Yi Da’an

CHINA, Guangdong, Jiangmen

Yi Da’an was a seal engraver, calligrapher, and painter with an original name of Yi Tingxi and aliases of Jifu and Ruzhai. In the beginning of his career, he modeled his seals after those by Huang Shiling and Zhao Zhiqian, once studying the seal engraving methods of Qin (220–207 BCE) and Han (206 BCE–220 CE) dynasties under Li Yinsang. Later, Yi was greatly influenced by the freehand style of Wu Changshuo. He served as a professor at Jinan University and Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and also as technical specialist in the Bureau of Printing and Casting.
The disciple of Chan Lanfu, a renowned calligrapher, Yi was a master in many different forms of art. His seals were meticulous and unadorned, created by strong freehand knifing manners. His written works include Collection of Poems from Shuanqingchi Guan, Poem Drafts of Da’an, Collection of Da’an Paintings, Record of Seals from Jueting, Record of Self-Engraved Seals by Ruzhai, and Record of Da’an Seals. Buddhist seals by Yi include Endless Sutras and Reading Sutras to Repay the Kindness of Ancestors.