Thinking Of Yan Zhenqing Cursive Style Origin And Distribution

Yan Zhenqing was the representative figure of regular script in Tang Dynasty, and he wasone of the “Top Four” figures of the regular script. Meanwhile, he was a loyal soldier as well.Also, his status in the area of cursive script is irreplaceable. Yan developed cursive script throughrunning vitality, and finally he became the forerunner in the history of Chinese Calligraphy. Due tothis, the later generations are all chasing after him. Yan’s calligraphy style thus have a greatinfluence on the style in Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, as well as the modern times.Following are my views about the formation and development of Yan’s calligraphy style,and his influence on many well-known calligraphers in later ages. There were many peoplelearned from Yan’s style after Tang Dynasty, among them were the fifth generation of Yang Ningtype, Song Sijia, Wang Duo, Xu Wei, Fu Shan and Huang Daozhou in the late Ming and earlyQing periods. Yan Zhenqing’s calligraphy was full of positive conception, which exactly reflectedthe prosperity of the High Tang period.