In Praise of Handwriting

Arthur Cooper in his notes to his translation of a poem by Tu Fu provides additional information about General Wang, a calligrapher of note.

It was said of him that his writing was "as light as floating clouds and as vigourous as a startled dragon."

For a wonderful way to while away time -- consider the Heilbrunn Timeline Of Art History offered by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Searching for "calligraphy" nets not only Chinese but also Islamic and Coptic examples. The Heilbrunn Timeline also contains thematic essays such as the one by Dawn Delbanco on Chinese Caligraphy which provides a link to one of the items mentioned for further reading -- Barnhart, Richard M. "Chinese Calligraphy: The Inner World of the Brush." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 30 (April–May 1972), pp. 230–41. And then there is a host of sites devoted to Chinese calligraphy video. Slow Motion and Lightening Fast.

And so for day 974
13.08.2009