The Combination of Meng Guoqing Literature and Calligraphy

An attempt to combine Lu Xun and Qi Baishi —— A preliminary study of Meng Guoqing's literature and calligraphy works

As a good friend, I have read many of his literary works since the 1990s, from the students of China TV University to Hanzheng Street to Los Angeles, from fate to searching for the soul, and then to Bao You Lu and My Card is My Own. Although the themes are different, reflecting different times backgrounds and different task personalities, these literary works all reveal the author's desolation, depth and endurance. If Students of China TV University and From Hanzheng Street to Los Angeles are just trying to find a way out for the depressed souls of a generation, then Destiny and Searching for the Soul of the Net are the true portrayal of a generation's lost career, depressed feelings and indomitable spirit of struggle, especially Destiny and his award-winning essay I am looking for those eyes. The former is called "a man's mirror, a woman's". The latter saw the magnificent and tragic historical situation of China from the eyes of a great man in an instant. It is a hymn of spiritual storm, which makes people feel deeply after reading it.

Although, the circulation of his literary works can not be compared with today's rascal literature, ridicule literature, beauty literature and officialdom literature, let alone, because chickens sometimes fly higher than eagles, which is also a normal phenomenon in a certain era. But I believe that the unique personality of the vivid characters in his literary works, the desolate and tragic life struggle mileage and the tragic and vivid love story will be deeply engraved in people's hearts. That's true. 1998 published Destiny, which made many people sleepless all night. It is said that the wife of a naval senior colonel read his book for several nights until two or three in the morning, and she was excited, excited, painful and unfair for the characters in the book again and again. ...

This is the charm of his literary works.

He once told me an epic literary work.

I have been looking forward to it.

What I didn't expect, however, was that when I visited him in Beijing and walked into his residence, a pair of vigorous, tolerant and proud calligraphy jumped into my eyes. At first glance, I thought it was the work of some historical celebrities or great men, but after a closer look, I realized that it was the work of his painstaking efforts in the sea of books in recent years. Nevertheless, I am at a loss, because as a scholar, I know that calligraphy can't be done overnight. Not to mention that it takes decades or even a lifetime to sharpen a sword, it takes at least ten years of effort and painstaking cultivation, because it is an art more difficult than painting, music and dance, not to mention that he has been working in the field of literary creation. How could he be creative about this calligraphy at once? Just when I was wondering, Mr. Zhang Yang, who accompanied me, seemed to read my mind and said: I think his calligraphy is a true and natural expression and reflection of his knowledge, literary accomplishment and life accumulation reaching a certain level. Moreover, it is not surprising to hear that he 12 began to practice calligraphy, and it has been several decades since he reached this level.

Yes! It suddenly occurred to me that it not only began to learn calligraphy at the age of 12, but also learned first-hand, whether it is a coin or a brush, it will always give people unexpected surprises and enjoyment intentionally or unintentionally. Here is a true story from many years ago. A distant relative of his family wrote a note, but the relative couldn't write it well, so he wrote it for him. Originally, the policeman looked serious and didn't want to see the note he wrote. He immediately smiled and even praised the words! On another occasion, he chatted with a calligraphy friend he had just met, and inadvertently showed his calligraphy friend a handwriting praising Four Treasures of the Study. Calligraphy friends are blindsided and repeatedly say that their calligraphy is ten times better than their own! Where are the tricks of repeatedly asking him to teach calligraphy?

In fact, the biggest trick of art is that there is no trick! During the conversation, he said that he had no know-how and denied the role of basic skills. He said that the reason why art becomes art is a comprehensive reflection of various elements other than poetry, whether it is literature or calligraphy creation. Literature emphasizes that life is the source of creation, while calligraphy pays attention to the art of lines, which, in addition to certain basic skills, is mainly a true portrayal of a person's thoughts, knowledge, cultural accomplishment and experience. Words are like people, and writing is like people. This is the truth. Some people have a good foundation in calligraphy and write well. Why haven't there been such breakthroughs in charm for decades? At all, all his elements have not been achieved. So in this sense, Mr. Wu Guanzhong's "pen and ink equals zero" means this.

Speaking of Wu Guanzhong, I immediately thought of his famous saying: One hundred Qi Baishi is not as good as one Lu Xun. Some people say that this is the difference between a bricklayer and a carpenter, and there is no comparison at all. But I think his calligraphy lines are vigorous and magnificent, sometimes like a roaring train, sometimes like a bold and unrestrained horse, and sometimes like a quiet river, giving people a visual impact that they want to see more and more. For example, Mao Zedong's poems written by him not only have the unrestrained momentum of hairstyle, but also have a profound experience of his personal charm. Another example is his Tang poetry and Song poetry. Every line, every line, not only reflects his artistic views on this work, but more importantly, he regards these works as his second spiritual creation. Therefore, after writing, people's skills can be enlightened from content to spirit, and they can enjoy beauty from vision and soul. In particular, his own philosophy of life motto, expressed with his superb and skillful calligraphy skills, is like a bottle of mellow wine, shocking and intoxicating, which is beyond words. ...

Because of this, I suddenly wonder if bricklayers and carpenters can be combined. If Lu Xun and Qi Baishi can be combined, wouldn't a new star with profound thoughts and brilliant art be born in our vast artistic sky? Will he be like this? I really don't know how to answer and evaluate him. I just think he still has a long way to go, because art is endless, and the evaluation of a person's artistic achievements has a historical precipitation process, but his prospects are absolutely great and infinite!