"Skill" And "Tao" In Zhang Huaiguan's Calligraphy Aesthetics

Calligraphy,as a unique art,has its special basic techniques,including structure,composition,holding,writing and so on.However,mastering these techniques,only means mastering the skills of writing,which is not enough to attain the art of calligraphy.Turning skills into art requires the appearance of “Tao”.Before the Tang Dynasty,there were many calligraphy theories on techniques.Although most of them were forged by the Tang people,the summary of techniques can be verified in the works of the calligraphers,which indicates that the study of techniques by the Tang people is insightful.Zhang Huaiguan put less elaboration on the techniques in his theory,while He mainly talks about the method of holding writing brush,he believes that holding should be powerful in order to reach momentum of the works.Meanwhile,his interpretation of dot and stroke,and brush-using is an analogy with nature,rather than concrete summary.This is because he believes that the purpose of calligraphy is to conform to Tao and that techniques are only means but not ends.The “Tao” of his calligraphy includes three aspects: Firstly,calligraphy,as a kind art,conforms to the natural Taoism of Lao-Chuang's Taoism.Logically,calligraphy originates from nature,so the art of calligraphy should return to nature and embody the beauty of nature.Secondly,calligraphy,contributes to moral and ethics,is in line with Confucian and Mencius ethics,the performance of both ornament and essence,rigidity and softness,beauty and goodness in the neutralization.Zhang Huaiguan himself prefers essence to ornament,and does not attach importance to the so-called “techniques” of predecessors,but takes "nature" as his method.Thirdly,calligraphy,with human beings as its main body,is similar to Huineng Zen's “heart is Buddha” spiritual approach.Zhang Huaiguan holds that despite different disposition,different approaches,people only reach one Tao.Therefore,if they obey their nature,get its measures and understand at first sight,they can make progress and achieve successful life.As a means of accessing “Tao”,Zhang believes that there are three parts: The first one is endowment with nature,that is,inherent nature.Calligrapher's “frankness” and “smoothness” are all natural manifestations and a natural creative state,which is endowed by the Tao that controls all things in the world.The second one is learning hard,on one hand,it requires the calligraphers to work diligently;one the other hand,they need to study their predecessors' calligraphy works,learn the rules and master the techniques.The latter is for ordinary people who are not so called “gifted”.Thirdly,we should learn from universe,which is not only all things in nature,but also the laws of movement and changes of all things in nature,which are endowed by Tao essentially.Learning to be creative is for “good learner”.Good learners do not follow the literary or the texts,but “stand up to nature respectively”.Learning from universe is to imitate nature.On the one hand,the spiritual Tao of Zen is the important theoretical support of Zhang's advocacy of calligrapher's endowment with nature,on the other hand,it links human's mind with calligraphy,so that the art of calligraphy should not only possess the law and imitate nature,but also add human's subjective mind.It can be said that calligraphy with these three factors would achieve the real completion in art.Compared with the calligraphy conforming to Confucian ethics,Zhang preferred the calligraphy art conforming to Taoism's natural Tao,and the calligraphy conforming to the natural way is the genuine art.