阎乃恒Yan Naiheng

Yan Naiheng, also known as Yinong and Jiulongshan Ren. Born in Boshan District, Shandong Province in 1950, he is a member of the Communist Party of China, a national first-class calligrapher, and a member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association (joined in 2012). Graduated from the Journalism College of Hainan Enterprise Diplomacy College in 1990, and participated in the Senior Class of the Chinese Calligraphers Association in the same year. I am currently an artist specially awarded as a State Guest by the State Council, an advanced worker in poetry, calligraphy, and painting in China, an outstanding cultural talent in Shandong Province, the Vice Chairman of the Calligraphy Creation Expert Committee of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Painting, a member of the China Press and Publication Calligraphers Association, and a member of the Hong Kong Chinese Calligraphers Association.

 

In 2018, participated in the "Fine Works of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Artists" exhibition at the Louvre Museum in France, and won the highest honor award from the Louvre Museum in France, as well as the highest artistic honor medal awarded by the Louvre Museum in France. I am currently a guest professor on the "Art Inheritance" program of CCTV, a contracted artist on the CCTV Calligraphy and Painting Channel, awarded the title of "Model of the Times, Ambassador of Cultural and Artistic Inheritance" by CCTV, and named a "Star of China" by "China Book and Pictorial". In recent years, I have participated in numerous domestic and international calligraphy and painting exhibitions and have won numerous awards. In 2010, he attended the "Second National Model Figures Conference" held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing and was received and photographed by leaders such as He Luli, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Wang Wenyuan, Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and Minister Gao Zhanxiang of the Ministry of Culture. The work has been included in over twenty collections, including the "Chinese Lishu Encyclopedia" and the "Collection of Chinese Calligraphers' Classics".

 

Yan Naiheng's calligraphy works are mostly known for clerical script, with diverse variations and simple and heavy fonts, combining traditional elements with personal style. His works are highly welcomed by all sectors of society. For over 20 years, more than 6000 calligraphy works from various sectors of society have been given away for free, and over 20 calligraphy works have been donated to earthquake stricken and impoverished areas. The calligraphy works were auctioned off at the Hong Kong International Trade and Exhibition Centre on November 8, 2013, during the "Welcoming the Ten Successful Manned Spaceflights" calligraphy and painting exhibition. The four foot pair "emerged" and the auction price was 6900 yuan. All of this money was donated to Hope Primary School and awarded the titles of "Love Artist" and "Love Ambassador" by relevant departments.

      

Honors obtained in the field of calligraphy and painting

In 2009, he won the "Five Ones" Famous Artists Project Award in the Chinese calligraphy and painting industry.

In 2010, he was awarded the title of "Top Talent in the Art World".

In 2010, attended the Second Era Model Heroes Representative Conference held at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Received an audience and took a group photo with He Luli, then Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Wang Wenyuan, Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and Minister Gao Zhanxiang of the Ministry of Culture.

In 2011, the Department of Culture of Shandong Province awarded the title of "Outstanding Cultural Talent of Shandong Province".

In 2009, he was awarded the title of "Love Ambassador for Cross Strait Cultural Exchange" by the Calligraphy and Painting Center of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

In 2010, he won the title of "National exemplary individual in Poetry, Calligraphy and Painting".

In 2013, he was awarded the title of "Special Artist for State Guest Gifts" by the State Council.

In 2013, he was awarded the title of "Charity Ambassador".

In 2018, he was awarded the highest honor of the Louvre Museum in France, the Order of the Arts.

In 2022, he was awarded as a guest professor in the "Art Inheritance" program of CCTV.

In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Forbidden City in 2025, he was awarded the title of "Cultural Core Figure".

 

In 2025, he was awarded the title of "Model of the Times, Ambassador of Cultural and Artistic Inheritance" by CCTV.
 

Emotions can be seen in the brush and ink

——A Glimpse into Yan Naiheng's Calligraphy Art

 

Huang Jinliang (Editor in Chief of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Guide)

 

Yan Naiheng's calligraphy art is a dialogue of brush and ink that transcends ancient and modern times. He calmly wanders between the grandeur of the stele and the agility of the calligraphy, interpreting the contemporary spirit of traditional calligraphy through diverse calligraphic styles. His clerical script creation is the most recognizable, using Han steles but not ancient mud. Using a pen that is as heavy as a collapsing cloud and as light as a cicada's wing "(Wang Xizhi's" Book Theory "), the lines are thick and full of tension, and the structure seeks change in a square shape, blending the ancient atmosphere of Hanli with one's own understanding of poetry. Like the clerical script work 'Joyful Rain on a Spring Night', each character seems to be soaked in the nourishment of spring rain, exuding vitality in its heaviness. The artistic conception of 'infiltrating the night with the wind, moistening things silently' is concretized through the form of brush and ink, allowing viewers to feel the dual charm of poetry and calligraphy between the ups and downs of strokes.

 

His seal script works demonstrate a delicate grasp of the texture of seal script lines, with strokes as round and vigorous as "jade chopsticks", and a stable yet dynamic structure, reflecting the classical aesthetic pursuit of "seal script is gentle and smooth" (Sun Guoting's "Shupu"). In the writing of individual characters, he creates a peaceful and far-reaching atmosphere, giving people a clear visual and spiritual experience. In the work 'Do as you please, indifferent to fame and fortune', the strokes are strong and powerful, and the structure is dignified. It is not only rigorous in technique, but also implies the rustic atmosphere of stele learning, conveying the open-minded state of mind of 'do as you please' and the value pursuit of 'indifferent to fame and fortune' through rigorous yet dynamic forms.

 

Yan Naiheng's calligraphy has always been rooted in tradition, forming its own style and language through the nourishment of inscriptions. His creations are not only the artistic shaping of Chinese character forms, but also the inheritance and expression of the spirit of traditional Chinese culture. He reveals his temperament through his brush and ink, and seeks the true flavor in his inscriptions, showcasing unique artistic value and cultural connotations in the contemporary calligraphy world.