The Japanese calligraphy brush is a simple looking yet complex implement that is traditionally made of a bamboo shaft and a variety of animal hairs. The shaft of the Japanese calligraphy brush should be around 20cm in length and the bristles measure around 4cm. Additionally, you'll usually find that the ideal width for the bristles where they meet the handle is around 12mm. In this case we're describing a chu-bude or middle-sized brush.

Different types of animal hairs used in calligraphy brush making produce very different results to the way the ink is applied. Some hairs absorb more ink, some release more, and it is up to the calligrapher to decide which is appropriate for a specific job. The most common and easy to use, particularly for the beginner calligrapher is a brush that is made with sheep's hair. You can usually pick these brushes because the bristles are white rather than brown or black. The white-haired calligraphy brush is excellent for standard script, current and cursive script.

Brown-haired calligraphy brushes will generally be made from marten, horse or rabbit hair and are used when writing smaller characters. The bristles are stiff and Japanese calligraphy requiring sharp beginnings and endings are best made with such brushes.

Unlike using a pen the Japanese calligraphy brush allows more control of the thickness and tone of the characters.

A calligraphy brush may have two or more layers, but for the sake of simplicity, we analyze the standard calligraphy brush with two layers: An inner core of shorter hairs, which form the belly of the brush, and an outer layer of longer hairs that make the tip of the brush.

Unlike the calligraphy pen, the calligraphy brush creates characters of varying size, weight and shape and the characters created are said to express the personality of the calligrapher themselves.

You're looking for four dominant qualities when looking for a good Japanese calligraphy brush: the sharpness of the tip which should come to a point; the structure with a nice evenness to it and no hairs that stick out; resilience which refers to the fact that only the tip of the brush reacts to the pressure of the brush against the paper, the rest remains firm; and roundness with the body of the brush being full and round.

Tips on How To Use a Calligraphy Brush

Four things to remember when usuing a Japanese calligraphy brush will ensure that you're on your way to producing some fine Japanese calligraphy.

1). Keep the palm open.

2). Maintain the shaft of the brush in a vertical position.

3). The wrist and the elbow of the arm holding the brush should not make contact with the surface of the table.

4). Try to hold the brush firmly without allowing the fingers to become too tense.

You should only use around a third of the brush hairs for writing to maintain a balance between the ink that is absorbed into the brush while keeping the tip springy.

Types of Calligraphy Brushes

There are two basic Japanese calligraphy brushes used by master calligraphers - the hosefude ("slender brush") and the futofude ("thick brush").

The sumi brush is unlike other brushes in that it is composed of two separate parts. A central core which is made of relatively stiff hairs and determines the function of the brush. The outer hairs are softer and more absorbant giving the brush the capability of producing smooth strokes.

Yasutomo brushes come in a range of sizes and are made from a stiff horse hair, useful for finer lettering with fine lines. The Yasutomo brushes can be used with sumi ink, or a range of acrylic, oil  and watercolor paints.

Buy A Japanese Calligraphy Pen

You can find a selection of Japanese calligraphy brushes and sumi brushes at The Calligraphy Pen Store.