Introduction to a Good Book —— Mustard Seed Garden

Many people want to learn Chinese painting, but they have no teachers around and have no time and energy to attend learning training classes. I suggest that friends who have hobbies in this field might as well start with mustard garden. This book is a classic textbook integrating traditional techniques, traditional painting composition and modern painting themes. It can be called Chinese painting education, especially suitable for beginners.

Mustard Seed Garden is divided into four volumes. Including trees, stones, figures, houses, plums, orchids, bamboos, chrysanthemums, flowers, grass feathers and other classic contents and techniques. This book is a collection of masterpieces and wisdom of famous painters in China during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, which is easy to understand and convincing. Very enlightening, very enlightening. It is an authoritative encyclopedia of reading and painting. It is also a special teaching material for Chinese painting education in major professional colleges across the country.

Over the years, under its enlightenment and edification, countless famous painters in China have been trained and brought up. Such as Huang, Qi Baishi, Pan Tianshou and Fu Baoshi. Famous painters in modern times used Mustard Seed Garden as a model for in-depth study at first.

A friend once asked me that I wanted to learn painting from scratch. Can I start with the mustard garden? This is a good question, which is why I want to recommend this book today. "Mustard Seed Garden" comprehensively and systematically introduces the basic techniques of Chinese painting, which is easy to understand. So it is very suitable for beginners to learn. It's just that Mustard Seed Garden has been published for more than 300 years, and there are many simplified versions. Which version does the reader buy best? In my opinion, it's quite a headache. Of course, I can afford to buy the Kangxi version, which has the best brushwork details, but it's not easy to buy. Compared with the current version, the lines of that year were more varied, the contrast was stronger and the composition was more compact. The overall feeling is more exquisite and delicate, and its lines are more skilled. The disadvantage is that due to the limitation of printing technology at that time, it can't show the effect of ink smudge, which is more like the feeling of printmaking. In addition, you can choose the color version published in Wu Peng. Fortunately, this version uses colored ink at the beginning of the exploded view, which is helpful for beginners to learn coloring skills. Because it is a modern printing version, its ink color, shade change, smudge effect and so on are clear at a glance, which is easier to understand and learn. It is also 16 open line type, which can be completely spread out and copied very conveniently. Secondly, the calligraphy font of the annotation text is also very unique, which makes the whole book more beautiful and practical. Of course, there is another advantage of buying this version, that is, it can be combined with the video learning of teacher Wu Peng on Youku, such as the method of using a pen, the control of speed and strength, the method of dipping in ink and so on. These are also important techniques that painting can't learn. It should be easier and more helpful for friends who study at home!

When I first learned painting, I also started from the mustard garden, so I had this profound experience. In real life, there are many friends who are good at drawing, but there are no suitable teachers around. So, you might as well start with Mustard Garden and study hard through your unremitting efforts. I believe you will gain something.