The paper that we used for practicing Chinese calligraphy and painting is called 宣纸xuānzhǐ (Chinese art paper), which produced in Xuān city in Ānhuī province. With unique texture, different color levels of the ink can be clearly shown on Xuānzhǐ if we write with ink and water. Xuānzhǐ is made of Green wingceltis skin, and rarely attracts insects, so it can be kept for a long time. That’s why xuānzhǐ is also called long-life paper. According to the way of processing xuānzhǐ, we divided xuānzhǐ into tree types : 生宣shēngxuān (unprocessed), 熟宣shúxuān (processed) and半生熟bànshēngshú (half processed) .
What's the difference between this 3 types of paper ?
(1)Shēngxuān 生宣 unprocessed
Shēngxuān absorbs water easily, so it’s not easy to manage. It’s mostly used to paint freehand landscape Chinese paintings, which focus more on the artistic conception of the painter.
(2)Shúxuān 熟宣 processed
Shúxuān is Shēngxuān processed with alum, coloring, gold powder, stamping, wax, mica powder and etc. It can also be made with egg white or soybean milk. Ink and water are not easy to spread on Shúxuān, so it’s suitable for writing small calligraphy characters or painting traditional Chinese realistic paintings.
(3) Bànshēngshú (half processed)
Bànshēngshú is a half processed paper from Shēngxuān, which the Water absorption is between Shēngxuān and Shúxuān. Bànshēngshú is an appropriate paper for many types of Chinese painting and calligraphy artistic creation.
What’s the difference between handmade and machine paper?
I will always suggest you to use handmade paper, though machine paper normally is much cheaper. Because to show the rich levels of ink is very important in Chinese calligraphy and painting, and a machine paper can’t do it. Then how can we identify which one is handmade and which one is machine paper?
Good quality paper will be with the nearly same texture on both sides, while a low quality paper will be with one side rough and the other side smooth. There is no strict rule for which side should we write on.
What pater is suitable for beginners?
For practicing Chinese calligraphy, 毛边纸máobiānzhǐ，a type of writing paper made from bamboo will be suggested. The texture of máobiānzhǐ is quite neutral and easy to be controlled by beginners.
For Chinese painting, it depends on what kinds of painting you’re learning. If you’re learning Chinese realistic paintings, shúxuān (processed paper) will be suggested. If you’re learning freehand Chinese paintings, bànshēngshú (half processed) will be more appropriate.
There are many other types of Chinese art papers, and broadly speaking there is no strict rules for using Chinese art papers. All we need to do is just to try different types of paper, and find your favorite one.
Note
Last but not least, it’s not easy to find good quality Chinese calligraphy and painting papers in foreign countries. Even in China, we’ll have to try different textures in person to finally get the proper paper. In addition, the price of good quality xuan papers should not be less than 200 us dollar per portion (100 pieces). Just buy and try, hope you can find your appropriate soon.
