人文湖南 | 慢品社区老房子 · 舒同旧居记忆 湖南路20弄福园
湖南路20弄福园
舒同旧居位于湖南路20弄福园。福园在湖南路20弄1至12、14、16、17、20至22号，位于湖南路北，永福路西，武康路东，占地1.72公顷。1940年后，在此建造砖木结构花园住宅楼13幢，其中3层楼房5幢，假3层楼房4幢，2层楼房4幢。
中华人民共和国成立后又增建3层新村住宅楼3幢及瓦平房3间，建筑总面积9690平方米。每幢楼前均有小花园，环境幽静。中华人民共和国成立前出入口设在西侧福开森路（今武康路），以其首字命名，“福”也是吉祥语。中华人民共和国成立后出入口设在湖南路。
湖南路20弄福园▲
舒同简介
舒同（1922-2019）▲
“马背书法家”的“七分半”
舒同5岁就学书法，曾系统地临过古代碑帖，但师古而不泥古，尊法而求新变，并取其精华，大胆尝试，逐渐形成了自己的书法风格。
1930年，舒同加入中国工农红军后，一直在团部和师部搞宣传工作。紧张战事之余，他潜心书艺，寄情翰墨。他随红一军团长征到陕北时，一路上书写大幅标语，弄得身上全是石灰，衣服上也烧了好多洞。行军途中，没有纸笔，舒同就捡树枝在地上划拉。骑在马上，他也用手指头在裤腿上比画。有一天，被毛泽东看到了，就笑着说：“舒同，你成了马背书法家啦。”这“马背书法家”的美名由此传开。到了延安后部队转战较少，舒同就到处寻找古代碑帖临摹，书艺日有精进。舒同在担任红四师政治部主任一职后，有一次给当地老百姓作报告，台下的群众一看，这不就是昨天写大字的红军干部吗，于是到处宣传，红军队伍里有秀才。
下笔如有神▲
经数十年不懈努力，舒同的书法慢慢自成一体，世人称之“舒体”，被评价为宽博端庄，圆劲婉通，用笔老重，藏头护尾，点划润厚通畅，别具风格。他自己说过，自己的书法是“七分半”，即真草隶篆行各一分，颜真卿、柳公权各一分，何绍基半分，足见其广纳百川之严谨态度。据舒同之子王征回忆：“老爷子即使卓然成一代大家后，在平时还坚持临池不辍，写楷书、隶书，偶尔画点梅兰竹菊，认真得像个小学生，可以说直到生命的最后一刻。”
舒体浑圆有力，外柔内刚，深为人们珍爱。如今，舒体已被输入电脑，广泛用于图书、报刊、电影、电视，更显出其独特的魅力。
虽然被赞为书法改革大家，在中国书法艺术发展史上具有重要的地位，但舒同一直泰然处世，甚至视自己一生钟爱的书法为“余事”，并不怎么当回事。然而如此淡然超脱，大象无形地造就了一代宗师。
舒同 （钱定华画）▲
SHU Tong
SHU Tong (1905-1998) has his ancestral family from Dongxiang County in Jiangxi province and makes his fame as calligrapher and politician. In 1926 he became a member of the Communist Party of China. In 1930 he joined the Chinese Red Army of Workers and Farmers and participated in the Long March. During the War of Resistance against Japanese Invasion and the War of Liberation, he served as Secretary-General of the Headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, as well as member of the Standing Committee of the CPC East China Bureau and minister of Social Affairs.
Since his childhood he loved calligraphy and decades of painstaking practice in Chinese calligraphy found him integrating the strength of calligraphy masters of generations, absorbing their essence and seeking novelty, and creating an original style known as the “SHU Style”. In 1980, he initiated to establish the China Calligraphers Association and was elected as the first president. He also authors such books as Collection of SHU Tong’s Calligraphy, Calligraphy Copybook by SHU Tong and Calligraphy Art of SHU Tong and so on.
As one of the main founders of contemporary Chinese calligraphy, he has contributed to the heritage and innovation of the Chinese calligraphy. Between 1949 and 1954 he worked in Shanghai, serving in succession as member of the Standing Committee of the CPC East China Bureau and minister of Publicity Department, president of East China People’s Revolutionary University, and director of East China Party Newspaper Committee.
After 1954, he served successively as the first secretary of Shandong Provincial Party Committee, secretary of Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee, vice president of China PLA Academy of Military Sciences, and member of the CPC Central Advisory Commission.
“Seven and a Half Style”of“
A Calligrapher on Horse Back”
SHU Tong started Chinese calligraphy practice at the age of five and once systematically copied from models of ancient calligraphy masters. Though he learned from the ancient masters, he was not bound with them. Respecting the laws of calligraphy, he also sought new changes, took the essence and made brave attempts. Gradually he formed his own calligraphy style.
In 1930 after he joined the Chinese Red Army of Workers and Farmers, he had been engaged in publicity in the military regiment and division headquarters. In his spare time after tense war, he devoted himself to the calligraphy art and dedicated his sentiment to brush and ink. When he reached the north of Shaanxi with the First Corps of the Red Army, he was all lime from head tofoot and his clothes were also corroded with a lot of holes since he wrote banner slogans all along the way. On the way of the march, he had no brush and paper, but he picked up tree branches to draw lines on the ground. Riding on the horse back, he also gesticulated with his fingers on his trousers. One day Mao Zedong saw him and said with smile, “SHU Tong, you’ve become a horse back calligrapher”. This reputation spread ever since. After he arrived at Yan’an, his troops transferred and fought less from place to place. Consequently, he searched everywhere to find the ancient rubbings for copy so that his calligraphy improved day by day. After he served as political department director of the Fourth Division of the Red Army, he once delivered a report to the local people. When the audience found that he was the very person from the Red Army who did calligraphy the day before, they passed from mouth to mouth that there was a learned scholar in the Red Army.
After decades of unremitting efforts, his calligraphy gradually formed its own style. Known as “SHU Style”, it is evaluated as being broad and dignified, round and powerful, graceful and flexible, and steady and sober. In his style of calligraphy, the tip of the brush is concealed at both ends in each stroke and his strokes are thick and smooth to form a unique style. He said to himself that his calligraphy is of a “seven and a half style”, with one portion from each of the five styles of Chinese calligraphy including regular, grass, official, seal and running styles, one portion from each of the two calligraphers YAN Zhenqing and LIU Gongquan of Tang Dynasty, as well as one half portion from the well-known calligrapher HE Shaoji of Qing Dynasty, which shows his rigorous attitude to absorb from various former masters. According to the recall of his son WANG Zheng, “After my father became an outstanding master, he still adhered to copy and practice in his spare time to practice regular and official styles. Occasionally he practiced painting of such four flowers as plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum. He did all this as seriously as a pupil, until the last moment of his life”.
His calligraphy is characterized by roundness and power with softness in appearance and stoutness in essence, which is deeply cherished and valued by people. Today, his style has been imported into the computer and widely used in books, newspapers, movies and television, demonstrating its unique charm all the more.
Although praised as a master of calligraphy reform and enjoying an important position in the history of the development of Chinese calligraphy, he had kept a calm attitude in his life. He even regarded calligraphy as a “hobby”, not taking it too seriously, though he loved it in his lifetime.