inherited He Zhen, close to Cheng Jie, eclectic and popular, not the main family, ruling the Yin Sect Qin Han, often participating in the subordination; pay attention to the knife method, good at using cutting knives to express the meaning of the pen, square in the circle, vigorous and simple, ancient clumsy and thick, unique appearance." After Ding Jing, Jiang Ren, Huang Yi, Xi Gang, Chen Yuzhong, Chen Hongshou, Zhao Zhichen, Qian Song, and so on followed. Because they are all hangzhou people, they got their name, "Xiling Eight Families". Later, all those who came to this style in seal engraving art were called "Zhejiang School". The Influence of the Zhejiang School is far-reaching, in the Chinese printing altar and the rise of the Hui school (or Anhui school) echoes north and south, the two factions of each other, the growth of the Chinese printing altar presents a colorful artistic style, this article we talk about the fourth of the eight xiling school: Xi Gang.
(Xi Gang and his printed Dragon Tail Mountain House)
1. Biography
Xi Gang (1746-1803) Was a Seal Engraver and Calligrapher of the Qing Dynasty. Formerly known as Gang Gang, the characters Tiesheng, Chunzhang, Luo gong, Butterfly Wild Zi, other names Crane Zhusheng, Mengquan Waishi, Mengdaoshi, Xi Daoist, Scattered Wood Resident, Donghua Nunnery Lord, originally from Shexian County (now part of Anhui), living in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, so there is also a saying that Xi Gang is a native of Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Xi Gang was able to write books at the age of 9, and later xing, grass, seal, and li, all of them were exquisite, and the seal carved private Shu Ding Jing (there is also a saying that he had been personally instructed by Ding Jing), to Chong and clumsy quality, advocating clumsiness and seeking release, Fang Zhongqiu circle, in his later years, he was a knife and specialized in painting, and finally became famous for painting, and the history of painting has the four families of Qianjiajian Fang (薰), Xi (Gang), Tang (Yifen), and Dai (Xi). Xi Gang has a bold personality, likes to drink, and has a "drunkard" who says that he should not be a scholar in his life, and when he was qianlong, he was filial piety and honesty, and he could not resign. At the end of the cloth, he spent his life sending love poems and paintings, landscapes and flowers, and elegant rhymes. He has traveled to Japan and is famous overseas. He did not reach the age of 60. He is the author of "The Remaining Manuscript of the Embers of Winter Flower Temple" and "The Seal of the History of Mengquan".
(Calligraphy and painting by Xi Gang)
2. Contributions to Printing Studies
1. Theoretical summary of personalized Chinese seal. Xi Gangyin learned to study Ding Jing, the style of the work is impulsive and clumsy, light and elegant and sparse (in fact, clumsy is not as good as Ding Jing, yi is not as good as Jiang Ren, but elegant is better than Ding, Jiang, Huang). On the basis of Ding Jingzong's han and the Tang and Song dynasties, his understanding of the Han seal has a clear and pioneering insight. He wrote in the side paragraph of the "Wang's Book Seal": "In the recent world, the seal of Qin and Han is frequent, but I do not know the Qin and Han seals, and in addition to being simple and strict, I specially use strong bending to convey the gods." Nowadays, the customary workers tend to be corrupt and charming, thinking that it is antique, ridiculous! It has been ugly in the first month, and the history of the Outside Of the Temple is made in the Cui Linglong Hall."
(Xigang Wang's book print and side section)
He also emphasized in the side section of "Tiexiang Qiu XueminYin": "Printing to the Song and Yuan Dynasties, it is becoming more and more skillful, and the wind is under the clouds." The Han seal is all simple and charming, and the spirit is harmonious, and people today really cannot learn it. In modern times, Ding Longhong, Wang Chaolin, and Gao Xitang slightly vibrated the ancient method, and washed and studied the habits of ingenuity. Friends Huang Jiu Xiaosong, Ding Hou, still hate song yin as a disease, and his way is also difficult! Bing Shen Xia Wu carved this for the tie xiang league chief. Tie Sheng Ji "Obviously, what he advocates is "simple beauty" and what he opposes is "corruption", although it is a one-word difference, in fact, this is the result of the gradual understanding of the aesthetic characteristics of the Qin and Han seals, and it is a summary of the Zhejiang school of printing style that originated from Ding Jing, followed by Jiang Ren and Huang Yi. Xi Gang also mentioned in the side paragraph of "Golden Stone Fetish": "It is advisable to write a Chinese seal to be round and round, and the gods exist and square, and when they are referred to by monuments such as "Li Qi" and "Zhang Qian", Peng Shen May, Tie Sheng Ji". In fact, this is also an artistic view that clearly proposes that the words used in seal engraving should be referred to as subordinate.
(Xigang Jinshi fetish and side models)
Ding, Jiang, Huang yi all the way to the creation, to Xigang, the Zhejiang school not only has creative practice, but also has theoretical support, which is the main contribution of Xi gang, Zhao Zhiqian later commented on the "Four Houses of Xiling" said: "Hangzhou people imitate the seal to call the four families, Ding and Huang are authentic, Jiang Yipin, Xi Gang's heart is not corresponding, in fact, it can be called the three ears." (Zhao Zhiqian's "Hang Sijia Seal Genealogy Sequence") is actually saying that Xi Gang "can't reach the hand", if we observe Xi Gang's works, there is indeed such a regret, but only from the theoretical summary, Xi Gang's contribution is outstanding.
2. The strengthening of the theory of "printing with books" and the theoretical construction of Zhejiang's golden stone qi and book volume qi. The zhejiang school is usually well known for its prominent features of the cutting knife, which often makes people ignore the calligraphic features in the seal of the Zhejiang school, and Xi Gang explicitly put forward the concept of "printing with books" in the print. He clearly pointed out in the seal of the Hundred Blunt People: "Printing mud, painting sand, Lu Gong calligraphy also." Tie Sheng was used to carve stones, washing the Song and Yuan light and charming weather."
(Xi Gang Bai Blunt Man and Side Section)
In the side paragraph of the "Pinluo An Lord", he also proposed: "The seal is engraved together, and in modern times, it is only called Mr. Ding Zhang's blunt Ding, and its ancient strength and beauty are beautiful, although the text and why can't reach it." In fact, this is also Xi Gang's solution to oppose corruption, that is, seal engraving should start from calligraphy, while learning calligraphy and being proficient in calligraphy, it is also necessary to strengthen the comprehensive cultural cultivation in all aspects, which is also Xi Gang's summary of the theory of the Zhejiang school, that is, the seal engraving should be used to create golden stone qi and book volume gas, which is also the characteristics of the Zhejiang school' printing style.
(Shioka Pinluo an lord and side section)
3. Seal engraving works
Although Zhao Zhiqian believes that Xi Gang's heart is not corresponding, Xi Gang's works are still very worth seeing, but in his later years, he specialized in painting, and eventually did not reach 60, and his works were eventually fewer. Here are some representative works.
(Minor year)
(Lord of Pinra Temple)
(Shou Song Tang Calligraphy and Painting)
(Bu Weng)
(Shaobaishan people)
(Koko old house)
(Chenjun Seal)
(Self-indulgence)
(Zhongliangzi)
(Zhou Zhongsongyin)
(Private seal of Xi Gang)
(Qingqin Xiaoyou)
(叏庵)
(Menglao)
(History of Mengquan)
(Binuma Fisherman)
(Longwei Mountain House)
By the time of Xigang, the first four families of the Zhejiang School of Xiling had all been born, and these four were the most important printers of the Zhejiang School, and by the time of Xi Gang, the Zhejiang School had finally become a great school of seal engraving that had both rich works to learn and strong theoretical self-sufficiency.
([Indian Biography] No. 23, part of the picture from the Internet)