Who Sows Calligraphy Will Reap Paintings
After several articles devoted to Chinese calligraphy, I would like to turn to a question that has become increasingly important in my own work: how does the practice of calligraphy influence painting? The relationship is not simply a matter of transferring expressive brushstrokes from one medium to another. It concerns rhythm, structure, movement and the ability to give a few marks sufficient presence within a composition.
In recent paintings, I have become increasingly aware of how much I owe to years of practicing calligraphy. At the same time, I have sometimes felt dissatisfied with works in which technical effects or individual details began to dominate the composition. A painting may contain interesting passages and still fail to convince me as a whole.
The following examples show different stages of this search. They also illustrate a recurring challenge in my work: finding a balance between the spontaneous energy of the brush and the overall structure of the image.
In the following work, I approached the composition more directly through calligraphic gestures. Broad strokes establish the principal movements, while the areas of untouched paper become an active part of the image. Instead of developing the surface through numerous details, I wanted the structure to emerge from the relationship between a few decisive marks.
A related composition, reduced to a few expressive brush movements.
The situation is similar to a piece of work for my “The Magic Sea” project, the progress of which I will write about again soon.
Every now and then I give in to the idea of ridiculing everything. When, as in this case, I work on paper towels.
Reduction in abundance
The influence of calligraphy becomes more apparent in this recent landscape study. Broad black strokes interrupt the warm orange and turquoise fields, suggesting movement and spatial depth without describing a landscape in detail. I am interested in how little information a painting needs before it begins to evoke a place or atmosphere. The work is still a study, but its reduced pictorial language points toward a direction I would like to explore further.
A large, black calligraphy work
If time permits and it is of general interest, I recommend this short video. It’s the creation of a painted calligraphy that penetrates into a higher level.
So far, as explained, the focus of my painted calligraphy has been primarily on the characters themselves or on structures that were created by stringing Chinese characters together and overwriting them. Now several levels of gray come into play, which visually becomes almost black, but upon closer inspection reveal different communicating levels. Which reinforces the meditative aspect.
Zen in Calligraphy – the Making
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The relationship between calligraphy and painting is ultimately a question of artistic judgment. Technical skill is essential, but it does not guarantee a convincing work. A brushstroke can be elegant without contributing much to the whole, just as an apparently simple mark can give a composition its character.
For me, the challenge is to retain the vitality of calligraphic movement without allowing technique to become an end in itself. Whether I work with a few broad gestures or with many overlapping layers of writing, I return to the same question: does the composition hold together, and does it communicate something beyond the individual strokes?
Related Articles: Painted Calligraphy Series | Experimental Calligraphy | Chinese Calligraphy Portfolio
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