Expressive strokes

The birth and early evolution of Chinese calligraphy began with the formation of Chinese characters millennia ago, including those of such pictorial simplicity that were engraved on animal bones and tortoise shells, and the ones cast on bronze vessels that became neat and elaborate.

A significant development of the calligraphic script is the widely known shiguwen, or the inscriptions on stone drums, believed to date back 2,000 years. It is deemed the "ancestral form", upon which Qinshihuang, the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), unified the writing of characters, one of the important measures taken to unify the land and people he ruled over.

The unique script of shiguwen made it a topic of discussion after several stone drums were discovered during the early Tang Dynasty (618-907). The style inspired interest among artists for its structural grace and the majestic mood being presented.

Shiguwen ushered in the invention of dazhuan (the large-seal script), and xiaozhuan (the small-seal script) that was simpler in structure. These were followed by lishu (the clerical script), kaishu (the regular script), xingshu (the running script) and caoshu (the cursive script).

These scripts have been executed predominantly by learned people.