Contemporary museum of calligraphy was opened in Moscow

Moscow now has a calligraphy museum. Its exposition presents written masterpieces of Slavonic, west European and oriental calligraphy, as well as calligraphy pictures and rare manuscripts. On a separate stand one may see old writing utensils, feathers and brushes. Now there are around a hundred exhibits in the museum, but in the beginning of the autumn the exposition will be broadened. By that time the Museum will added by a handwritten Constitution of the Russian Federation. Details by the “Culture news”.

Very soon a member of the Chinese scientific union of paired signs master Chen Wen-Fu will teach calligraphy in Russia. In the autumn we expect the opening of the first calligraphy school in Russia where everyone can study how to write correctly and beautifully. The most darted students will perhaps be able to imitate the autographs of the Chinese emperors of the 17 century.  

His first lesson master Chen Wen-Fu started with the words: “ Calligraphy is the state of soul. Relax, clear your thoughts and then start writing. Don’t hurry”.

In half an hour mister Chen wrote an ancient Chinese aphorism “A lazy man will not cognize the universe, because he is lazy in calligraphy”. Chen Wen-Fu complains: “Chinese people are becoming lazy. Using their computers they forgot how to write with a ballpoint pen, not to speak about a calligraphic bush!”. 

”Simple writing will make the brains simple”, - thinks Petr Chobitko, acting assistant professor at the chairs of book and easel graphics of the St.Petersburg artistic-industrial academy n.a. Mukhina. Petr Chobitko is one of the few artists who publicizes calligraphy in Russia. 

Some years ago Mr. Chobitko opened the first in Russia calligraphy school, and he is now sure that calligraphy is the art for everyone. Recently he wrote a book where he told about how calligraphy helps us live better.

Petr Chobitko: “Just 15 minutes of doing calligraphy restores blood pressure and mind. Calligraphy today is a “panacea for all woes”, because a man can’t live without calligraphy. I myself have been doing calligraphy for about forty years”.

Though calligraphy in Russia was born in the “prepress” period, it flowered in 1600-s. Peter the Great was a man of vertu and he made his clerks to write laws and orders in a calligraphic style. By the way, Voltaire wrote letters to Catherine the Great in a very neat way.

Petr Chobitko: “When I first saw the notes by Mozart, I thought they were almost like calligraphy signs. He wrote not printed music, but calligraphy”.

This is how the artist saw Mozart’s music, and also the verses by Pushkin. A written alphabet reminds of a big picturesque canvas. Of course, calligraphy has not only aesthetic and therapeutic meaning. This finger-tip gymnastic educates the brain, fantasy and image thinking, but – what is most important – it preserves the link of time. In his book Petr Chobitko proved that calligraphy is a basis for any culture. He says the computer era has turned out to be a disaster, as writing has become substituted. He is sad: “What art or culture are talking about in this country? Anyway, when the Museum opened we found many contemporary calligraphy works”.

Alexey Shaburov, Director of the Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy: “We called for the masters and they use the “word of mouth”. That’s how we collected so many calligraphy masterpieces from allover the world”.

Now calligraphy is very popular in Arab countries, and in the East it was long ago called the Art. In China they teach calligraphy in schools, and in Japan even in the universities. In the East calligraphy ranges with the martial arts as a means for spirit stimulation. And as it turned out Russia strives to give its “national writing” back.

Source: “Kultura” channel

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