Painting Formulas

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

3.2

Word count: 1.2K words
Chapters: 2

Summary

In painting, the first step is to establish heaven and earth within the composition. What does this mean? It means that on a sheet one and a half chi square, space must be left at the top for heaven and at the bottom for earth, and only then can the central area be used to settle the idea and fix the scene. One sees many beginners today who, once seated at the desk and with brush in hand, rashly settle their idea and daub away according to momentary feeling until the whole sheet is filled. Looking at it, the eye is blocked and one's mind is already displeased—how then could such a work win admiration for its free elegance or reveal true feeling through lofty grandeur?

Editor's review

Although "Huajue" (Principles of Painting) has come down to us as an anonymous work, it is a remarkably accomplished short essay in the classical discourse on painting. Its core lies not in listing techniques but in the fundamental Chinese painting proposition of "managing placement": on a sheet one and a half chi square, one must first establish the positions of heaven and earth, and only then settle the idea and fix the scene in the middle. On the surface this passage discusses composition, but in fact it addresses creative attitude—it opposes beginners who rashly put brush to paper at the desk, daub according to momentary feeling, and fill the whole sheet, and it advocates having an overall structure and an awareness of blank space before beginning. Published in an edited edition by Bashu Press in 2024, it is concise and forceful, well suited as a "first taste" introduction to painting theory. When reading, one may compare it with "managing placement" among Xie He's "Six Principles" and with Da Chongguang's "Huajian" (Painting Pole) to better appreciate the ancients' characteristic of saying much with few words when discussing painting. It does not teach specific brushwork, yet it exposes a common failing among many painting students: rushing to put brush to paper, stuffing the page full, and failing to achieve coherent spirit resonance. For people today learning Chinese painting, studying composition, or even doing visual design, it has value as a reminder. The language is classical and elegant; it should be read slowly and savored, not treated as a quick technique manual.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Enthusiasts beginning Chinese painting who want to supplement traditional ideas of composition
Those studying visual design and photographic composition who wish to draw on classical painting theory
Readers of literature and history interested in ancient painting theory and painting and calligraphy documents
Teachers of Chinese painting, who may use it as classroom quotation and discussion material

Not a good fit for

Pure technique learners seeking specific brushwork steps and copybook models
Beginners unaccustomed to classical short essays who need systematic textbook-style explanation
Art practitioners who only want to quickly master painting software operations

Reading tips

Read the original text two or three times first, then go through it sentence by sentence with annotations to understand precisely what "the positions of heaven and earth" refers to.
While reading, take a sheet of paper and sketch out blank space and the placement of the main subject, turning the text into a composition exercise.
Read it alongside the "managing placement" entry in the "Six Principles" and make brief notes comparing the similarities and differences between the two accounts.
After each passage, reflect on whether you settled the idea and fixed the scene before putting brush to paper, then look back at old work to verify.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
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FAQ

Does this book teach specific painting techniques?

No. It is closer to a short essay on painting theory about managing composition and creative attitude, emphasizing that before putting brush to paper one should first establish the positions of heaven and earth and settle the idea and scene in the middle, and opposing filling the whole sheet. To learn specific brush and ink technique, one needs separate technique books.

Can I understand it without a foundation in classical Chinese?

The original text is not long, but its wording is classical and elegant. It is advisable first to look at the annotations and vernacular explanations in the edited edition, then return to the original; there is no need to puzzle over every character—grasping the main line of "leaving heaven above and earth below, settling the idea in the middle" is enough to begin.

Why is the author marked as anonymous?

This piece circulated anonymously, and its specific authorship is not conclusively established in extant materials. It should be treated as a short essay within traditional painting theory, with attention to the views themselves rather than the author's life.

Is reading it helpful for modern design?

It helps indirectly. It discusses the overall arrangement of solid and empty areas and positions in a picture, which connects with blank space, visual focus, and information hierarchy in layout design. But it does not provide modern design standards; readers must adapt it themselves.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.