Mi Fu (1051-1108) was named Yuanzhang, also known as Xiangyang Manshi and Haiyue Waishi. His ancestral home is Shanxi, and he moved to Xiangyang, where he is known as "Mi Xiangyang". According to historical legend, he had a weird personality. He liked to wear Tang Dynasty clothes and was addicted to cleanliness. He called "brother" when he met a stone and worshiped him endlessly, so he was called "Mi Dian". He read hundreds of poems at the age of six, studied calligraphy at the age of seven, wrote monuments at the age of ten, and entered officialdom at the age of twenty-one. He was indeed a precocious eccentric. In calligraphy, he is one of the "Four Calligraphers of the Song Dynasty" (Su, Mi, Huang, and Cai), and he is second to none. His calligraphy style is free and unrestrained, but also strict with the law. Su Dongpo praised his "genuine, cursive, official, and seal scripts, like the wind and the horses, calm and happy"; on the other hand, he also created the "Mijia Yunshan" in the landscape painting. He is good at using "fuzzy" pen and ink to paint the misty Jiangnan scenery, and uses thick ink, burnt ink, horizontal dots and dot clusters of various sizes to reproduce the layers of mountains, known as "rice dots" in the world. He was admired by many painters of later generations and rushed to imitate him. His son Mi Youren left many works, which continued this style of painting and brought the "literati painting" style to a new level, which was praised by the history of painting. Whether Mi Fu favored calligraphy or painting, historians have different emphasis.
Mi Fu is a calligrapher, painter, appraiser, and collector. He has a rich collection and a wide range of interests. In addition, he has a broad vision and excellent appraisal. His book has become an essential book for future generations to study the history of painting. There are "Baozhang Waiting for Visits", "Book History", "Painting History", "Inkstone History", "Haiyue Inscriptions and Postscripts", etc. "Baozhang Waiting for Visits" was written in August of the first year of Yuanyou (1086). It is divided into two parts: "witnessing" and "hearing". It records 84 items from the Jin and Tang Dynasties, setting a precedent for later generations to record and having great influence. There are even works that imitate the style of this book, such as "Zhang's Four Tables" written by Zhang Chou in the Ming Dynasty. "Book History" is more detailed and is one of the basis for later generations of appraisers. The book "Hai Yue" mainly describes my own experience and is very pertinent. This book is generally believed to have been completed by later generations who compiled rice treatises.
Mi Fu studied calligraphy most deeply throughout his life, and his greatest achievement was running script. Although the paintings have not been handed down to the world, many calligraphy works have survived. Among the famous calligraphies since the Southern Song Dynasty, most of them are engraved with his calligraphy. They are widely circulated and have far-reaching influence. Among the "four major calligraphers of the Northern Song Dynasty", they are second to none. Kang Youwei once said: "The structure of Tang language is higher than the interest of Song Dynasty." This means that the calligraphers of the Song Dynasty paid attention to interest and individuality, and Mi Fu was particularly outstanding in this aspect and was an outstanding representative of the four great masters of the Northern Song Dynasty. Mi Fu studied calligraphy and called himself a "collector of ancient calligraphy." Although some people thought it was a joke, some praised him and said, "There is no need to boast about the beauty of the world. If you collect ancient characters, you can finally stand on your own." (Wang Wenzhi). This explains to a certain extent the reason for the success of Mie's calligraphy. According to Mi Fu's self-report, before studying Jin Shu from Su Dongpo, it can be roughly seen that he was most influenced by five Tang people: Yan Zhenqing, Ouyang Xun, Chu Suiliang, Shen Chuanshi, and Duan Jizhan. Mi Fu has many special calligraphy techniques, such as the rounding of the right corner of the word "men", the steep rise of the vertical hook, and the crab claw hook, etc., which are all derived from Yan's running script; the shape of the body shape is probably imitated from the European character. And maintained it for a long period of time; Shen Chuanshi's calligraphy may be similar to Chu Suiliang's; Mi Fu studied Duan Jizhan's large calligraphy, and the "unique four sides" and "brush calligraphy" may have come from this; Chu Suiliang's brushwork is the richest The changes and the structure are also the most vivid. When combined with Mi Fu's spleen and stomach, he once praised his words, "He is like a familiar horse riding a formation, and his movements follow others, but he has a different kind of arrogance."
After the fifth year of Yuanfeng (1082), he began to search for Jin people's Dharma Tie, and obtained Wang Xianzhi's "Mid-Autumn Tie" in just one year. This grand order written by his ancestors had a huge impact on him. He always felt that the right army was not as good as his son. However, Mi Fu, who was unruly by nature, was not satisfied with Xiao Wang. As early as during the reign of Shaosheng, he had shouted out "Old disgusted slaves will not exchange their letters for geese" and "One washes away the evil letters of two kings". Mi Fu is said to have studied Yang Xin, and Li Zhiyi said, "The Immortal Haiyue is beyond my expectation... Yang Xin's writing is even more amazing." So Mi Fu probably learned from Yang Xin in Buju Haiyue Temple, six years after Yuanyou. Despite this, Mi Shu has not been finalized. The "Tiaoxi Tie", "Yinling Mingtoutuo Temple Stele and Postscript", and "Shu Su Tie" written in the third year of Yuanyou were written within one and a half months, but their styles have greater differences. The difference has not completely crossed the threshold of collecting ancient characters. It wasn’t until he “started his own family when he was old that people saw him and didn’t know what to do as the master.” It was probably after the age of fifty that he finally completed the establishment of his own style. This stereotyped look of calligraphy was due to Mi Fu being too unruly and obsessed with "power", even in small regular script such as "Elegy to the Queen Mother", he was eager to try it. This "power" is certainly an advantage, but at the same time it becomes his flaw. "In the end, one deviation will lead to a mistake." Those who praise and criticize as clearly as Huang Tingjian should be more objective and fair. Huang Changrui commented on his calligraphy, "He can only run calligraphy, but he is not good at writing straight script." The so-called "right" at that time did not have a precise meaning, and it was not necessarily the current "block regular script". If it refers to seal script and official script, it would be appropriate. The existing Mi Fu seal script is indeed not very good, and the cursive writing is mediocre. He later had a negative attitude towards the cursive script of the Tang Dynasty, and was limited by his knowledge of Jin cursive script, so it was inevitable that his grades would be mediocre.
Mi Fu writes very seriously, unlike some people who imagine that he writes books without thinking. Mi Fu himself said: "I wrote "Hai Dai Shi" three or four times, with one or two good words in between. It is also difficult to write letters" (Mi Xiangyang Foreign Notes by Fan Mingtai of the Ming Dynasty). After writing a poem three or four times, I am still satisfied with only one or two words. The joys and sorrows involved are beyond the reach of an expert, which also shows the rigor of his creative attitude.
Mi Fu has his unique understanding of the distribution, structure and use of calligraphy. It is required to be "stable but not vulgar, dangerous but not strange, old but not dry, moist but not fat", which is probably what Jiang Kui wrote about "nothing droops, no shrinking, no direction, no gain". That is to say, it is required to achieve unity in the change, to integrate the opposite factors such as wrapping and hiding, fatness and thinness, sparseness and density, simplicity and complexity, that is, "the bones, muscles, skin and flesh, fat, luster, wind and spirit are all complete, just like a good scholar." . In terms of composition, we pay attention to the overall charm, take into account the perfection of details, and have a well-thought-out approach. During the writing process, we change according to the situation and show unique ingenuity. The characteristic of Mi Fu's brushwork is that he is good at forming an elegant and super-stepping momentum and a calm and joyful style from the front, side, back, turning, and frustration. The strokes of characters tend to be quite heavy at the beginning and slightly lighter in the middle. When encountering a turning point, the strokes of the strokes will turn straight down. There are also many changes in the strokes. Sometimes the focus of the stroke is on the starting point, sometimes on the finishing point, and sometimes it is in the middle of the stroke. For longer horizontal strokes, there are twists and turns. The hook is also distinctive.
Mi Fu's calligraphy often includes sideways postures. He wants to go left before right, and when he wants to raise, he suppresses it. All of these are to increase the grace of jumping and flying, and based on decades of solid foundation of ancient calligraphy . Therefore, it is out of innocence and naturalness, without any pretense. Those who learn Mifu, even if they are close to the water and the tower,
Those who do not can't help but be "hard and crazy". Since the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the discussion of Mi Fu's calligraphy can be roughly divided into two attitudes: one is praising but not disparaging, and highly praised; the other is both praising and disparaging, with mostly praise elements. Those who hold the first attitude can be represented by Su Shi.
Mi Fu is famous for his calligraphy and is one of the four masters of calligraphy in the Northern Song Dynasty. In terms of calligraphy, he is undoubtedly the first. His achievements come entirely from hard work. When he was thirty years old, he was an official in Changsha and saw the stele of Yuelu Temple. The following year, he went to Lushan to visit the stele of Donglin Temple and inscribed his name on both. In the second year of Yuanyou, six paintings by Zhang Xuan, two paintings by Xu Haoshu and Shi Yigeng were exchanged for Li Yong's "Duore Yao Gefen Tie". Proof of his calligraphy, the inscriptions on the cliffs of Longyinyan in Lingui at the age of 24 are slightly impressive, but there is no trace of his own family; the inscriptions and postscripts of "Buchao Picture" at the age of 30 are also impressive.
I feel that my natural talent is inferior to my academic ability. Mr. Mi is cunning, and it is reasonable to boast occasionally. As the predecessors said, "set high standards for yourself." Mi Fu's self-descriptions of his studies were often somewhat mysterious. For example, he told the emperor that "I have been learning about appearance since I was a child." However, Mi Fu's success comes entirely from hard work and hard work, and there is no trickery at all. Mi Fu visits the pond every day and cites two historical materials as evidence: "If you don't read for a day, you will feel dull, thinking that the ancients never used up their books even for a moment." Ye." "Zhi Yong's inkstone can be turned into a mortar, and it can reach Youjun (Wang Xizhi). If it penetrates Zhong (Yao) and Suo (Jing) Ye, it can be encouraged forever." His son Mi Youren said that he even reached New Year's Eve . I didn't forget to write in the first grade of junior high school. (According to Sun Zubai's "Mi Fu Mi Youren"). Mi Fu was rich in collecting, and when he went on official trips, he would often follow them wherever he went, writing a large banner on the boat "Mi Family Painting and Calligraphy Boat".
Mi Fu was fond of stones, as is documented in the biography of "Song History". Ni Zhen of Yuan Dynasty has a poem titled "Picture of Worshiping Stones at Minangong Palace": "Yuanzhang loved inkstones as much as stones, and he has been obsessed with exploring gems and picking out the wonders for a long time. Brother Shi worshiped at his feet and wrote pictures by himself, so he knew that Dian's reputation was well-deserved." According to this poem, Mi Fu was so proud of his hobby that he wrote "Picture of Worshiping Stones". Later painters were also good at writing this picture, so Mi Fu's worship of the stone became a popular story and became a good story. There is also a strange stone in front of Mi's Baojin Zhai for people to play with. This stone is recorded in "Shu Yishi Tie". It is said that Mi Fu has the four-character stone method of "thin, beautiful, wrinkled and transparent".
Mi Fu also loves inkstones. Inkstone is one of the "Four Treasures of the Study" and is a must-have for calligraphers and painters. Mi Fu has a long history of studying inkstones. He is the author of the book "History of Inkstones" ". It is said that he has made detailed discussions on the crystal patterns of various ancient inkstones, as well as the similarities, differences, advantages and disadvantages of Duanzhou, Shezhou and other stone inkstones. Making ink is the best." "Praise to the Book of Baojinzhai Dharma" quotes a post from "Shanlin Collection": "To insult the teachings, Bao Inkstone is required... the inkstone is my first..." Mi Fu regards the inkstone as important as his own head, which can be said to be doting on him. deep. ("Tie Shen" also comes from "Praise to the Book of Dharma") Mi Fu, who has both stone and inkstone addictions, naturally attaches great importance to Inkstone Mountain. Inkstone is a kind of inkstone formed by natural peaks. At the foot of the mountain, it is flattened and can be used to polish ink with water. It can be used as a plaything in the study room and as a tool for dyeing ink near the pond. "Zhilin" records that Mi Fu found a mountain of inkstones and slept in his arms for three days. The most famous one was owned by Li Yu, the late emperor of the Southern Tang Dynasty. He transferred it to someone else in exchange for a piece of land for his house. Mi Fu missed it so much that he created the "Picture of Yan (Inkstone) Mountain" handed down to the world.
In his later years, Mi Fu lived in Dantu, Runzhou (now part of Jiangsu), where he had Shanlin Hall. Therefore, the collection of his poems and essays is called "Shanlin Collection", which has one hundred volumes, most of which are now lost. At present, there is "Baojin Yingguang Collection" handed down from generation to generation. Mi Fu could calligraphy and poetry, and his poetry was called "Ige". He was lofty and outstanding, and he was in his own family . He tried to write poems for Xu Chongyuan, who said that he "didn't offend anyone, and never recorded a single poem in his life that was devoted to nobles and nobles." His unique style was his strength, and his deliberate seeking of differences was his shortcoming.
Mi Fu's paintings no longer exist in the world. Mi Fu's "History of Painting" records his collection and appreciation of ancient paintings, as well as his preference for painting, aesthetic taste, creative experience, etc. This should be the best basis for studying his paintings. Mi Fu's success lies in achieving the literati taste he recognized through a certain attitude and theme selection of ink opera. Mi Fu realized that he could change the traditional painting procedures and technical standards to achieve new interesting purposes. The reason is: Mi Fu was first of all a wealthy collector and connoisseur, and he was well aware of the pros and cons of paintings of the past dynasties, and he paid more attention to the content of the painting itself; while Su Shi was first a literary giant, and then he became a famous painter. He expresses his views on painting as an amateur, and mostly measures and requires painting based on the standards of poetry (literature). Although there is no shortage of insights, it is ultimately separated from painting. Therefore , most people later regard Mi Fu as a painter and Su Shi as an art theorist. What I am thinking about in my heart is Su Shi's painting theory, but what I practice in my hands is Mi Jia Yunshan. Although Su Shi has paintings handed down to the world, Mi Fu has none. As a historical study, it cannot but be pointed out that Mi Fu's artistic thoughts were far ahead of their time than Su Shi's.
His son Mi Youren inherited the family tradition of calligraphy and became a calligrapher of his generation.
