A Study on the stele calligraphy of Yuan Dynasty Gao Dao's Gu Laozi

• Main Authors: Liu, Chia-Cheng, 劉嘉成
• Other Authors: Lin, Chin-Chung
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2016
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/99829087206450557313

博士 === 國立臺灣藝術大學 === 書畫藝術學系 === 104 === The inscription of “Gu Laozi” on a monument by Gao Dao in the Yuan Dynasty is now stored in the observatory deck of Zhouzhi tower in Shanxi province. Gao Dao adopted a “classical writing style” to write over 5000 lines. From the perspective of philology and calligraphy, this study mainly focuses on correcting the misconceptions amassed concerning this monument over the years. This study further explores and discusses the concept of calligraphy creation, and highlights the value of copying and distributing classical writings. This study comprises six chapters, each of which is explained below. The first chapter, “Introduction,” describes the motivations and purpose of the research. It also rearranges the documents relating to the copying and distribution of classical writings and the inscription of “Gu Laozi” on the monument. It states that the inscription is helpful in terms of verifying the classical writings being copied and distributed with the unearthed documents. Charts and tables are used to summarize and categorize the styles. The fonts are being studied once again, in order to highlight the value of the monument. The second chapter, “History and background of Gao Dao,” covers the records pertaining to this monument, including the shape, the creation of the inscription, size, annotation, word count, postscript and credits, and title of the monument. All this information has been recorded over the years. This study verifies these items one by one through the stone rubbings of the original monument. We point out and describe the mistakes, and analyze the important elements of the monument. The third chapter is “The application, copying, and distribution of the ‘Classic Lao Tzu’ by Gao Dao, and the classical writings over the years.” In the credit section, the calligrapher stated that the selections of words are based on the book, Ji Zhuan Guwen Yunhai , written by Conggu Du after reviewing and editing the monument. This study performs comparisons through charts and tables using materials including the inscription on the monument, copies being duplicated and distributed, and the stone epigraph; we have learned about principles including font characteristics, similarities and differences, the amount of the application , and the method for selecting words. The fourth chapter, “Stock style in ‘Classic Lao Tzu’ by Gao Dao,” compares the calligraphy theory with the actual calligraphy writing based on Zhuan style, brush analysis, morphological analysis, and writing tools, in order to discuss bushing methods. Chapter five, “Methods used in ‘Gu Laozi’ by Gao Dao,” uses the rules that calligraphers follow and the relationship between chapters; it also discusses the concept of “Creative copying of a collection of characters .”In terms of the form of inscription on a monument, we compare the monument inscriptions from the period between the Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty, with the following characteristics: having large spaces between lines but narrow spaces between each characters, rearranging the font and locations of the characters throughout the entire document, unified font style and font size, having inscriptions on a monument such that even the stone rubbings retain the look and feel of the calligraphy style . Chapter six, “The value of the monument inscription of ‘Gu Laozi’ by Gao Dao,” shows the results of the study, including the confirmation and establishment of the documents on the monument inscription, correction of previous misunderstandings, completing the calligraphy history of the Yuan Dynasty, identifying the erroneous transformation of the font and style, recognizing the relationship between the structure and the shape, reconfirming the copies of monument inscription, and acknowledging the artistic value of the monument. All results are valuable and significant as they are the extension of past findings and they inspire future development.