Shodo Online Lesson 1, “Start of Strokes” and “End of Strokes”

Let’s start Shodo Lesson1!

Here’s the kanji, “一” (one). It is very simple, but this simple stroke includes some basic points of Shodo.
First I would like you to take a look at the video below.

Point 1

The first point is “Kihitsu(起筆)”, or the start of the stroke.
When you put a brush on paper, the angle of the brush has to be about 45°.
Next you put pressure on the brush, and when the tip bends, move the brush to the right.

Point 2

Move the brush to the right slowly.
At this time, make sure the latter half is thicker than the first half.

Point 3

The last point of the lesson is “Shuhitsu(終筆)”, or end of strokes.
When you move the brush to where you want to stop, instead of lifting the brush off of the paper, move the brush along the red guide line shown below to complete the stroke.
Please check the video to see how the brush moves.