As artificial intelligence increasingly handles writing tasks, transforming humans from writers into editors of machine-generated content, traditional Chinese calligraphy is emerging as a powerful antidote to digital disconnection. This ancient art form, which values both inked strokes and empty spaces equally, offers a path to creative freedom and deeper self-expression in an age dominated by automated content generation.
Most people today struggle to remember the last time they wrote anything substantial by hand, as digital devices appear more convenient and efficient. However, research demonstrates that the complex motor skills and visual processing required for handwriting stimulate more extensive brain activity than typing. The tools we use and our daily writing habits significantly influence our thinking and creativity, suggesting we should reconsider the importance of hands-on methods for expressing ourselves and generating new ideas.
Chinese calligraphy, one of the oldest handwriting practices still in use today, enables self-expression through skillful use of brushstrokes and composition. For centuries, this art form has been shaped by cultural, philosophical, and artistic concepts, establishing itself as one of the most significant forms of traditional and modern art in China. More importantly, it has served as a prominent medium for daily cultivation of the human mind and character.
The basic tools of Chinese calligraphy include a soft brush, Xuan paper traditionally made from tree bark and rice straw, and ink. However, true artists argue that good calligraphy cannot be accomplished without a clear mind, sincerity, humility, and self-restraint. This multi-sensory experience fosters a deeper connection with the writer's insights, emotions, and surroundings, requiring practitioners to slow down and engage in patient introspection.
As generative AI takes over more writing responsibilities, there's a growing risk of humans becoming disconnected from their own creative ideas. While AI-generated text quality may often be sufficient, the writing process differs significantly from traditional methods. American historian Timothy Snyder argued in his book "On Tyranny" that poor use of words makes us more susceptible to manipulation and suppression, highlighting the importance of maintaining our connection to language.
Writers like Nicholas Carr and Aden Evens have drawn attention to the ongoing rewiring of our minds caused by excessive online time. They claim that while technology can enhance certain skills, it may also alter fundamental aspects of our thinking, behavior, and relationships. Constant engagement with technology can diminish attention spans and deep-reading abilities, leading to superficial information processing. Artist and author James Bridle warns that tech-dependency and over-reliance on automated systems can blind us to bias, simplification, and bad data generated by machines.
Through deep concentration and focus on the present moment, calligraphy allows practitioners to let go of distractions and cultivate inner peace. Writing with a brush requires attentiveness to posture and movements, grounding the calligrapher's body in the physical world. Such moments can provide lasting benefits for overwhelmed, restless minds in our digital age.
Ink artist Pan Jianfeng, born in Ruian, China and now living in Porvoo, Finland, has embraced handwriting with a brush as a modern pursuit of self-cultivation, creative freedom, and intimate human communication. For the past decade, he has committed to rediscovering the soft brush as a tool that knows no boundaries in culture, language, or time. Pan's unique strategies involve letting artworks grow through experimental use of paper and brush, inviting viewers to reconsider the meaning of content generation, human creativity, and communication.
By generating largely unpredictable images using only traditional organic materials - water, ink, brush, and paper - along with his body, Pan demonstrates possibilities to engage with concepts beyond our expectations and imagination. This approach doesn't add to the environmental burden that generative AI creates. His playful artworks value ambiguity and understatement, and contrary to computational thinking, reject any single, inviolable answer. Pan seeks to open spaces for conversation, creative confusion, and shared negotiation of meaning.
Both in his art and the One Breath Workshops he occasionally holds, Pan advocates for mindful handwriting that doesn't generate more content in an age already saturated with information and misinformation. Instead, it removes superfluity and brings a sense of stillness and peace. Machines would struggle with text or image recognition in Pan's ink scrolls such as "Northern Ocean" (2023) or "Unregistered Calligraphy" (2024), but human audiences enjoy the game of imagination and discovery.
In the ongoing exhibition "Ink Roamings," curated by Shao-Lan Hertel at the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne, visitors take time to discuss and guess possible meanings together or quietly contemplate Pan's artworks in search of their own truth. "People have little trust in themselves and believe too much in technology, so they easily get lost," Pan explained in an interview. "I don't think we need more content - we need a better understanding of the world with all its challenges, and of each other. Through my writing, I try to craft more time and space for this understanding - not less."
