Chinese calligraphy in porcelain painting By Dr Corinna Siu

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1 Chinese calligraphy in porcelain painting By Dr Corinna Siu Chinese calligraphy is used in porcelain painting. Chinese characters total some fifty thousand, about six to seven thousand are used often. To write beautifully, it is vital that we first learn to write the strokes. Analysis shows there are eight basic strokes: dot dash perpendicular down stroke hook left-falling stroke right-falling stroke upstroke to the right bend or twist Stroke orders are used to ensure speed, accuracy, and legibility in composition. In China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, governments have standardized official stroke orders to be taught in schools, for example: 1. Write from top to bottom, and left to right eg the character for two 二 the upper component is written first, then the lower component eg stars 星 the left side component is written before the right side component eg cup 杯 2. Horizontal before vertical eg ten has two strokes, the horizontal stroke is written first, followed by the vertical stroke 十 3. Character-spanning strokes last a vertical stroke that passes through many other strokes is written after the strokes through which it passes eg car 車 a horizontal stroke that passes through many other strokes is written last eg book 冊 4. Diagonals right-to-left before diagonals left-to-right eg literature 文 5. Center before outside in vertically symmetrical characters eg water 水 6. Dots and minor strokes last eg dog 犬 Many people like to write the famous Heart Sutra on porcelain for spiritual purpose and interior decoration. Very often the Buddhist lotus is painted in the background.

2 Fu Lu Shou : Gods of Blessings, Authority, and Longevity Fu Lu Shou [in Putonghua; Fuk Luk Sau in Cantonese dialect used in southern China] is a very famous Chinese trinity of deities representing blessings, authority and longevity. Lu is the deity which stands in the center with Fu on its right and Shou on its left. Together, they are a very strong power which attracts prosperity, wealth, and health all together. Shou Lu Fu Fu 福 (reads like Full) is the deity of blessings. He means good fortune, prosperity, or happiness. It denotes being happy as the result of being lucky. He attracts prosperity for all those who live in the house or space where he is placed. Therefore the word is prominently displayed on doors, often upside-down, because the word "arrive" is similar in pronunciation, in other words, it says "luck is coming to this house." The Fu design is an ideal gift for friends and relatives, it is easy and fast to complete. Type the word in computer, choose the font that you like, enlarge it to the size that fits your porcelain and print it. There are many ways to paint it, eg 1. Mask the outside of the word with red resist, dab color or luster on to the word, then add a border. - After firing, dab patches of gold on top of the colored word, and apply mother of pearl to the background. - Or after firing, outline the word with enamels, fire a second time then apply liquid bright gold or platinum gold on the enamels. Paint the background. 2. Apply enamels, i-relief, sand, or chipping off powder to the word area to give it dimension, after firing, apply colors, lusters or gold. 3. Apply grounding oil and dusting method to the word.

3 Use one of these Fus and give it a try. 福 IPAT Asia Chapter Free Lesson # 16 For an important gift, we present A hundred Fus, usually a big one in the middle and 99 surrounding it. Special effects may be added to the big word as the focal point. The words in these three A hundred Fus paintings are not the same as there are more than a hundred ways to write this word in Chinese history. This is one of our most popular porcelain painting designs. Fu s pronunciation is same as a bat, therefore it is also painted as bats.

4 百 Lu 祿 means an official's salary in imperial China, thus it represents having a position in the civil service, one of the most desired jobs in ancient China. It symbolizes authority. Today, people are humble about one s position so we seldom paint this Chinese word alone. Lu s pronunciation is same as a deer, therefore it is also presented as a deer. IPAT Asia Chapter Free Lesson # 16 祿 Shou 壽 (reads as show) symbolizes longevity. This is a popular birthday gift. Like Fu, it can be painted in single word or in A hundred Shous style for an important birthday celebration. There are also more than a hundred ways to write this word, eg: 寿 A hundred Shous By Lily Huang Taoism has a strong influence on Chinese culture that life is everything, without which, nothing is left. So the current life is overwhelmingly valued. Thus the desire to live longer has been mixed into the everyday life of every Chinese. The cranes and the turtles, having very long life, are painted as an alternative to the word Shou.

5 Red and gold are the usual colors used in painting these Chinese characters and the background on porcelain. You may try other colors but NEVER paint the Chinese word in blue because this is the color to write a deceased person s family name on the white lanterns in a funeral hall. Use of Chinese calligraphy in porcelain painting Calligraphy and painting complements each other therefore a poem or an extract of a poem and the name of the painting are written in the negative space to illustrate the picture. Chinese calligraphy is used in traditional and modern styles of porcelain paintings This is a porcelain painting souvenir presented to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of Peoples Republic of China (HK) at a ceremony to mark a volunteer organization s 40 years service to the community. I have the honor to be invited to do this souvenir. My design is the bauhinia represents HK (the official city flower of HK) and the base is the organization. The words suggest the organization s 40 years voluntary service has contributed to the success story of HK.