FREE AND UNINHIBITED,
MAGNIFICENT AND MAJESTIC --
On Mr. Yue-Pin Kwong£r art of calligraphy
By Chin-chih Hsu
””To describe Mr. Kwong£r calligraphy,
the phrase ¤REE AND UNINHIBITED, MAGNIFICENT AND MAJESTIC"
is the best term I could conjure to represent his art
of calligraphy. As a famous calligrapher, Mr. Kwong uses
his insight of art in calligraphy to present his particular
style in aspects of writing, painting, control of inner
energy in brushwork, quality and layout which creates
the effect of harmony and beauty. As Mr. Tsong-an Hsieh
(tri-stone elder), my instructor, once commented in the
preface of Kwong£r exhibition monograph: ¤ith great art
training, Kwong£r calligraphy emphasizes breakthrough out
of the boundary of the principles and expression of emotion.
And it is similar to the style of adaptability and spur
of Romanticism. As a result, he has created a specific
style and vivid character of his own in pursuance of the
total effect in its entirety." Despite Kwong breaking
the boundaries of convention in his works, however, in
viewing his pieces, we discover that „Dis way of using
the writing brush is rooted to tradition, extracting its
very essence and with an effect extending beyond tradition
in the creation of a new spirit" (a comment made
by his instructor Bing-chun Tu). In other words, through
persistent effort Kwong has founded a new style. He conforms
to tradition to absorb its essence, and creates his own
style beyond tradition. As the saying goes to „Kriginate
from Rules but end without them, seek Rules from no Rules",
Kwong£r new style is the very fruit of solid calligraphy
tradition. Those who have limited training are too impudent
to beat Kwong. As a result, master Le-Wong made the comment
that ¤wong has worked hard to make innovation, but he
hardly abandons traditional Rules and principles. Even
under circumstances of feast and dissipation, he keeps
the balance of writing and fragment, and won£s fail to
lose control."
””””Born as a descendant of
Confucius, Mr. Kwong was already showing his art talent
in painting and calligraphy when young. During the civil
war in Mainland China he moved to Taiwan along with the
Army. Attending the Taipei Normal College he began learning
painting from different masters such as Chun-fu Chen,
Li-qun Sun, Yin Chou and Chi-lung Huang. In his career
as a teacher in an elementary school, he followed Chuan-fu
Fu to learn landscape painting. In order to recieve advanced
art training, Kwong attended the National Taiwan Art College
and he followed Ke-Ming Hu to learn flower painting, and
Chao-shen Chiang to learn landscape painting, calligraphy
and seal cutting. Through inspiration from talented instructors,
Kwong is equipped with excellent craftsmanship. With his
talent and effort, Kwong has paved his way to fame and
has won various awards in art exhibitions. Moreover, he
has also contributed in the editing of art textbooks for
elementary schools. Speaking of calligraphy attainments,
Kwong followed Nan-xun Hsi to learn seal characters, Yi-ho
Wang (solitude hut master) to learn stele script, and
Tsong-an Hsieh (olive house master, tri-stone elder) to
learn Han-stele script, amongst others. Through years
of diligent learning, Kwong has finally created his own
style: free and inhibited, magnificent and majestic.
””””Kwong is skillful at various
kinds of brush writing. For ¤huan Shu", he writes
smoothly and tactfully. For ¤i Shu", he writes elegantly
and orderly. For ¤~ei Be", he writes sturdily and
plainly. For" Hsin Shu", he writes freely and
lively. For ¤sao Shu", he writes actively and briskly.
Moreover, Kwong£r way of using the writing brush is both
clever and skillful, as it is said that " in one
line appears variety, in one dot there appear no faults".
As for his use of ink, the moistness is properly related
with density, thinness, wetness and dryness. For the layout
of Kwong£r composing skill, it is well organized with conciseness.
In description of Kwong£r calligraphy, it is said to „Lresent
variety from the end of the writing brush, while adapting
mood into the very paper", like a dragonfly in the
smoke showing its flexible movement we can sense Kwong£r
unique style.
””””It is pity that some artists
can paint but fail to write tactfully, some can write
but fail to compose skillfully. Kwong, however, has a
good hand in all these aspects. In addition to painting
and calligraphy, he can compose postscript and other scriptures
quickly. Furthermore, Kwong has a good disposition and
is always doing his best to achieve his goals. For art
achievement, he seeks breakthrough; for teaching art,
he applies both concentration and patience. While he was
in his second-tenure as director of China Calligraphy
Association, he devoted both energy and finances. He even
paid house rent for the Association.
””””Kwong£r wife is also a helper
to promote the affairs of the Association. The Kwongs
are kind and honest. They have 3 of their own children,
and also adopted an orphan together. It is highly admirable
that they have such merit to care for other children.
In regards to Chinese calligraphy ethics, it lays emphasis
on personal moral attainments, and it is said that „Cood
merits are more valuable than craft." The marvel
of calligraphy art can initiate temperament and generate
sentiment. Accordingly, it is said that ¤alligraphy is
the expression of the mind, it can be kept in the mind
but shown outside, held in the heart but used by hands"
(Adopted from exploring calligraphy rules, His-ming Shen,
of the Yuan dynasty).
””””With good disposition and
rich knowledge, Kwong applies his natural talent and works
hard so that he can achieve in the art field.
””””Mr. Kwong and I studied
at the Taipei Normal College, and we both attended the
olive house, in which he became my mentor. Now he holds
both exhibitions and publishes his monograph.
””””I was requested to make
preface, and despite being a no-body in the art world,
given my rich acquaintance with Mr. Kwong I am delighted
to say something on his behalf and express my congratulations.
Chin-chih Hsu (associate
professor, Chung-Cheng Science & Engineering University)
