Question about layout of characters in a scroll

[Observer]

I would be very grateful if anyone could help me to understand the reasons for the layout of the characters in this scroll (see attached image, where I have deleted the three characters of the Chinese version of my name)

 

This scroll was presented to me back in 1998, it was the work of a calligrapher in Tianjin, whom I met at the time when he already well into his 80s. As far as I know he was very well known within the world of calligraphy. 

 

My question is about the way in which the sentence " 我門的友誼地久天長 " is set out. I assume that someone of his ability would pay very close attention to the presentation of the characters on the scroll, and I have always wondered why he chose to split the sentence as he did. Logically (at least to my eyes), he would have shown " 地久天長 " separately, can anyone shed any light on why, from an artistic or semantic point of view, he took this unusual approach ?

 

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

[Altair]

I am neither an artist or a calligrapher, but I might guess that visual proportion may have trumped linguistic groupings.  As is, the second line has three characters versus the six characters in the first line, which yields some clear visual proportion.  Your proposal would have left a visually less balanced four characters in the second line versus five in the first.  Also, taken as a whole, the blocks of letters outline the page like a gate, with a flow of full and empty, rather than filling the page with a near-uniform, but imperfectly balanced mass of characters.

[Observer]

@Altair: thanks for your ideas. I was thinking that there was maybe some extra meaning that the calligrapher was trying to communicate by splitting the sentence, but as you say it may have been entirely for aesthetic reasons. Interesting......

[lips]

Classic Chinese calligraphy is written in a continuous fashion, without punctuation, nor breaks between sentences. even classical Chinese poems werewritten this way.

[Observer]

Ah, I understand.....thanks for your feedback, very helpful. Just for my interest, what do you think of the quality of the calligraphy?

[lips]

It's very good kaishu 楷書。The "written by xxxx" is 草書or 行草。

 

Chinese calligraphy is not only about writing individual characters, the layout of the whole scroll, the relative size of the main text, the post-text 下款，the styles used, the distribution of white spaces are all important.  The whole is important, like a painting.  The shape of the scroll, the number of characters in the main text, the number of characters in the post-text, the white space, the style of characters, together determine the size of each character in the main text, and thus where the line break occurs.

[Observer]

Thanks for your interesting and helpful reply (especially as regards the different styles he used). I keep meaning to learn more about calligraphy, but I never seem to have time.

This was a very special gift, since Mr Li had more or less given up calligraphy due to his age, but he produced this as a favour to two of my friends, who wanted to give me a special gift. He was a wonderful old gentleman who suffered horribly during the Cultural Revolution.

[lips]

An older gentleman - that's why it's in traditional script.  The calligraphy shows many years of expertise.

 

BTW, the part with your name and "respectfully gifted by xxx/yyy" is in xingshu 行書 or more specific, 行楷。

[Observer]

Thanks, I am pleased to read your opinion and comments.

The master's name was 李鹤年, he was well into his 80s when I met him in 1997/1998 and he passed away not long after.

[lips]

He's a famous calligrapher. I'm envious.

[Observer]

I'm interested and pleased to know that you have heard of him. It was a friend/work colleague of mine who was an amateur calligrapher and had studied under him who introduced us. I only ever saw him at his apartment in Tianjin, I have a feeling that he didn't go out any more, but he was still very alert. I am very proud of the scroll.