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Article Contents:
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Calligraphy Styles for Beginners to Choose From
The art of
calligraphy involves the display of writing
styles that are developed with the help of
special material and inherent artistic ability.
The art can be learnt anywhere and at any time,
with or without help. There are a number of
online and offline resources that make available
the special calligraphy pens, nibs, inks, paper
and guide books by experts. These resources are
accessible 24x7 and the art is one that has but
one critic – You! There are resources that
educate you on the art and help develop an
interest, by providing you with platforms to
showcase the developed art in stages.
Calligraphy
does not only mean that you have to strictly
follow a particular style that were laid down by
experts whose name are as difficult to pronounce
as it is to talk backwards. You can simply adopt
your own style by checking out some styles and
customizing them to your liking. One thing that
you have to remember is that although
calligraphy looks like you may have to be really
good at designs and all that is not actually
required. You definitely don’t have to be a
painter or anything of that sort. If you have an
eye for details and have the passion for
expressing yourself through artistic
lines/designs, then calligraphy is the perfect
hobby for you. Remember that calligraphy is one
hobby that is categorized as an acquired art
form and all you need to start off with this
hobby is a pen, a paper and a little bit of
patience of course.
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Asian |
East Asian
calligraphy:
When we talk about East Asian calligraphic
styles, the first thing that comes to mind is
the uniquely inscribed Chinese handwriting
style. That’s simply because the Chinese
calligraphers adopt the method of using reed
pens as ink brushes in order to create the
perfect Chinese calligraphy. In case of East
Asian calligraphy, the art form is known by many
names, it is known as “Hanzi” in China, “Hanja”
in Korea and Kanji in Japan. In Asia,
calligraphy holds a lot of importance as one of
the most beautiful forms of preserving ancient
and other forms of text. Some prominent styles
used by the East Asian calligraphers include the
running style of writing which helps in making
the calligrapher speedup his work. These writing
styles also help the calligrapher to create a
unique visual effect in his writings, which then
tend to be more appealing to the eye. All this
is achieved from the unique strokes and the
variety of ink brushes.
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Chinese
Characters |
Chinese Calligraphy :There are many distinct
styles of calligraphy practiced in different
parts of the world and still being developed.
Asian calligraphy involves the use of brushes
instead of pens and special nibs. The Chinese
characters developed go by different names such
as Hanzi, Hanja and Kanji among many others. The
practice of calligraphy in Asia is a developed
way of writing that is very important and a part
of even their paintings. Calligraphy styles in
Asia are very influenced by the basic script
used for communication. The sumi-e style is by
far the most famous and is a part of the
Chinese, Japanese and Korean cultures and way of
life.
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Indian Characters
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Indian calligraphy initially comprised
edicts that were displayed on stone, stiff and
influenced by the angles of the chisel tip, just
as modern calligraphy is by the thickness and
angles of the metal nibs. The Kharsoti and
Brahmi calligraphy styles are very popular here
and the materials used in Indian calligraphy
previously included:
-
copper nibs
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birch bark as a writing surface
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palm leaves
Western calligraphy has developed from a style
that has its own set of special features, the
most prominent one being the illumination of the
first letter of every communication. The art
thrived during the medieval times and prospered
during the renaissance and post renaissance
periods. The hierarchical order, carpet page,
geometrical style, colorful depictions and
precise stroke order are all distinct features
of western calligraphy. Western calligraphy
involves preferred geometrical order of lines.
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Western Calligraphy
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The
Andalusi is a distinct style of Islamic
calligraphy seen in the Holy Scriptures. Islamic
calligraphy is an art that has evolved with
every step that influenced the spread of Islam.
The beautiful backward flow of the Arabic
language and alphabet is synonymous with the
geometric beauty of arabesque. The showcasing of
Islamic calligraphy is best observed on the
inscriptions on walls and ceilings of mosques by
ancient and contemporary calligraphy artists.
The specific calligraphic inscriptions and
abstractions are highly influenced by the flow
of the Arabic language itself.
The
art of calligraphy involves a variety of styles
that are influenced by the difference in the
thought processes of people from different
regions, their culture and way of life, their
inherent art style and the language written and
spoken by the people. Calligraphy styles are a
visible expression of inner beauty and the
highest art of all with regards to the
safeguarding of the written word.
Western
calligraphy:
Western calligraphic styles are largely
influenced by the Roman alphabets. Western
calligraphy was prevalent right from 600 BC and
the calligraphic styles have been changing ever
since. Ancient scripts like Luxeuil script,
Merovingian script, Visigothic script ruled
these periods. Other scripts such as the Gothic
script, the Gutenberg script and then the
English script also came into existence a little
later. The most important thing to observe in
Western scripts is that the first letter is
always the highlight of the entire text. This
includes highlighting the first letter with a
color or some design which would make the word
stand out. Apart from the designing part, there
is also a lot of geometry involved in the art of
calligraphy, in which the space left between the
words is precise. Although a lot of importance
is given to specific designs of each letter,
nowadays calligraphy practitioners are also
making use of colors in script. Inconsistency in
the size and the style of the letters is a
hallmark in Western calligraphy.
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