ZHANG Daqian’ Inheritance and Development of Seal Cutting Art

ZHANG Daqian’s study of seal cutting did not come from a special teaching. He studied such art and made improvement in his association with his teachers and friends, and integrated the other people’s strengths into his own. In the end, the art with his unique style formed. His cutting was not confined to a specific school, but absorbed the essence of various masters of Ming and Qing Dynasties on the basis of learning Han seals and ancient royal seals. He was adept in surpassing the ancient people in studying them. His works showed the strong artistic personality on the basis of inheritance of the tradition and were not confined to ancient peoples’ standard. In addition, they showed strong innovative consciousness and self-aware- ness. His seal cutting was a representative in the Chinese cutting circle in the20th century.