Special columnist Wang Jingyu: Mr. Luo Yuan’s life in calligraphy

Special columnist Wang Jingyu: Mr. Luo Yuan’s life in calligraphy I have been reading Mr. Luo Yuan’s "words" for several years, and then I did...

I have been reading Mr. Luo Yuan’s calligraphy for several years, and later became his neighbor. Not only could I see more of his calligraphy, but I could also observe it personally in the fragrance of calligraphy and ink. What a blessing for a person who loves art. In September 2004, the Hubei Art Museum successfully held an exhibition of Mr. Luo Yuan's calligraphy works. In the exhibited works, I saw the shadow of the famous epigraphic calligrapher and painter Mr. Cao Li'an. Cao Gong's calligraphy style is vigorous and free, noble, old-fashioned, powerful and simple. He pays attention to the creation of artistic conception and the shape of the words themselves, and is distinguished by his dignified style and timeless interest. Mr. Luo Yuan was the son-in-law of Cao Gong, and his official script was naturally deeply influenced by Cao Gong. As time went by, he also showed some uneasiness with the status quo in the process of seeking self-improvement. His life experience and knowledge became richer and thicker with age, and on this basis, he gradually formed his own unique artistic style. Official script pays special attention to dignity, simplicity, solemnity and elegance, giving people a sense of beauty and bringing a strong decorative art effect. In the process of creation, Mr. Luo Yuan pays great attention to contrast and harmony in the stipple thickness of the characters and the weight of the strokes. In order to make the official writing full of vitality and give people an indulgent artistic beauty, he must also pay great attention to the compact and well-proportioned knots and the rigorous organization of the vertical and horizontal lines. This is a severe challenge. In the process of many years of exploration, Luo Yuan has been able to adapt to the various changes in brushstrokes, weight, size, virtuality and fonts, and the style is consistent. Recently I saw some calligraphy works he had just completed. Compared with before, the lines are more solemn and grand. As the deputy secretary-general of the Hubei Provincial Foreign Cultural Exchange Association, Luo Yuan attaches great importance to learning from his predecessors in terms of literary accomplishment. He has received guidance and help from old writers such as Xu Chi and Bi Ye. In the process of interacting with these famous writers, their ideas constantly collided with his artistic feelings, causing him to burst out with surprising artistic inspiration. In the practice of calligraphy art, he had the opportunity to learn from famous calligraphy masters such as Cao Li'an, Huang Liang, and Wu Zhangshu in his early years. After receiving their guidance, he gradually formed his own writing style after years of exploration. Mr. Luo Yuan not only studies calligraphy, but also studies my country’s classical literature. Calligraphy is inseparable from classical culture. Over the years, he has devoted himself to calligraphy creation and lost his passion for calligraphy. His calligraphy is based on official script and supplemented by seal script. After years of exploration and research, his calligraphy characteristics gradually emerged. Luo Yuan always believes that calligraphy must be viewed from an aesthetic perspective of development, because history is progressing, society is developing, and aesthetics and aesthetic taste will develop with the development of society. In order to prevent people from visual aesthetic fatigue, calligraphers should have an artistic vision that keeps pace with the times. The art of calligraphy should be well integrated with other arts, find a common support point, and absorb the rich nutrition of other art fields in order to keep pace with the times and truly become an artistic enjoyment for modern people.

> Luo Yuan’s calligraphy works