Communication plan structure:
Goal: To allow the target audience to have a better understanding on Chinese seals.
Target audience: Young Amateur in learning chinese painting
Medium: Photo guide book/info book
Message: Chinese seals are vital not only as a form of signature but also its role in being able bring the painting to life.
1.Brief introduction of Chinese seals
- In the past chinese seals created mainly for practical purpose.
- Act as a seal of approval for the people to enter in or out of the city.
- The emperor during the dynasty period of time, his seals was a very powerful tool. Once a document was stamped with the emperor's seal, it is considered valid. The design of the emperor's seal are usually very neat, rigid and formal. However, the artist during that time felt that the design was too boring, dull so they stylize the chinese seal and make it more artistic look.
- Associated with the design style of the monument. Monument is the carving of words on a stone. Usually it was left there for very long time, been through a lot climate changes which produced a very natural flaws of beauty. After that, people started to imitate this kind of approach, intentionally make the seals a bit flaw to achieve this kind of effect.
-Chinese seals are still in use even until today. China and Taiwan.
2. Materials used for chinese seals
-Usually is stone
Different kind of stone- 田黄，“鸡血”， 青田石， 寿山石。。
- Tian huang, most expensive stone, more valuable than gold because it is very Many collectors feel it is so precious that they don't want to carve anything on the stone.
- Ji xue, (chicken blood) not exactly the stone name but because the appearance of the stone has a bit reddish color makes it look like chicken blood. The types of stone are classify based on places.
- Besides stone, the bamboo's root which is very hard can be used to carve as well. The hardest part in the seeds of fruit can also be used for carving. After being dried under the sun, polish it and it can be carved. Jed is also been used but not very often as it is very hard.
3. The design of chinese seals
- Chinese seal carving is very exquisite. Not only the bottom part is used to carve, every part of the stone is carved with patterns too. The bottom part is mainly for stamping where as the other parts are merely decorations. Some elements like, poems, flora or fauna, the subject of chinese painting are also been carved on the stone.
-For example, a peach is carved as the decoration for the seal mainly for the elderly to wish them longevity.
4. The role of chinese seals in signature context.
2 types - bai wen and zhu wen
Bai wen - the character when it is stamped on the paper is in white
Zhu wen- the opposite
Like Yin and Yang, balance
When stamping on the painting, spacing is very important, not too enclose. Usually when stamping your name, this bai wen and zhu wen always come in pairs. It is either you stamp one type, or both types.
- The chinese seal is to be stamped after a poem not before and the stamp usually is smaller size than the characters of the poem.
- Chinese seals for name is separated into two parts, one is the surname and the other one is the name. Sometimes, the background of that person, where s/he was born can also be put into the seal design. If that person is a buddhist, s/he can also incorporate that in the seal design.
姓名章－ has neat and formal design, for signature purpose. stamp on the signature corner
闲章－ chinese idioms, poems, sentence, year, stamp either at the side or corner. Has many different weird shapes, round, rectangle, oval, pear-shape.
Chinese seals are not restricted as only the carving of words. Symbol can be carved as chinese seal as well.
Chinese seals not restricted to just artist. Some art collector can also use seal and stamp on the painting s/he has collected to certified that this own by me.
5. The role of chinese seals in terms of adding a crowning touch to the painting.
－ 清而美
－ 自然为师 ( local fruit design painting)
－一生好入名山游
－家在南洋之滨 （local fruit design painting)
－ 雪染
－ 异乡常客
6. Red ink paste
- has varieties of colors
-orange, orange reddish, red, dark red
- Depend on the situation. If you want to stamped on top of the chinese ink, brighter ink paste is more suitable.
- it is a mixture of powder and oil
- has blue an yellow. but not tat often used. blue is for the funeral occasion purpose.
- the yellow one usually is just to make it more visible on the rather dark chinese painting
Conclusion
Chinese seal - is not jus a signature. Every part of it, whether it is design, shapes, function, detail has its own purpose and reason, symbolic meaning. It has strong rationale behind.
-that makes it a very unique and exquisite form of art. Every part of it matters.
