Philip Heckscher
Works
About the artist
Ink Mountains
At the age of nine, this artist began to write Chinese characters. He had to make them up, as he had no instruction in Chinese language or writing. The inventive, evocative, imaginary “characters” succeeded each other, column after column, in his school essay books, which he had turned sideways. This was the beginning of a life-long devotion to the art of Chinese calligraphy.
Philip subsequently studied with several Chinese calligraphy artists. Henry Kong in San Francisco in 1976-78 taught him basic techniques and aesthetics. In Shanghai, Liu Zengfu accepted him as his student, refining and enlarging his practice during several years in the late 1990s. And Professor Wang Dongling of the National School of Art in Hangzhou has provided inspiration and encouragement over the years.
Philip uses traditional materials— ink, ink stone, rice paper and Chinese brush— to write characters for display and appreciation. He gets his subjects from many sources: from prose and poetry translations, auction catalogues, examples of ancient masters in copy books and rubbings, street graffiti, tattoos, and fellow calligraphers.
Sometimes it’s the meaning of the characters that appeal to him, and he tries to find the appropriate calligraphic style to transcribe and express it. Sometimes he sees the characters as abstract shapes, charged with energy, rhythm and contrast. Brush and ink can then be used very freely, and the calligrapher expresses himself, too.
Philip has exhibited his calligraphy in New York City at the Century Association and in Chinatown, and in Beijing at the 2013 Beijing International Calligraphy Invitational Exhibit. His work has also appeared at the College of the Atlantic’s Blum Gallery in Bar Harbor, Maine, and at the Reveredo Gallery in Natal, Brazil. He shows regularly at the Artemis Gallery in Northeast Harbor, Maine.
Philip taught a studio course in Chinese calligraphy at the College of the Atlantic from 2011 to 2017. He has taught or demonstrated at a variety of schools and galleries, including the Zen Center in San Francisco, Fudan University in Shanghai, the Open Center in Soho (NYC) and St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire.
Philip is a board member of the North America Chinese Calligraphy Association. His home and studio are on Mt Desert Island, Maine.
Philip subsequently studied with several Chinese calligraphy artists. Henry Kong in San Francisco in 1976-78 taught him basic techniques and aesthetics. In Shanghai, Liu Zengfu accepted him as his student, refining and enlarging his practice during several years in the late 1990s. And Professor Wang Dongling of the National School of Art in Hangzhou has provided inspiration and encouragement over the years.
Philip uses traditional materials— ink, ink stone, rice paper and Chinese brush— to write characters for display and appreciation. He gets his subjects from many sources: from prose and poetry translations, auction catalogues, examples of ancient masters in copy books and rubbings, street graffiti, tattoos, and fellow calligraphers.
Sometimes it’s the meaning of the characters that appeal to him, and he tries to find the appropriate calligraphic style to transcribe and express it. Sometimes he sees the characters as abstract shapes, charged with energy, rhythm and contrast. Brush and ink can then be used very freely, and the calligrapher expresses himself, too.
Philip has exhibited his calligraphy in New York City at the Century Association and in Chinatown, and in Beijing at the 2013 Beijing International Calligraphy Invitational Exhibit. His work has also appeared at the College of the Atlantic’s Blum Gallery in Bar Harbor, Maine, and at the Reveredo Gallery in Natal, Brazil. He shows regularly at the Artemis Gallery in Northeast Harbor, Maine.
Philip taught a studio course in Chinese calligraphy at the College of the Atlantic from 2011 to 2017. He has taught or demonstrated at a variety of schools and galleries, including the Zen Center in San Francisco, Fudan University in Shanghai, the Open Center in Soho (NYC) and St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire.
Philip is a board member of the North America Chinese Calligraphy Association. His home and studio are on Mt Desert Island, Maine.