【Stanford-CUHKSZ Synergy】Talk on Calligraphy

Topic: The Boundary-Crossing Interaction of Chinese Calligraphy with Classical Philosophy and Contemporary Art

Time & Date: 9:00am -10:00am, September 12th , Wednesday

Venue: Governing Board Meeting Room, Dao Yuan Building

Speaker: Dr. Kuan-yen Liu

Language: English

Abstract:

       This introductory talk concerns the interaction of calligraphy with other fields in classical and contemporary Chinese culture. The first part concentrates on how the line art of calligraphy represents the philosophical thought of Daoism, Confucianism or Buddhism, as well as calligraphers’ sentiments and personalities. Among the masterpieces to be examined will be those of Wang Xizhi (303-361), Zhang Xu (675-750), Yan Zhenqing (709-785) and Buddhist master Hong Yi (1880-1942). Next, Dr. Kuan-yen Liu will analyze how the elements and features of calligraphy (such as the style of the line, the structure of the character, picture thinking, the spirit of painting, the rhythm in the ink and the “penetration” and correspondence between characters), along with the tempo in moving the brush and the body movement during calligraphy writing, make possible the interaction of calligraphy with a variety of alternative art forms, like architecture, graphic design, fashion design, popular music and contemporary dance. Particular attention will be paid to the experimental calligraphy art of Tong Yang-tze, the choreography of Lin Hwai-min, and the architectural designs of Wang Shu and Kris Yao. All in all, this talk aims to demonstrate how calligraphy incorporates classical Chinese philosophical thought and infiltrates contemporary Chinese art by transcending the limits of the two-dimensional space of the paper or the form of ink-writing.

       This talk will also be accompanied by students’ presentations that pertain to both their interest in calligraphy as well as involvement in the South-Dew (Nan-Lu) Club for Chinese Calligraphy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen.

About the Speaker:

       Dr. Kuan-yen Liu is Lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Science at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (CUHKSZ). Before joining CUHKSZ, he taught courses on Western thought and literature as well as Chinese thought and literature in the Program of Comparative Literature at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). He received his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature at UCSB and previously earned his B.A. from National Chengchi University in Taiwan, with a double major in English Literature and Philosophy as well as minors in History and Chinese Literature. Having started to learn Chinese calligraphy at the age of eight, he emulates the Stele Style of the Wei Dynasty (386–556) and tries to capture the spirit of the Small Seal Script in the works of Zhao Zhiqian (1829-1884) and Wu Changshuo (1844-1927).