Graphic Variations of Characters in the Japanese Writing Systems

Graphic Variations of Characters in the Japanese Writing Systems
Since ancient times, there exist many graphic variations in the writing systems of China and Japan. Very often the different styles of characters got official acknowledgment and imperial approval. The codification of the written characters in the Chinese Empire led to the establishment of five graphic writing systems which were also adopted by Japan with the introduction of Chinese characters. These graphic variations - seal script, clerical script, cursive script, semi-cursive script and regular script - continue to be still used today und have important significance in calligraphy, seals, artwork or advertisements. Beside these codified writing styles, there also exist numerous simplified graphic variants of characters or sometimes also semantic variants. Also, many scriptures and art objects bear signatures or are named by specialists to describe a particular aspect of the item in relation to religion, philosophy or other cultural assesses, leaving often much room for interpretation or identification. This situation becomes even more complicated as artists very often used various names and signatures during different periods of their life.
After an overview on graphic character variations and limitations used during different periods in Chinese and Japanese history, this presentation will analyse different aspects of the use of signatures and graphic characters in scriptures and on traditional art items, focusing on the characters 壽 and 樂 as a case study, to underline their significance from an esthetical and philosophical point of view.