Mi Fei's mother Yan used to be the wet nurse of Empress Gao. Therefore, he embarked on his official career under the care of the royal family. However, this so-called "luck" contains future troubles. In the Northern Song Dynasty officialdom dominated by literati groups, such a background was regarded as "redundant", which not only delayed promotion, but also deeply stung Mi Fei's sensitive nerves. He once wrote an inscription for Su Dongpo's "Wood and Stone Map" and lamented: "Poor people know the danger of the world, but they are old and ignorant. It's already late, why don't you know I'm rare? "
Depressed Mifei, no matter where he is an official, will regard it as a treasure house of calligraphy and game art ... Mifei has a fanatical love for stones. Jin Mao, an Amin, said, "Mi Fei got a strange stone and slept for three days, which was inscribed by Zi Zhan (Su Shi)." When Mi Fei was in Lianshui, he was so addicted to collecting strange stones that his official duties were neglected that he was accused of "dereliction of duty" by Yang Cigong, the provincial judge. When he was in Anhui, he was impeached for worshipping strange rocks, but he didn't regret it and took photos of worshipping strange rocks. Scholars and painters of later generations are even more keen on painting "White Stone Map of Mi Dian" to show their unyielding personality. Besides, Mimi has a serious cleanliness addiction. He washes his hands more than a dozen times a day, and he doesn't need to wipe them with a towel after washing-if the towel is not clean, let it dry. He never eats boiled eggs because he thinks he will cook chicken manure into them.
But don't get me wrong, Miffy just holds a game attitude towards fame and is absolutely serious about painting and calligraphy. The so-called "ink play" is only a representation, and its rich spiritual connotation can not be ignored. In calligraphy, Mi Fei is very talented and diligent. He goes to the pool every day, and historical records record: "If you don't write for a day, you will feel sleepy, thinking that the ancients didn't waste books for half an hour." At the age of seven, he began to learn Yan Zhenqing's Chinese characters, followed by Liu Gongquan, Ou Yangxun and Chu Suiliang ... He did not specialize in one school, but chose the good and followed it. He learned when he was good, gave up when he was bad, and learned a lot.
Talent and diligence have made Mifei's achievements in painting and calligraphy. Mi Fei learned from other people's strengths and became a family of his own. Both his creation and appreciation were highly respected by future generations. Liu Gongquan is the last peak of the pursuit of Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty, and it is also a sign that this style of calligraphy tends to be rigid. His small paintings are sharp and sharp. Mi Fei derided Liu Gongquan as "ugly, strange and evil", although it was a bit excessive, but learning Liu Gongquan's calligraphy really needed to be good at "learning from others" in order to achieve something.
As for the classic style of landscape painting created by Mi Fei-Mi Jiashan Water, it is really difficult to draw a conclusion because there is no original. Fortunately, his son Mi Youren left a series of works for our reference, or we can try to appreciate Mi Fei's pen and ink. According to his History of Painting, he said: "... few people have learned mountains and rivers in ancient and modern times. Because of the letter pen, there are many clouds, trees and stones are not fine, and the meaning is like enough. Those who seek bosom friends only hang three feet horizontally ... not to make a big scene, nor to have the custom of Li Cheng and Guan Tong. "
The painter who loves to write about the scenery in the south of the Yangtze River thinks that Li Cheng and Guan are as vulgar as the northern masters. No wonder Xu Xiaohu, a famous art theorist, directly called them "big mouths and big mischief" when talking with Wang. Although Mi Fei has a big mouth, it is undeniable that his theory is so authoritative that no one dares to openly oppose his formulation for many years. Mi Fei praised Dong Yuan's works of the Five Dynasties as "simple and naive", "naive without affectation, full of fun", "interesting and ancient" and "sincere and practical". He also praised this incredible painting style as "plain and interesting". Mi Fei's painting aesthetics always represents the development trend of literati painting aesthetics.
Dong Qichang, who was in charge of the right to speak in calligraphy and painting in the Ming Dynasty, followed Mi Fei's view: Dong Yuan was an authentic landscape painting and tried his best to "worship the south and belittle the north". When Dong Qichang was 72 years old, he wrote "Imitation of Miyun Mountain". On the scroll, he wrote: "Dong Beiyuan is good at painting smoke and vanishing meters. Samadhi, a pantomime of Baiyun Tuwu in Xiaoxiang, Mi Fei, Yu Yu. In this painting, the mountains in the south of the Yangtze River are dotted with horizontal pens, and the trees in the misty rain are represented by dots and patches of ink. It can be seen that the application of ink painting has benefited a lot in Mi Jiashan.
Generally speaking, Mi Fei's artistic achievements are not as high as his far-reaching influence on the combination of the concept and practice of literati painting. In practice, Mi Jiashan embodies the idea of naturally falling into ink and not sticking to the rules; Seeking artistic pursuits such as "natural interest", "clever interest", "business", "spirit" and "writing with things" in aesthetic interest has expanded new ideas for literati to draw ink and wash freehand brushwork, and its enlightenment significance far exceeds the achievements of Mi Jiashan's works.
However, if future generations follow this aesthetic orientation, problems will arise. Followers of Mi Jiashan Water are criticized by the world because the techniques of Midian are similar. After the formation of its program, later scholars will only learn its form if they don't focus on "learning from its heart" and learn its creative spirit.
As the saying goes, "ink play" is only a superficial form, and its connotation lies in the comprehensive accumulation of rice calligraphy, literature and painting. Therefore, their works not only reveal the vitality of books, but also reveal the true temperament. Fame and fame are both plays, but I have never lost my life-the master of the Dance Academy has set a benchmark for future generations in calligraphy and expanding the expression of ink and wash, and he did lose his life.