I'm in love with the Chinese calligraphy brush.
I’ve been collecting and using my brushes for over 20 years now. And I’m obsessed with them.
I’m assuming most European artists who use brushes started out with our single stock brushes to maximise control in application.
I was one of them until I held a Chinese brush for the first time. The Chinese calligraphy brush for me is a piece of art in its own right. It feels like I am holding its maker in my hand and they are helping and inputting into my work.
If you’ve ever held a Chinese Brush it asks to be danced around the paper. Each stroke has to be considered and lifted into place. When I’m applying the ink I have to think about the edge of the brush stroke as much as the middle and vice versa.
History of the brush
The calligraphy brush has a long history in China. Legend has it that the brush was invented by Meng Tian, a general under the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC). However, primitive painted pottery contains decorative designs painted by tools resembling a brush. Visible stains or brush marks clearly remain in certain places on the pottery which suggests that the brush can be traced back at least 6,000 years.
The brush unearthed in the tomb of Marquis Yi of the Zeng State in Hubei province is the earliest brush discovered so far.
In 1975, in No.169 Jiangling Tomb, Hubei province, a brush of early West Han Dynasty with a cavity at one end was unearthed. It shows that before the Qin Dynasty the head of the brush was bundled around the shaft with threads while afterwards the head was stuck into the cavity. This amendment made the brush easier to receive ink, improving both the speed and quality of writing, as well as the portability of the brush.
A calligraphy brush comprises of two parts: the head or brush tip and shaft. The head is made of goat, wolf, rat or rabbit hair, which is softer than bamboo, a pencil, quill or ballpoint pen. The shaft is made of bamboo, wood, lacquer or porcelain, as well as some precious materials, including mother-of-pearl inlays, ivory and jade.
To watch how they’re made is a sight to see.
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