Ye Xin, Prolific Chinese Calligrapher

By Yang Renkai

According to documentary records, the examples of the tradition of family businesses continued by descendants are not that many. But the Wang Xi Zhi family of Dong Jin period in China can be said to belong to a special category. We found out that the Wang family has been able to continue to sustain its tradition of calligraphy for ages from the history books handed down from the Tang China period and it can be called a great achievement in the history of calligraphy
In the Sui and Tang periods, one and only Ou Yang Xun and his son were well-known and in the following periods of Song and Yuan, father Mi Fu and his son Mi You Ren and father Zhao Zi Ang and son Zhao Yong continued their family tradition of calligraphy. In Ming and Qing periods, there were father and son team calligraphers, but they were not as famous as those who preceded them. This is a historical fact and therefore, would not need to be studied further here.
In the 20th century, Shenyang in China a famous calligraphy family emerged and continues to maintain their artistry to this day and has made rapid development.
This is the family of famous youthful calligrapher Ye Xin to the big surprise of many.
Ye Xin, who goes by the penname of Xian Rong, were born in Shenyang City in Liaoning Province. His family is one of the four well-known calligrapher families in Shenyang City. His maternal great grand father was Huo Shao Guang, Wang Wei Zhou, Jin Yu Chun, maternal grand father was Huo An Rong (1917-1981).
In 1962, he visited Japan as a representative calligrapher for China and held a calligraphic exhibition and Japanese emperor liked his work so much that some of the work were taken to the castle and put on display.
He executed brush work on the tomb of founder of Qing Dynasty Nu Er Hachi, "Fu Ling."And the tomb of the first emperor of Qing, "Zhao Ling."His family made its name with its calligraphy throughout China. The family so well-known that it was recorded in the history books of local regions in China.
Ye Xin inherited his family tradition during his early age and began to show his ability to pass over his seniors with his natural talent. He learned calligraphy from his maternal grand father from the age of 5. He also got his lessons in the art from a number of well-known calligraphers at the time including Guo Zi Xu, pupil of Huo An Rong and a judge of Chinese National Calligraphy Exhibition and the foremost teacher of calligraphy at that time and Liu Zheng Cheng, chief judge of the Chinese National Calligraphy Exhibition and other well-known calligraphers at the time. At the beginning, he got tutoring on calligraphy from the work executed by such Tang calligraphers as Ou Yang Xun, Yan Zheng Qing, Liu Gong Quan of the Tang Dynasty, especially on kai shu, formal letter forms, xing shu from Wang Xi Zhi and Wang Xian Zhi and xiao kai from Ling Fei Jing.
Ye Xin learned to write the Chinese character letters used in the periods, zhuan shu, before the period of the Chin Dynasty and learned how to write the letters li shu used in the Han Dynasty.
His calligraphy style exuded grandiose and magnificence and humbleness at the same time.
Of special note, is the fact that he attended the Kim Chaek Engineering University in Pyongyang, North Korea, from 1985 to 1991 at the recommendation of the Chinese National Education Committee. Since he is fluent in Korean, he is good at executing calligraphy in Korean letters, which is a rare case in the Chinese calligraphy community. When former Premier Li Pung visited Pyongyang in 1985, the letters on wreathes the former premier laid on tombs of heroes were executed by Ye Xin. Picture Time, in its report dated January 15, 1985, filed from Pyongyang, said that the former Chinese official introduced the young calligrapher to staff at the Chinese Embassy in the North Korean capital that he was from Shenyang.
The introduction of heroes in the Korean War was written in Korean calligraphy by Yen Xin and is being displayed in the Chosun History Museum in Pyongyang.
He won the second place honor at the first National Student Calligraphy Public Exhibition in 1980, winning a wide publicity all across China.
He displayed his calligraphy work at a number of famous calligraphy exhibitions across China following the second place finish at the student exhibition and acclaimed by critics. The exhibitions include China Calligraphy Association, the most powerful calligraphy association managed by the Chinese government, which staged the China Youth Calligrapher Work Exhibition, "Popular Calligraphy Trend"staged by the Keum Il Fine Art Hall, which displayed works of 100 famous calligraphers in China without regard to their social positions and ages, the Beijing International Biennale, the International Exhibition of Famous Calligraphy Works, the Beijing University Chinese-Korean Calligraphy Professors Work Exhibition, the 2005 Seoul International Calligraphy Biennale, the first-year anniversary Invitational Calligraphy Exhibition of Works of Famous International Calligraphers to commemorate the establishment of the Chinese Cultural Center in Korea.
His calligraphic expertise has been refined by studying ancient calligraphic work, letters inscribed on roof tiles, and trees - all outstanding work on the level of the private sector throughout the Chinese history and developed in a creative manner. Each of his work has its own unique characteristics with a variety of astounding structure, showing his own individualistic style of letters. His own style of calligraphy won the praise around the world.
Yen Xin is not only the young calligrapher and a scholar, but also a very active social worker. While he was in North Korea to study, he organized five exhibitions for North Korean professors and students and Chinese calligraphers residing in North Korea. After his arrival in Seoul, he planned and staged a large calligraphic exhibition for top calligraphers in over 10 countries. People call him an ambassador of calligraphy because of his contribution to the international exchange of calligraphy by holding a number of international calligraphy exhibitions, especially in Korea.
The Beijing University Calligraphy Art Study Institute, one of the most prestigious universities in China, invited Yen Xin to become a deputy researcher at the institute, which is equivalent to deputy professor. In 2005, the Ministry of Culture invested a huge fund to open the China Cultural Center in Seoul and invited Xin to be its director. Many Korean calligraphers called on him at the center to learn the brush writing and the calligraphy class at the center has always been full.
Recently, he established the International Calligrapher's Association with the participation of calligraphers from Japan, Korea and China and he became its secretary-general.
The calligrapher is currently a deputy researcher at the Beijing University Calligraphic Art Institute, the secretary-general of the International Calligrapher's Association, a member of the China Calligraphers Association, director and calligraphy professor at the Seoul Chinese Embassy Chinese Cultural Center in Seoul, Xin also is a member of the operation committee of the Calligraphy Trends and the Grand Exhibition of Trendy Personnel, the editor of the Korean section of the China Calligraphy Collection, standing vice chairman and secretary-general of the Korea World Culture Art Development Center, and advisor for the Shicheng Calligraphy & Seal-Carving Society Singapore, and an advisor to the U.S. Nakisan Chinese Calligraphy Research Institute, among others. nw