Plum blossoms have always been a symbol of literati’s sentiments due to their elegant and elegant appearance. Literati painting has always been the ultimate goal pursued by painters with a literati background, and is known as the "excellent product" in painting. It pays attention to the interest of pen and ink, emphasizes character, charm, and bookishness, and attaches great importance to one's own literary accomplishment.
“...I used to engage in traditional painting Chinese painting system. The old learning methods are generally: 1. Engage in training the basics of Chinese painting techniques; 2. Pay attention to the assistance of poetry, calligraphy, and epigraphy; 3. When studying the history and theory of painting and the appreciation of ancient calligraphy and painting, the final focus is on the cultivation of moral character and mind. Perseverance and not seeking quick results will naturally lead to success. ”
The above. This is a passage in a long letter written by Mr. Pan Tianshou to his hometown disciple Su Dongtian in the 1960s. Su Dongtian is a fellow villager of Mr. Pan. He was born in 1940 and his original name was Su Weitang. He came from a poor family, was smart since he was a child, studied hard, and had a special liking for painting. As early as junior high school, I wrote a letter to Mr. Pan Tianshou expressing his ambition to be a painter. In 1961, Su Dongtian graduated from high school and applied for Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts (now China Academy of Fine Arts). By some mistake, the test papers and application materials were lost in the mail, and he was admitted to the History Department of Hangzhou University (now Zhejiang University).
Arrived in Hangzhou, Su Dongtian went to see Mr. Pan Tianshou dejectedly. But Pan Lao laughed and thought that studying history is very good. You don’t have to go to an art school to learn Chinese painting. You can study it on your own in the spare time. But history is a knowledge, which is of great help to improve Chinese painting. From then on, Mr. Pan earnestly told Su Dongtian in interviews and letters several times: "To learn Chinese painting, you need to read thousands of books and travel thousands of miles, so that you can achieve higher levels and not fall into the trap of a small family. So now you learn The History Department of Hangzhou University is also very good, because of the content of thousands of books, history is an important department (in addition to literature, calligraphy, epigraphy, common sense, human cultivation, etc.), and to study traditional Chinese painting, you could have studied it yourself..."< /p>
From then on, Su Dongtian often went to Pan's house for advice on Sundays and became Pan's "closed disciple". Every time I went there, Mr. Pan didn't talk much about his paintings. He just said, "Paint whatever you like. It's mainly about practicing your brushwork." He spent more time talking to him about knowledge and life. This is "Kung Fu lies beyond painting." ". Mr. Pan strongly believed that painting should be based on talent. Everyone has his or her own talent. "Your brushwork is not bad at all. You should make great progress in this area and you can really make a difference in this area." Mr. Pan encouraged Su Dong. In the past five years, Tian University has laid a solid foundation in literature, history, philosophy and art.
Unfortunately: Mr. Pan was persecuted to death during the "Cultural Revolution". Su Dongtian sadly lost his mentor, but he did not forget Mr. Pan’s teachings during his lifetime, and still devoted himself to the art of Chinese painting. In 1979, Su Dongtian was admitted to the China Academy of Art to study for a master's degree in art history, studying under Mr. Chao Wen and Zhu Dan. After graduation, he stayed in the hospital to work for a time. In 1984, he came to Kaizhongge and served as a professor at Shenzhen University.
With the opening of the country, the introduction of Western literary and artistic trends has violently impacted traditional Chinese painting. Some people believe that Chinese painting has lost its vitality and cannot keep up with the world's modern art trends; some believe that brush and ink are no longer important and advocate the use of Western modernist techniques to completely innovate Chinese painting. Especially traditional literati paintings, many people think that they are "conservative" and are mostly the works of "the old and the young". Literary painting has come to an end in the hands of masters such as Wu Changshuo, Huang Binhong, and Pan Tianshou, and has passed away.
But Su Dongtian doesn’t think so. He advocates that tradition should not be discarded, and innovation should be based on tradition instead of total westernization. Pen and ink are the soul of national painting, and they are only visible in form. While working hard on knowledge according to Mr. Pan's teachings, he boldly carried out artistic practice. In the dusty city of Shenzhen, Su Dongtian was still infatuated with literati paintings, and lived in seclusion in a top floor of Shenzhen Yuanling. He was willing to be lonely, lived in simplicity, and worked hard. On the one hand, he wrote "Discrimination of the Book of Songs" and "New Book of Songs". Academic monographs such as "Selected Explanations of Yi Laozi and Wang Bi's Annotations" and more than 60 papers such as "On the Origin and Current Origin of Calligraphy and Painting" and "The Different Characteristics and Influences of the Development of Eastern and Western Cultures"; Concentrate on the creation of literati paintings. Mainly with plum, bamboo and wisteria, lay paper on the ground and draw freehand brushwork. Day and night, for a long time, I worked hard to practice the power, energy and momentum of pen and ink.
In the first 10 years, no one knew what Professor Su, a gentle, slim and refined, well-known professor in the city, was painting. In January 1994, Daisaku Ikeda, President of the Soka Gakkai International of Japan, visited Shenzhen and was invited to give a speech at Shenzhen University.
Daisaku Ikeda loves art and collecting. The school leaders decided to give him a piece of art, so they thought of Su Dongtian, a professor at the school. But some people were skeptical. Unexpectedly, Mr. Ikeda, who was a great connoisseur, took the painting and said with great surprise: "Ah, I have never seen plum blossoms painted so well!"
So , Mr. Daisaku Ikeda sent an invitation to Su Dongtian to visit Japan. In May 1995, Su Dongtian and his wife visited Japan. At the world-class conference hall of Soka University, the "Mr. Su Dongtian Painting Exhibition" had a grand opening ceremony. The exhibition caused a sensation in Japan, and the news media extensively introduced and commented on it. Daisaku Ikeda himself wrote: "...When I look at Mr. Su's wonderful brushwork, I feel as if I have stepped into a plum garden, and I seem to have turned into a plum blossom in early spring. It can be said that I am a 'flower person'." Mr. Daisaku Ikeda called Su Dongtian is a "gentleman in the art world", and "has the rhythm of the soul" with him.
Daisaku Ikeda and Su Dongtian had extensive exchanges and discussions, talking about Chinese painting, Eastern philosophy, and Buddhism... Only then did Daisaku Ikeda realize that Su Dongtian not only had a deep foundation in traditional painting, but also had a deep foundation in classical painting. He has profound knowledge in literature, history, philosophy, religion, painting theory, calligraphy and painting art, etc. Soka University awarded Su Dongtian the "Highest Honor Award", and the Fuji Art Museum in Tokyo awarded him the "Fuji Art Prize". In February 1998, he also won the "Oriental Philosophy Award" from the Institute of Oriental Philosophy in Japan. The Buddhist dialogue monograph between Su Dongtian and Daisaku Ikeda: "Daisaku Ikeda, the Giant of the East" was also officially published after Su Dongtian wrote it for three years.
Since then, Su Dongtian’s literati paintings have attracted much attention at home and abroad. He has held calligraphy and painting exhibitions in Shenzhen, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo and other places, which have aroused widespread praise in the art circle and society. Many people believe that Su Dongtian made unique achievements in splash-ink freehand Chinese painting, integrating the styles of Wu Changshuo's round brush and Pan Tianshou's square brush; and absorbing the strengths of Xu Wei, Bada Shanren, Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics and other painters. Especially the large-format work is majestic and free-flowing, striving to have a coherent meaning and a rainbow-like momentum. In painting plum blossoms, although the line changes are complex, the strokes are steady and vigorous, the layout is virtual and solid, and the composition is unique. When painting bamboo, I like to paint bamboo that is flying against the wind and thundering, thundering, and lightning in the wind and rain. It is tough and fresh. The wisteria is painted with calligraphy techniques, with the brushwork moving like a dragon and a snake, the roots intertwined and the flowers and leaves colorful.
Plum blossoms are undoubtedly the main body of Su Dongtian's Chinese painting style and the representative of his artistic achievements. Su Dongtian is well-known in the painting world for his plum paintings, so Taiwan and Japan respectfully call him "Plum King" and "Plum Blossom Gentleman". His plum blossom artistic style is majestic, elegant, and unique. Plum blossoms are not afraid of the cold weather and freezing ground. They bloom in spring, bloom with ice-cold muscles and jade bones, and bloom proud of the frost. Plum blossoms are the most difficult to draw. They rely on writing rather than painting. Only when the painting is like the person, the plum blossom is the same, and the painting is poetic, can we not fall into the trap of a small family, and can we uplift the national spirit and the spirit of the times. Su Dongtian, on the other hand, focused on praising the dignity of life and the spirit of the times of putting people first, revitalizing China, and achieving harmony and stability. Therefore, Daisaku Ikeda said that Su Dongtian's plum blossoms "are flowers of humanistic art that awaken the spring of human souls." This fully demonstrates the purity, elegance, purity, and purity of Su Dongtian's painting style.
Su Dongtian is worthy of being regarded as a master of contemporary literati painting. It is expected that his art will become more refined over time.
(The author Xue Jiazhu is a consultant to the Zhejiang Provincial Writers Association and a national first-class writer. The original article was published in Zhejiang Daily on April 20, 2005. Recommended by Zhou Tianli, honorary chairman of the Hong Kong Artists Federation and academic host. )