隋书概说——兼议《出师颂》卷

A General Discussion of Sui Calligraphy with Specific Reference to the Scroll Chu Shi Song

本文分析了隋代书法在中国书法史上承前启后的特殊状况,指出隋代北方铭刻的主要成就是逐渐摆脱了前朝篆隶书体而形成了楷书书体,南方的纸书在跃出章草畦径的过程中初步酝酿出草书的章法,楷书已成熟定法。“书”之所以能够有“法”并且成为一门高雅的艺术,是因为隋代完成了“普法阶段”,最好的例证就是智永和隋贤的存世之作。

The author analyses the unique position of Sui dynasty calligrapher within the ongoing traditions of ancient Chinese calligraphy, pointing out that during the Sui dynasty northern inscribed calligraphy (mingke) mostly discarded the earlier zhuan - li (seal - clerical) style, leading to the emergence of the kaishu style, while in the south the use of paper ensured that zhangcao broke free of restraints so that a fluid, free form grass- style calligraphy could emerge, and kaishu achieved full maturation. Calligraphy was able to break free of inscription 'conventions' and became an elegant art, because of the levelling of rules achieved in the Sui dynasty. There are no better examples of the process whereby calligraphy broke free of the conventions imposed by inscription than in the two Sui masterpieces by Zhiyong and 'the Sui Master'.