The Seal Cutting Art Research Of Tong Danian

Tong Danian was an influential painter,calligraphy and seal from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China.This paper makes a comprehensive analysis and research from the aspects of his life and family background,collection and friends,artistic analysis of seal carving,the relationship between calligraphy and seal carving.Surrounding his seal-carving works,combined with a large amount of information in his side section,I hope to have a further understanding of Tong Danian’s seal-carving art.In the discussion of this paper,the following points are relatively important: first,from the family background,collection,and friends of Tong Danian,the reasons for the formation of seal carving and its social status can be explored.Affected by the family environment,Tong liked seal carving from an early age,and worked with his brother to extend the seal.Tong Danian’s family is rich in collection,which has been intrigued since childhood,and his preference for collection in his adulthood,had a positive impact on his seal carving.In addition,the calligraphy and painting society flourished in the Republic of China,in which Tong Danian actively participated in the exchange of calligraphy,painting and seal carving.All of these provided favorable conditions for Tong Danian to improve seal-carving ability and his social recognition.Second,Tong Danian has his own insights based on the concept of "cutting the law",While taking Han seal as a sect,he did not stick to "seeking the seal within the seal",and he was rich in many excellent works,especially devoted to the gold,brick,inscription,and so on,which enriches the model of seal carving.The characters were rigorous,the ability of using knife was skillful,the constitution was vivid,and the work was quaint and elegant with full of literary.At the same time,seal carving was also influenced by Zhao Zhiqian and Wu Changshuo.Third,in terms of side section,Tong Danian liked to carve long section,recording a lot about his life experience,and also made a lot of attempts with bold styles.Fourth,Tong Danian’s calligraphy works were mainly seal script,with a wide range of methods,very unsophisticated and quiet,and complementing the seal carving,which had also played a positive role in the creation of seal carving.Fifth,in terms of his works,friends and embellishment,Tong Danian’s seal carving had a high degree of social recognition at that time,but it has not attracted enough attention today.One of the most important reasons is that his personal style is not outstanding enough to be taught by later generations.