Chinanews.com, Heze, December 6th. Topic: Shandong Weishu Stranger: A mouse must make a pen and write about life with a three-inch soft pen
Author: Xiao Shouxiang
Concentrating on luck, dipping the pen in the ink, and writing... A few seconds later, a beautiful micro-book font appeared on the paper.
On December 6, in Juye County, Shandong Province, Xie Xiaopin, an 84-year-old inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of "Micro Writing Volume", was writing a piece of "Yueyang Tower" by Fan Zhongyan, a writer of the Northern Song Dynasty, in his study.
"Millimeter-level" teeny lowercase script has clear strokes, well-proportioned size, neat layout, dignified and generous, and each character exudes a unique artistic charm.
Xie Xiaopin, Inheritor of Intangible Cultural Heritage of "Micro Writing Volume", is writing a micro book.
Photo courtesy of Juye County Financial Media Center
"Weishu works should be completed in one go. Omissions, additions, and typos are not allowed. As long as there is a word that is not written well, you have to start from the beginning. 'Calm, concentrate, and eliminate distractions' is the motto of writing Weishu. The most basic requirements." Xie Xiaopin said that micro-writing volumes first originated in the Han Dynasty, when writing books and biography was all done by handwriting, and it was necessary to write as much text as possible in as small a square inch as possible, so the micro-writing volumes gradually formed. calligraphy skills.
"Micro-writing volume" is a rare calligraphy skill in China. It is generally created in small script calligraphy, and the font is extremely small. It is a traditional Chinese calligraphy skill that is on the verge of being lost.
Micro-writing scrolls have high requirements for writers, and there are very few people engaged in the art of micro-writing scrolls across the country.
Xie Xiaopin's mouse whiskers and works.
Photo courtesy of Juye County Financial Media Center
"Writers must not only have profound calligraphy skills, but also be familiar with ancient prose and understand ancient literary works. More importantly, when writing, they must be as calm as water, breathe evenly, and not have any distracting thoughts. This is a test for the writer. At the same time, it is a test for the writer. There are also strict requirements for the pen, ink and paper used, and the three are indispensable.” Xie Xiaopin said that the writing brush he used was custom-made by a pen maker in Ruyang, Henan Province, using the two brushes near the mouse’s mouth. Beards are made.
The font size of micro-books does not exceed 2 mm. When writing, you can only write with a single hair on the tip. A good brush can't be used for writing up to 10,000 characters.
At the same time, it is best to use raw rice paper for writing micro-books. Raw rice paper has high requirements for writing. If there is more water, it will be one piece. If there is less water, the pen will not move.
It is also necessary to adjust the ink in real time. When adding water, it must be added drop by drop. It is very strict to add more or less.
In 1957, Xie Xiaopin, who was only 18 years old, had the honor to meet Zhang Fengji, a famous calligrapher in Southwest Shandong, after graduating from Shandong Art College.
Under the careful guidance of Zhang Fengji, he devoted himself to the inheritance and research of micro-writing scrolls, learned from others' strengths, and boldly innovated. He visited famous teachers for decades, and practiced the skillful small script and micro-writing brush and ink techniques, making his micro-writing scroll art natural. Into a school, unique.
Xie Xiaopin is writing a micro-book.
Photo courtesy of Juye County Financial Media Center
In the 1970s, Xie Xiaopin started from writing the history, culture and genealogy of the Xie clan, devoted himself to the creation and research of micro-writing scroll calligraphy art, and wrote the "Chinese Xie Family Classics, History, Zi, Collection" with more than 3 million words. "Siku Quanshu" and countless written works, some of which are collected by many museums at home and abroad, have been selected into the "Dictionary of Chinese Calligraphers and Painters", "Who's Who of Chinese Artists", "Classic Calligraphers of the World" and other lists.
The "Genealogy of Xie's Family" written by him was collected by Tsinghua University Library, Shandong Museum Library and Heze City Library in 2016.
The micro-writing volume is difficult in its subtlety, expensive in its essence, and wonderful in its ingenuity.
A piece of ordinary rice paper is endowed with more connotation and value by Weishu, and this is where the artistic charm of Weishu lies.
Xie Xiaopin said: "My only wish is to pass on this traditional Chinese calligraphy technique that is on the verge of being lost." Over the years, Xie Xiaopin has also cultivated a group of young people who love Weishu. Into the Heze Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
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