Ho Chuan-hsing, deputy researcher at the calligraphy and painting department of the National Palace Museum, explains that the art of Chinese calligraphy can broadly be divided into two main branches: the nantie, or Southern style, in which beauty of form is emphasized, and the more rugged beibei or Northern style.
精研書法藝術的故宮博物院書畫處副研究員何傳馨指出，中國的書法藝術約略可以分為字體研美的「南帖」，與渾厚剛勁的「北碑」兩路。