1、Graphical GraftThe election of the chairperson， vice chairs and the council of the China Calligraphers Association （CCA） ， an event which rarely elicits much public interest， recently unleashed a nationwide storm of questioning， criticism and mockery. On December 7， 2015， the Seventh National Congre
2、ss of the CCA was held in Beijing， with its main aim being the election of a new chairperson. 14 vice chairs and 195 council members were also up for election. However， a couple of weeks before the poll， a list of candidates for the positions of chairperson and vice chairs was already circulating am
3、ong prominent collectors of contemporary Chinese calligraphy， who immediately began buying up the works of every name on the list. The election results vindicated their shopping spree. All those listed were duly elected， and the prices of their works immediately doubled. Although similar lists were
4、said to have circulated for some time， this one seemed to finally light the fuse on a powder keg of discontent and complaints. A number of CCA members and calligraphers such as Zeng Xiang， Qi Jiannan， Wang Haiquan and Feng Zhengming implied they would quit the association， shaking public faith in th
5、e credibility of this self-described “peoples professional non-government organization” made up of Chinas foremost calligraphers. Along with this scandal， more allegations of corruption within the association have bubbled to the surface， including fraud， membership trading and the use of calligraphy
6、 to bribe government officials. Two Photos As alleged evidence of the CCAs chaotic situation， two photos that have emerged online have been circulated widely. One is the ballot for the CCA leadership election， upon which electors can apparently only choose to abstain or vote against candidates. Any
7、ballot that doesnt include a vote against a candidate， therefore， becomes an automatic vote in favor of those listed. A mid-level cadre representing the CCA confirmed the authenticity of this image to NewsChina. “The result has actually been fixed before the vote， ” he told our reporter. The controv
8、ersy surrounding the latest CCA election process has dogged the fledgling premiership of new chairman Su Shishu. “Su is very senior in the CCA. But his calligraphy is not so convincing， ”a source within the CCA， who preferred to remain anonymous， told NewsChina. Su was born in Beijing in 1949， and s
9、tudied under famous calligra-phers Liu Boqin and Qi Gong. He formerly served as president of the Cultural Relics Publishing House under Chinas State Administration of Cultural Heritage， as well as vice chairman of the CCA and the head of its Seal Cutting Committee. Our anonymous CCA source told News
10、China that Sus skills as an engraver were “excellent， ” but that his calligraphy was more lackluster. A second image， the authenticity of which was also confirmed by our CCA source， is a work by Su Shishu. Completed in 2007， the work quotes a household phrase from The I Ching. However， Sus complemen
11、tary commentary， also visible in the image， mistakenly attributes the phrase to the Zhuangzi， a Taoist classic by philosopher Chuang Tzu. Sus questionable “knowledge” of ancient Chinese culture， as well as his skills as a calligrapher， has made him the target of mockery on the Internet. Moreover， Su
12、s ability to lead the CCA has also been called into question. In the view of many of his opponents， Su is seen as a “good guy， ” but not a capable one. “Su is not able to lead reform of the CCA， ” another anonymous source from the CCA told NewsChina. According to the same source， Su has not appeared
13、 at work once since being elected on December 7， 2015. “Hes just an image and a symbol. He participated in no real work， ” the source added. Serving on the general council of the CCA is also lucrative for those elected. Not only will the market price of a council members work rise sharply upon elect
14、ion， the position typically comes with nominations to the presidencies of lower-level calligraphy associations around the country， giving council members further opportunities to enrich themselves. During the latest election process， a government official and part time calligrapher also got his name
15、 on the candidate list for council members. Only a boycott by other CCA members， who called his artistic credentials into question， drove him off the ballot. Price The CCA was not always dogged by scandal. Its founding in 1981 was hailed as an inspiration to not only calligraphers in China but all a
16、dmirers of traditional Chinese arts. For a long time after the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949， calligraphy， other than that penned by Communist leaders on revolutionary topics， was seen as a feudal art form to be squashed. The first major summit of classical calligraphers on the C
17、hinese mainland， the “Chinese Calligraphy Congress， ” was held in 1978， the year the Communist Party launched its policy of Reform and Opening-up. However， given the social and political resources commanded by“peoples organizations” in China， the potential and influence of the CCA were soon realized
18、 by those in the calligraphy industry. Membership could automatically bestow both fame and wealth. For some calligraphers with political interests， it could also facilitate bribery. One famous example of a government official exchanging calligraphy for favors occurred in the late 1990s. After becomi
19、ng a CCA member and then getting elected to its council， former deputy governor of Jiangxi Province Hu Changqing started selling his calligraphy. Average prices for his works usually fell within the range of 3，000 to 6，000 yuan （US$361-722 at the time） . However， one piece was recorded as selling fo
20、r 90，000 yuan （US$10，800）. Hu was later arrested for corruption， and ultimately found guilty of taking bribes worth some 5.5 million yuan （US$663，000）. He went on to become the first deputy provincial governor to be executed for corruption since 1949. Another famous case involved Chen Shaoji， former
21、 chairman of Guangdongs Peoples Political Consultative Committee， who spent 10 million yuan （US$1.33m then） to be nominated as chairman of Guangdongs provincial calligraphy association. Chen was arrested for corruption in 2009， and was sentenced to death with reprieve. Becoming a CCA member does not
22、， according to insiders， come cheap. According to one source， potential candidates need recommendations from two current members， two published theoretical essays on calligraphy and two “awards of excellence” in national-level calligraphy competitions. Still， certain relationships are often needed t
23、o secure a nomination. The same source told NewsChina that a 20-something “calligrapher” from northeast China recently became a CCA member. “I asked him what relationships he used and how much he spent， and he told me he spent 60，000 yuan （US$9，500） ， ”the source told our reporter. When the CCA was
24、first founded， it was run by a single secretariat. Yet rapid expansion has seen the organization outgrow its administrative departments， with a current total of eight professional committees covering different schools of calligraphy， and nine work committees in charge of education， publishing and bu
25、siness development. Each committee has its own director， secretary-general and membership of around 40 people. A mid-level cadre in the CCA told NewsChina that the level of efficiency in terms of coordination between these multiple departments and committees was very low. “The benefit is that there
26、are more posts for more people， ” he said. The CCAs membership has also increased sharply. “The CCA currently has about 12，000 members， ” said one insider. The result has been that the supply of members works has outstripped market demand. “Now， except for those of the leadership， its difficult for
27、members works to sell at a good price， ” the same source told our reporter. Discontent towards the CCA has been mounting in past years， with voices among Chinas online commentariat frequently calling for its disbandment. Even some CCA members admit that the association can no longer represent the pi
28、nnacle of Chinese calligraphy?C many outstanding calligraphers have declined to join， or have never been nominated. But still， some are optimistic about the organizations future. A mid-level cadre told NewsChina that the CCA is trying to reform. He held up the skills test required for membership as
29、an example of this. In the past， candidates didnt have to be present for the examination， a peculiarity that led to cheating. Now， since the presence of candidate calligraphers is required， “many give up， ” the source said. “The pursuit of art is something that comes from deep in ones heart， ” the anonymous cadre continued. “No matter if its in the CCA or in the wider world of calligraphy， opportunists are always in the minority.”
