At the beginning of August we had lively shodō calligraphy groups where we brushed Seiki 正氣 (True energy, or true character) from the inspirational poem 正氣歌 Seiki no uta (The Song of True Energy, or Song of Integrity). We looked at the visual background of… Read More »Brushing from the Song of True Energy
We enjoyed a meditative class this month at our regular shodо̄ calligraphy groups at Woodside library where we brushed the two kanji characters Ryūsui 流水 (flowing water) from the Zen phrase Moving clouds, flowing water 行雲流水, inspired by nature and 禅林 Zenrin Calligraphy (Zen calligraphy).… Read More »Brushing Flowing Water at Shodō Calligraphy
Inspired by nature and 禅林 Zenrin Calligraphy (Zen calligraphy), we brushed Moving Clouds Kōun 行雲 from the Zen phrase Moving clouds, flowing water 行雲流水 ✨ Blair talked a little about the origins, visual background and structure of these two common kanji characters before we began… Read More »Calligraphic Moving Clouds at Shodō Calligraphy
In April as the lighter days brought new growth we had Spring themed calligraphy at both our online class, and also at the ornate Elder Park Library during the Easter weekend. We practiced shunkо̄ 春光, which means Spring light. After learning about the various styles and… Read More »Brushing Rays of Spring Light
In March at our monthly shodō groups, at the spacious Woodside Library as well as at our friendly online class, we brushed the characters 楽道 rakudō which means easeful way, or joyful path. Individually the characters are commonly brushed in Japanese shodō calligraphy, and together are… Read More »Settling Down into the Joyful Path of Shodō Calligraphy
In March we led two workshops introducing and exploring the esteemed calligraphic style, brush techniques and history behind the flowing kana 仮名 scripts and deep poetic themes of waka 和歌 (meaning Japanese poems). These events were held in the Glasgow area of Scotland, and were… Read More »Japanese 和歌 Waka Events: Materiality and Movement in Heian Period Poetry
At our first classes after the new year we brushed the characters manpuku 萬福, meaning many blessings (or full fortune/happiness)✨ The characters used individually are common brushed in shodō schools. As well as being celebratory, brushed together they also have relevance in Japanese Zen (and… Read More »New Year Themed Shodō Calligraphy
Inspired by Blair’s first calligraphy teacher Wakabayashi Shujō, at our December classes at Woodside Library we worked with an 干支 eto (Japanese zodiac) shodō calligraphy theme brushing uma 午 horse, to prepare for celebrating the new year ✨Even into his late eighties Wakabayashi Shujō worked… Read More »Japanese Zodiac Calligraphy for the Year of the Horse
In November at our monthly shodō groups, at the delightful Woodside Library as well as at our online class, we brushed the Japanese characters 洗心 senshin, meaning purifying the heart or mind, (and the kanji also relating to Blair’s calligraphy training in Tokyo which he… Read More »Purifying the Heart and Mind in Brush Calligraphy
This year we enjoyed a long afternoon at the bright and leafy Woodlands Meeting Room, brushing copies of the work of shodō masters, stretching over 1200 years of inspiring examples. At this annual masterclass we worked on six characters of the Senjimon 千字文 Thousand Character… Read More »Shodō Masterclass Exploring the 千字文 Thousand Character Classic