When Confucian Spirit Meets Southern Elegance, Vols. 1 & 2

Description

When Confucian Spirit Meets Southern Elegance, Vols. 1 & 2

The Origins and Transmission of Calligraphic Traditions Carved in Stone During the Northern Qi Dynasty (550–577)

Author: Elisabeth A. Jung Lu

Order No. 1178-1179

ISBN-13: 9781622460731

ISBN-10: 1622460731

Binding: Hardcover

Publisher: Homa & Sekey Books

Pub Year: 2019

Language: English

Size: 8.25 x 11.25

Page: 479

Price: $99.90. You pay only $79.92 (after 20% discount).

About the Book

The present study identifies the calligraphic traditions of the Northern Qi dynasty (550–577), specifically the two styles of “stone-inscription script,” which coexisted in the vicinity of the capital at Ye, where monumental Buddhist scriptures were carved on the facades and interiors of cave-chapels. These inscriptions featured either archaic “classical clerical script,” seen in the Han-dynasty Stone Classics and in many other kinds of inscriptions of the Northern Qi, or “regular script,” seen in the large-scale Buddhist stone inscriptions in Shandong signed by the calligrapher-monk Seng’an Daoyi. The study traces the transmission of the local style of calligraphy attributed to the monk in relation to the tradition of elegant writing associated with aristocratic calligraphers active in Southern China. Through a comparative analysis of style, the study demonstrates that Seng’an Daoyi’s style of calligraphy can be seen as the connecting link between two regions where sutra carving activities took place. The study further presents discoveries concerning the relationship between stone inscriptions, sculptural design, and various forms of magic or ritual writing in other media, including examples of early Chinese writing preserved in Japan and Europe.

About the Author

Elisabeth A. Jung Lu is an independent scholar and calligrapher based in Hangzhou, China. She studied calligraphy and seal-carving for ten years at the China Academy of Art (CAA) in Hangzhou (M.A. in 2002) and completed her dissertation in 2015 at the University of Zurich under the supervision of Hans Bjarne Thomsen and Robert E. Harrist Jr. of Columbia University. In 2009 she was a lecturer at the University of Zurich. She has acted as an interpreter in the fields of East Asian art history and media arts (Museum Rietberg Zurich, China Academy of Art), led calligraphy workshops (Museum Rietberg Zurich), and curated the solo calligraphy exhibition of works by Lu Dadong in Waldshut (Culturescapes China 2010). She also participated in the large-scale exhibitions of contemporary calligraphy, Shu fei shu, hosted by the China Academy of Art (2010, 2015).