Page 74 - 臺中市第二十七屆大墩美展專輯

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Calligraphy

Category
Juror's Statement HSIAO Shih-Chiung

This year, I have been a member of the jury at HsinChu Art Exhibition, National Art Exhibition, R.O.C., and Da Dun Fine Arts Exhibition, and
seen some emerging talents, as well as some creative calligraphic works. Although the number of submissions was relatively the same as previous
years, the overall quality was significantly better, and I was impressed by many participants’ clear intention to seek new changes, which is a laudable
phenomenon.
For years, I have always promoted that calligraphic art must give a kind of “modern calligraphy of classicism” a try—that is, use traditional
calligraphy as the creative foundation but present a sense of modernity through works. To further elaborate, in the process of learning calligraphy,
when the idea of giving something new a try comes to you, it means that you have that inclination to “change.” Qing scholar XU Ke wrote in Qing
Petty Matters Anthology: “Throughout history, unchanged calligraphy is not worthy of admiration; changed calligraphy is not worthy of admiration.
Calligraphy that is on the brink of changing is the most admirable.” Although Xu was talking about “calligraphy throughout history,” the principle
is also applicable to personal calligraphic expressions. “Unchanged” means sticking to rigid conventions; “changed” means that the style cannot be
further innovated; therefore, always try new ideas, experiment with new materials, and test new techniques, so you remain in that state of “on the
brink of changing.” It is truly respectable seeing these young calligraphers, who participate in so many competitions within such a short period of
time, especially when it is necessary for them to constantly evolve and change their creative styles, relentlessly facing all the challenges.
This year’s Calligraphy Category of Da Dun Fine Arts Exhibition received 101 submissions, with seven from abroad (one from Hong Kong,
two from Mongolia, two from Japan, one from Malaysia, and one from Canada). In the preliminary review on May 1, the jury selected 16 entries;
however, one domestic entry did not meet the size requirements and was eliminated. Thus, 15 works were judged in the final review on June 28, and
the jury selected 15 award-winning entries (First, Second, and Third prizes, three winners of Award of Merit, and nine Shortlisted Works.)
Mr. SHEN Ko-Chang, winner of First Prize, is a veteran calligrapher. Because of his work, he had been living in Shanghai for a long time; the
city locked down for three months during the COVID-19 outbreak, so he enjoyed more time to create calligraphic works, finally winning First Prize.
What an achievement. His calligraphic work features a mixture of various classic styles of clerical script and cliff carving; he fuses the primitive
and unpolished brushstrokes of clerical script and amplifies the contrast between thin and thick lines; he also enhanced many visual effects in the
composition, venturing beyond the framework of traditional calligraphy.
Mr. CHANG Chia-Hsin, winner of Second Prize, is an elementary school principal, and the chairperson of Taichung City Chinese Calligraphy
Society. He is a gentleman with great skills and character. For his work, Chang split a five-character regulated verse into two, and wrote inscriptions
and annotations in the center, preserving the natural uncut edges of the xuan paper and combining the two. The characters have unique forms, and
combined with the bold brushstrokes, his calligraphic work exudes a sense of liberty from within.
The Third Prize winner is Mr. LEE Hsien-Hsiung, who has been nurturing new seeds of calligraphy in school for a long time and is full of passion
for calligraphic innovation. His winning work is a couplet in clerical script written with a long goat hair brush. He referenced the unique forms of
bamboo and silk scripts, which are paired with swift dynamics of the goat hair brush, creating a kind of grandeur for the work. In the middle is an
excerpt of Su Dongpo’s poem in small-font running script; compared to the grandeur of the couplet, the small font creates a conflicting beauty of
temporal differences.
All three Award of Merit-winning works exhibit unique styles and features. Mr. HSIA Shih-Ching’s work blends the style elements of Yen
Zhenqing, Yang Ningshi, Bada Shanren, and cursive script calligraphers in history, to form his own style. Mr. CHEN Yu-Lin’s couplet in seal script
exhibits a balanced composition and grand presence. Mr. LIU Kuang-Yi’s scroll in seal script is the continuation of his past style; however, the lines
are not rushed or dragged, and the subtlety proves his improvement. The other Shortlisted Works are great works as well; however, I will not going
into details due to insufficient space here.