Yu Chengyao
Yu Chengyao, a former retired lieutenant general of the Kuomintang and a famous painter in Taiwan, is not only a string instrument fan, but also an expert on the southern instrument. Born in Yangshang Village, Yongchun County, Fujian Province, his family was in poverty when he was young. He was not able to enter school until he was fourteen years old. After graduating from high school, he joined the army and returned to his hometown to get married after the Nationalist government pacified the warlords. Later, under the persuasion of a friend, Yu Chengyao went to Tokyo, Japan, to study economics at Waseda University. Later, due to financial reasons, he changed to a military academy. During this period, Yu Chengyao acquired map knowledge and became familiar with topography. By chance, Yu Chengyao came into contact with Nanguan in Japan. Throughout his life, he devoted himself to Nanguan culture.
Chinese name: Yu Chengyao
Nationality: Chinese
Ethnicity: Han
Birthplace: Yangshang Village, Yongchun County, Fujian
Date of birth: 1898
Date of death: April 4, 1993
Occupation: Calligrapher
Main achievements: Retired KMT lieutenant general, Taiwan Famous painter
Representative work: Yangtze River Miles
Specialty: Chinese painting
Gender: Male
Personal profile
Yu Chengyao was born in Yongchun County, Fujian Province. He lost his father at the age of four and was raised by his grandmother. He joined the army in his early years. In 1920, he traveled east to Japan and studied economics at Waseda University. He then transferred to the Japanese Army Military Academy to study tactics. After returning to China, he served in the military and was discharged as a lieutenant general in 1946. In 1950, he came to Taiwan and ran a medicine business. In his spare time, he read, wrote poems, painted, and wrote for his own entertainment. He started painting at the age of 56. He did not learn from a teacher, but only took nature as his teacher. He used fine and dense brushwork to wrinkle and rub out the rocks, and then used multiple rocks or peaks to form dense mountain shapes. He is a self-taught painter, calligrapher and poet.
On October 2, 1989, Yu Chengyao, who was over 90 years old, returned to Xiamen and Yongchun under the escort of his adoptive daughter to visit family members and folks he had not seen for 40 years. In early 1991, he bought a house and settled in Meiren New Village, Xiamen. On April 4, 1993, he passed away in Xiamen at the age of 95.
Life introduction
When the teenager was studying in Yongchun Middle School, he was famous in his hometown for his calligraphy and ancient poetry.
In 1917, he joined the army and became a general. He was responsible for surveying and inspecting terrain in the army. Therefore, the majestic mountains and rivers of China were deeply ingrained in his mind. In 1924, Yu Chengyao returned to China after completing his studies and first served as an instructor. In the early days of the war with Japan, he was promoted to lieutenant general and was responsible for war zone supervision.
In 1946, he applied for retirement as a lieutenant general in the National Military Senate and was approved. He started running a medicinal business until 1968. After Yu Chengyao retired from the army, he entertained himself by reading, writing poetry, listening to NGU, and watching exhibitions.
In 1949, he came to Taiwan to visit his old hometown. Unexpectedly, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party of China were divided, and Yu Chengyao stayed in Taiwan for forty years. During these forty years of living alone, Yu Chengyao, in addition to devoting himself to Nanguan culture, began his painting life of "painting one water every ten days, and one stone every five days" at the age of fifty-six.
Around 1956, he began to use his own "chaotic brushwork" to recall and highlight the "hills and valleys in the chest" with a tight, full structure and clear layers.
In 1966, Yu's paintings attracted the attention of Li Zhujin, an art historian living in the United States, who recommended him to participate in the "New Tradition of Chinese Landscape Painting" touring exhibition in the United States.
The "Landscape Quadruple Screen" created by Yu around 1969 is a representative work of his mature style. The landscape structure in the painting is complex and majestic. In the 1970s, Yu Chengyao's creations were still mainly ink, and his brushwork was more free and bold; in the 1980s, he began to use watercolor pigments. In addition to the turquoise he used only in the early days, he also gradually added yellow and blue. , red and other primary colors make the picture bright and bright.
Character evaluation
Yu Chengyao, whose life experience and artistic achievements are regarded by most people as a legend and an outlier, has no special teacher and is not from an orthodox academic background. , but by virtue of his uninterrupted travels, reading, writing poems, practicing calligraphy, chanting mountains and rivers, and studying music and opera, he created majestic, full, deep and vivid natural scenery in his later years. They are also Chinese ink paintings with mountains, ridges, and waterfalls. What Yu Chengyao pursues is not the expression of pen and ink in traditional paintings, but the true presentation of the structure of mountains and rivers, a kind of overlapping layers, interpenetration of shades, and randomness. The result is a simple and frank "real mountains and real waters". The "Exhibition of Yu Chengyao's Calligraphy and Painting Works" on display at the Beijing Art Gallery this time selects important treasures collected by Mr. Wang Ciyong, a well-known collector in Taiwan, including ink, color ink and calligraphy; it is also in line with the Han and Tang Dynasty Yuefu in Beijing Perform and listen to the Nanguan music that enriches Mr. Yu's life experience. It is so close and thousands of miles away that the world of calligraphy and painting on the paper appears vividly.
Characteristics of calligraphy
Although he started painting late, Yu Chengyao actively learned calligraphy when he was young. He first taught himself regular script at the age of seventeen and cursive script at the age of twenty. He only wrote in regular script all his life, and believed that he could write well by using regular script as the basis and then practicing the seal script. His calligraphy was introduced by the ancient inscriptions. He said: "Writing should have a personal style, and you should not copy others." His calligraphy is like the person he is, and his calligraphy is usually done in one go, fluently and smoothly. The words and the structure of the words seem to have no real existence, but they are majestic and powerful, showing a straightforward, simple but unconventional literati style. As his calligraphy reaches an advanced stage, it becomes more and more clumsy, with a natural and unrefined charm.
Painting style
Yu Chengyao’s paintings mainly focus on landscapes. It comes from the fact that he transformed the vision of experiencing great mountains and rivers from the military period into the realm of calligraphy and painting landscapes. When Yu Chengyao talks about painting, he mainly talks about observing nature and walking into nature. He said: "The peaks are seen from the peaks. Some mountains are connected by peaks, and some are independent peaks. Most of the peaks are rock outcrops, showing the majesty and aura of the mountains. The earth mountains are relatively short and flat, lacking what I want to express. The stone quality is interesting, so it is only used occasionally to decorate the scenery. I think the peaks are the real mountains. Some of the rocks are made of stacks of rocks, and some are naturally huge rocks. There are many types and there are many variations in the concave and convex textures. Don't draw it flat. In ancient times, people often left it blank, which is the result of no deep observation. The growth of trees depends on the growth and attachment of trees. There are also individual plants arranged in clusters. How to draw it just right depends on your own control. Next, you have to look at the flowing water. The flowing water is thin and clear in the mountains. You can't see it clearly until it reaches the foot of the mountain. I once saw it in the Forbidden City. In the works of ancient painters, they did not know how to give the mountains real rock formations, and their water did not have the flowing power of natural waterfalls. You must carefully analyze the appearance of water flowing down from the peak, although you cannot see every inch. But it must be connected and come from the same source."
Selected Works
Basic Information of "The People in the Deep Mountains"
1970
Color_on paper
121x56.5
Explanation: This painting "Mountains are deep and no one can live there" is a vivid landscape image in Yu Chengyao's heart. He knows what he likes No matter what kind of painting you don't like, what he presents is the painter's original intention of creation, rather than any technique or other details.
The Peak of Zhoufa's Good Scenery
Basic Information 1958
Color on paper
43x57
Explanation: Yu Chengyao was self-taught without a teacher. He gave up studying concise and elegant pen and ink, and instead used simple points and lines to plainly depict the shapes of mountains, rivers, trees and rocks. This painting of "The place where the beautiful scenery of the boat turns to the peak" is exactly the "rigorous layout and light and dark painting method" that he had in mind.
_之谷
Basic information
Unknown year
Color on paper
34.5x45.5 ,
Explanation: Yu Chengyao’s late works used bright and bold colors, as shown in this "Valley of _".