Between Heaven and Earth : A History of Chinese Writing

From Booklist
Shi Bo has organized calligraphy expositions in Bejing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong and has taught the art of Chinese writing internationally. By approaching calligraphy as a writing system and stressing the evolution and refinement of Chinese writing, he provides structure for our understanding. He introduces and illustrates "forms of composition" categorized as "pictograms," "ideograms," "composite phonetics," "transferred," and "borrowed" characters, providing the history of these stylized ideographs. Beginning in the seventeenth century B.C.E., he traces the evolution of seven seminal Chinese writing styles, all linked to the history of China's emperors, who commissioned new styles of writing with which to record their victories. This handsome coffee-table book, which also serves as an introductory text on calligraphy with information on materials and techniques, is amply illustrated with archival and contemporary examples. Its appendixes include not only a bibliography but a chronology of Chinese history, dynasty by dynasty, making it a must-have for those interested in Chinese language and writing systems and their histories. Whitney Scott
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From the Inside Flap
The characters used in Chinese writing are not letters but stylized ideographs, each with its own history. The development of Chinese writing is linked to the history of China’s emperors, who commissioned new styles of writing with which to record their victories. In Between Heaven and Earth, master calligrapher Shi Bo gives a fascinating overview of the evolution of seven seminal Chinese writing styles starting in the seventeenth century bce. He also introduces the reader to the calligrapher’s art, including its materials and techniques. This gift-quality, two-color book is abundantly illustrated with archival material and the author’s original calligraphy and will appeal to readers interested in Chinese language, history, and calligraphy.

About the Author
Shi Bo, a Chinese calligrapher and writer, is the author of more than sixty prose works in French and Chinese including translations, essays, and novels. He has organized several calligraphy expositions in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, and he teaches calligraphy internationally. He has lived in France since 1990.


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The characters used in Chinese writing are not letters but stylized ideographs, each with its own history. The development of Chinese writing is linked to the history of China's emperors, who commissioned new styles of writing with which to record their victories. In Between Heaven and Earth, master calligrapher Shi Bo gives a fascinating overview of the evolution of seven seminal Chinese writing styles starting in the seventeenth century bce. He also introduces the reader to the calligrapher's art, including its materials and techniques. This gift-quality, two-color book is abundantly illustrated with archival material and the author's original calligraphy and will appeal to readers interested in Chinese language, history, and calligraphy.


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