画家落款 - Inscription on Paintings

 

“元以前多不用款， 或隐之石隙，恐书不精，有伤画局耳，至倪云林字法遒逸，或诗 尾用跋，或跋后系诗，文衡山行款清整，沈石田笔法洒落，徐文 长诗歌奇横，陈白阳题志精卓，每侵画位，翻多奇趣。”清代王概《芥子园画传》

"In earlier times, before the Yuan dynasty, artists seldom inscribed their works. Some hid their signatures in the crevices of rocks, fearing that unskillful calligraphy might spoil the painting. It was Ni Yunlin (Ni Zan) who introduced elegant and vigorous inscriptions—sometimes adding a colophon after a poem, or appending a poem following a colophon. Wen Hengshan (Wen Zhengming) arranged his inscriptions with clarity and precision, while Shen Shitian (Shen Zhou) brushed his words with a free and spontaneous touch. Xu Wenchang (Xu Wei) composed poems in an unconventional and bold manner, and Chen Baiyang (Chen Chun) inscribed with exceptional refinement, often encroaching upon the painting’s composition, yet enhancing it with unexpected charm."

*Quoted and translated from The Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting (Jieziyuan Huazhuan) by Wang Gai of the Qing Dynasty