Zen Brushwork : Focusing the Mind with Calligraphy and Painting / Tanchu Terayama

Identifier:REF.CL.0031

Dimensions:95 p. : ill. ; 31 cm.

Copyright dates:2003

text translated by: John Stevens, Thomas F. Judge

Library of Congress Subject Headings:Calligraphy, Lettering, Lettering in art, Brushwork

Description:"With its bold strokes and mystic aura, Zen calligraphy has fascinated Westerners for decades, yet it remains an abstract, rarely practiced form of expression outside of Asia. Now, master calligrapher Tanchu Terayama explains the techniques behind this subtle art and offers step-by-step instructions for practicing it on a professional level. After introducing the basics, Terayama presents a unique meditative warm-up to establish the proper mental attitude needed to release one's creative energies. Next, the power of the brushed line is explained and demonstrated...Lessons on brushing symbolic Japanese characters follow, including those for 'emptiness', 'nothingness', and 'flower'. The painting section shows readers how to draw the spare yet elegant pictorial themes of this classic art: bamboo, plum blossoms, Mount Fuji, and the inspirational Zen priest Daruma."