筆法與身體經驗歷程──書法與身體美學初探

Strokes and the Trajectory of Bodily Experiences:Introduction to Calligraphy and Somaesthetics

「筆法」一詞指書法中運用毛筆書寫之法則，歷來視為書家孤詣或不傳之祕訣，能書與不能書亦以是否得「筆法」為判斷，後人觀書跡或徒心迷眼惑，羨其精采，不解書寫者之姿勢如何？動作如何？以何種紙筆等物質條件作之，而但觀墨跡變化之形質或覽其中文義之心境。茲請循其本，將「筆法」釋為：「毛筆書寫之運動原理」，由此運動原理之闡釋，回復身體書寫運動之獨特意涵，即書法為：「能思之主體，運用筆法，在獨特心理時間內，使所思外顯之行為。」書法作品為此行為或結合物質媒材運用之表現。透過對書寫文化、主體意識及身體經驗歷程在美學知識與實踐意義上之探討，進而對當代書法之傳承及論域之推衍，提供相關研究。

The term ''stroke'' refers to the rules which govern the movements of a brush. It has beenpointed out that strokes are expressive of either calligraphers' individual styles or theirnon-transferable skills. They provide a valid criterion for calligraphic writings. Those who marvel atthe art of calligraphy often delve into the nuances of inky strokes in terms of form and content. Whatmight be neglected are the postures and movements of calligraphers as well as the hard materials towrite with such as brushes and paper. In this paper, I ask for a return to the essential core ofcalligraphic writings. I'd like to re-examine the definition of ''strokes'' as ''principles about themovements of a brush.'' By re-examining the definition, I want to focus on the particularity ofcalligraphy as experiences of bodily movements. That is, calligraphy signifies the action of acalligrapher as the thinking subject who employs strokes to embody his/her mentality at a specificmoment of being.'' Calligraphy might refer to the art of handwriting that combines this action withhard materials. By examining the issues of handwriting culture, subjectivity, and bodily experiences inthe context of aesthetic knowledge and practices, I thus hope to provide contemporary discussionson calligraphy and its heritage with a possible approach.