Character Development

I met Gong Zhen Shan at a park near the China Art museum. He was writing Chinese characters with water on the walkway of the park. Using a long stick with a foam brush on the end he created beautiful characters. When I walked up with a friend he was writing a message that translated roughly to peace for the four seasons. I started to photograph him at work and he asked where I was from. When he found out I was American (Meguo ren), he wrote a message that said welcome to my American friend. I have learned how to ask for names Ni jiao shenma? He wrote it in Pinyan cursive. He asked my name and my friend told him my Chinese name which is Mai Bao Fu. Which means Wheat, Treasure, Blessing. They often try to find a name that sounds like your English name. Michael (Mai) Paul (Bau) Franklin (Fu). Older Chinese people really seem to like that name because it is a prosperous name.  He wrote the characters so I could see how my name looks. He then offered me the brush and asks me to try. I told him I haven’t written characters before but he is insistent. I try to copy his strokes and a passer by reads them as I write. Mai Bao Fu. Mine don’t look anywhere as nice as his but his smile tells me that he is pleased that I tried. He then wrote Fu once more very large. He gestured in a way that said big. I asked my friend what he was saying and she told me he was wishing me great blessings.

Characters are very important in China, not just because they are the basis for the language but they say a lot about the history and culture of China. Whey they are written by a true artist like Mr. Gong, they say a lot about life. There is a respect for each stroke. They are beautiful and meaningful. There is a scene in the Chinese movie Hero where the Nameless character asks Broken Sword to write the character for sword. By the way he writes the character, Nameless will know how to defeat him. The scene shows Broken Sword writing a huge character and it is like a dance with the brush and paint.

I was struck by how precise Mr. Gong was with each stroke performed in the exact order prescribed by custom. But even in that precision, there is art and interpretation that is from his own hand. It is obvious that he has written each character thousands of times in his life every time trying to make them more perfect. Writing his messages on the ground with water makes them alive. They are born from his hand,  there for the universe to see and they fade away but leave a mark on a visitor, a stranger to him but one who is grateful for the chance to meet an artist and share even a few moments in peace and understanding. I am always reminded that in China, you never know what the day will bring. I am completely connected every day. Something I had lost a little in the U.S. Maybe China was what I needed to take me out of my comfort zone and into a rediscovery of who I am.  When we discover something, the first thing we do is give it a name. I was given my Chinese name by co-workers. It was nice but didn’t feel real until I saw Gong Zhen Shan write it in his way. 

Gong Zhen Shan

Character for Peace.

My Chinese name in Characters.

You try!. Photo by Liu Zhe

Photo by Liu Zhe

The master on top, my feeble attempt at the bottom. Ok so I need a lot of practice.