How Does Professor Huang Jian Clean Chinese Brushes?
Qi Ming has previously published articles about how to prepare new Chinese brushes, how to select and maintain brushes, and proper cleaning techniques. Today, we’ll explore the question: How Does Professor Huang Jian Clean Chinese Brushes? Below, Qi Ming will introduce this method through images and text.
Full Article:
How Does Professor Huang Jian Clean Chinese Brushes?
In his video, Professor Huang Jian demonstrates a method of directly turning on the faucet and rinsing the Chinese brush under running water. This approach is quite different from the method described in Qi Ming’s previous article “How to Clean Chinese Brushes (A Water-Saving Method That Won’t Dirty Your Sink).” As shown in the image above.
Please note: many household faucets have both hot and cold water options, but when cleaning Chinese brushes, you must use cold water. (In summer, use cold water; in winter, lukewarm water is acceptable – Qi Ming’s note.)
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Observant friends will notice that Professor Huang Jian is washing the Chinese brush in the kitchen sink, not in the bathroom sink. Some online tutorials show people cleaning brushes in bathroom sinks, which often results in the basin becoming stained with ink and looking very dirty.
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This shows the situation when cleaning a Chinese brush in a bathroom sink. Typically, bathroom sinks are made of ceramic, and their surfaces easily absorb ink stains. Therefore, it’s not recommended to clean Chinese brushes in bathroom sinks.
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If you want to check whether the Chinese brush is thoroughly rinsed, you can use a white porcelain bowl specifically designated for brush cleaning. As shown in the image above, you can determine if the brush is clean by observing the water in the bowl.
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After the Chinese brush is clean, just like the final step when preparing a new Chinese brush, use a paper towel to absorb excess water from the cleaned brush. This helps speed up the drying process.
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Professor Huang Jian mentions that it’s best to pull the Chinese brush back and forth across the paper towel. The purpose is to allow the inner bristles to fully contact the paper surface, which accelerates the brush’s drying.
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At the same time, Professor Huang Jian specifically addresses this action – something many calligraphy enthusiasts do after washing their brushes: deliberately gathering the brush tip with your hands to shape it into a point.
On this point, Professor Tian Yingzhang presents exactly the opposite method in his article “How to Prepare New Chinese Brushes and Their Use and Maintenance.” Professor Tian believes you should smooth and straighten the brush hairs.
Regarding this difference, Qi Ming feels both methods are acceptable. I’ve personally tried handling cleaned Chinese brushes according to both Professor Huang Jian’s method and Professor Tian Yingzhang’s method. Perhaps because I’m in Beijing where the air is relatively dry, I haven’t experienced any mold growth on the brush tip even after smoothing and straightening the brush hairs.
Here’s a special reminder for everyone: don’t insert a wet Chinese brush into a brush holder. This will cause excess water to flow into the brush barrel.
Some people even use the plastic cap that comes with a new Chinese brush to cover the wet brush directly – that’s even more wrong!
Hang it like this until it’s completely dry.
The best approach is to buy a brush hanger and suspend the brush like this until it’s completely dry.
Summary
The above introduces Professor Huang Jian’s method for cleaning Chinese brushes. We also recommend reading this article: “How to Clean Chinese Brushes (A Water-Saving Method That Won’t Dirty Your Sink).”
This article is based on notes from “Huang Jian’s Elementary Calligraphy Course,” Episode 10, “Supplement – How to Clean Chinese Brushes.” Qi Ming will continue organizing other notes, and everyone is welcome to follow along.
