ISBN: B00071ODWS
Dancing Ink Ⅰ: Pictorial Calligraphy and Calligraphy Painting
Book by Wang Fangyu
Catalogue published on a series international traveling exhibition Dancing Ink, sponsored by Seton Hall University, from 1985 to 1988.
After Chinese calligraphy spread to the West, Western artists tended to extract formal elements from calligraphy and use them in their works. This risks separating the form of calligraphy from its rich connotations and losing the soul of the genre. This problem has led to people’s misunderstandings of Chinese calligraphy and needs to be addressed urgently.
“Dancing Ink” has its roots in traditional calligraphy, while showing Wang Fangyu’s artistic innovations. It puts together his achievements in breaking the traditional boundary between calligraphy and painting. Based on the traditional structure and format of writing, Wang invented new ways of writing the radical or parts of a character. His method of invention, based on the meaning of a character or the written text, is pictographic. Using different brushwork (ranging from the sharp and static to the cursive and restless), the artist has found a means of abstract expression beyond the meaning of words.
As an educator and artist, Wang Fangyu introduced Chinese Calligraphy abroad without losing its rootedness in tradition. His work, combining inheritance and innovation, is of profound significance to cultural developments of the turbulent late 20th century.
Dancing Ink Ⅱ: Pictorial Calligraphy and Calligraphy Painting
Book by Wang Fangyu
Catalogue printed in Hong Kong, by Techpearl Printing Ltd, 1993.
After Chinese calligraphy spread to the West, Western artists tended to extract formal elements from calligraphy and use them in their works. This risks separating the form of calligraphy from its rich connotations and losing the soul of the genre. This problem has led to people’s misunderstandings of Chinese calligraphy and needs to be addressed urgently.
“Dancing Ink” has its roots in traditional calligraphy, while showing Wang Fangyu’s artistic innovations. It puts together his achievements in breaking the traditional boundary between calligraphy and painting. Based on the traditional structure and format of writing, Wang invented new ways of writing the radical or parts of a character. His method of invention, based on the meaning of a character or the written text, is pictographic. Using different brushwork (ranging from the sharp and static to the cursive and restless), the artist has found a means of abstract expression beyond the meaning of words.
As an educator and artist, Wang Fangyu introduced Chinese Calligraphy abroad without losing its rootedness in tradition. His work, combining inheritance and innovation, is of profound significance to cultural developments of the turbulent late 20th century.
