Hanqiao dialect painting: Guo's "Early Spring" Spring Mountain is indifferent with a smile.

The article comes from painter Qiu Hanqiao and Sina Weibo.

The Picture of Early Spring was written by Song and Guo. It is 158.3 cm long and 108. 1 cm wide. It is now in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, China.

Appreciation of famous paintings

In the late Northern Song Dynasty, Guo and other painters who played an important role in the field of landscape painting began to appear in the palace painting academy. The National Palace Museum in Taipei has Guo's "Early Spring Map" axis, which can be called his classic. In the early spring, the vertical axis 158.3 cm and the horizontal axis 108. 1 cm. It is written in silk ink, and there is an inscription on the left, "In early spring, Renzi crossed the West Garden". Written in the fifth year of Shen Zongxi Ning (1072), with the inscription "Guo".

This painting is the most famous one in the world. The title of the book is "Early Spring", which, as the name implies, depicts the scene of melting snow, awakening of the earth, emergence of vegetation and prosperity in early spring. "Early Spring Map" adopts panoramic composition, leaving heaven and earth up and down, and the far, middle and near scenes are cleverly arranged in a "cross" structure. The main mountain of this ink landscape painting is painted above the central axis. Draw the outline of the rock with a round pen first, and use the center and side. Then wipe it on the dark side with a wet pen, and repeatedly render it with layers of light ink to enhance the sense of body. This technology is commonly known as "Yun Toucun", "Cirrus Cloud", "Chaos Cloud" or "Ghost Face". The tall and straight pine trees stand on the rock, the crab claws are the branches, and the thick "ghost face" stone stands below the central axis, which helps to stabilize the center of gravity of the picture. ?

Early spring map

The distance between the front and the back is created by virtual and real trees. On the right side of the waist, pavilions and pavilions are surrounded by ink paintings. The waterfall spring in the low mountain stream and the trickle source water formed by the snowmelt in the gentle slope valley on the left meander to the river bend ahead, showing the length of the water flow and the depth of the ravine. Part of the mountainside is hidden in the fog, such as the deep mountain canyon, showing the majestic momentum of the main peak. On the left side of the middle scene of the work is a desert valley, with thousands of miles of mountains. At the same time, a group of travelers are crossing the bridge from one end of the Qujian plank road to the other. It is through the guidance of the "S"-shaped mountain that the painter leads his sight from the main peak in the rear, Shan Lan, pavilions in the middle scene, flowing springs, tourism and other places to the front. To the close-up.

The composition of this painting is a full proof of the theory of "three-distance method": from the rocks near the water to the distant peaks, it is "high" from top to bottom; Looking back from Qianshan, it is "profound"; Looking at the distant mountain from the near mountain is the bleak and ethereal Pingyuan. He combined the "three distances" method to skillfully show beautiful peaks, fluttering kitchen smoke, comfortable trees and gurgling streams; Fishing firewood, tourists and tourists are all in it, and everyone is happy. Its composition is mysterious, the artistic conception is clear, the stone shape is strange, and the mountain light floats.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

Mountain, shrouded in mist, hazy; The mountains are winding and undulating; The mountains are getting higher and higher, more and more strange; The mountain peaks are either condescending or towering and independent, making people feel as if they have already been in it. But strangely, there are many stones, uneven ancient trees, waterfalls and clear springs, and high-rise buildings, which have a feeling of Taoyuan Wonderland. In the mountains, a clear spring poured down from a crack in the rock, and three waves of water flowed. The trees have sprouted and are full of vitality. It can be seen that this is the first ice melting season in Chun Xue. The severe winter has passed, the earth is warming up and recovering, plants are sprouting, and spring has quietly come to the world. Both nature and human beings have started a new year's life cycle. On the left of Ting 'an, there is a boat tied to it. The fisherman on the shore bears a heavy burden. The fisherman holds the child in one hand and the child in the other. Talking and laughing, she walked home with a happy face, followed by a lively puppy. It is really cute.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

On their way home, a fisherman was building a boat and landing. On the path plank road, there are more woodcutter passengers walking. In valleys, streams and paths, it seems that there is a smell of spring everywhere. The misty fog gathers or disperses around the jungle valley, making people feel like they can breathe the moist air in spring, and finally they are no longer as dry as winter. The trees have not completely changed into green clothes, but the water has been flowing; Although the rocks are not covered by grass, isn't the foggy water surface the grass prepared? Hard-working people have also started their work in the new year. People who travel far have embarked on a journey, and fishermen who fish in nets are also looking for the best place to go. The embellishment of three or four groups of characters in the picture plays the role of finishing touch and conveys the vitality of "early spring", which should be regarded as the most dynamic spring painting in the history of China painting.

If we explore the painting style of "Early Spring Map" a little further, it is not difficult to connect Guo with Li Cheng who has just enjoyed it from the shapes and brushwork of rocks and trees. Li Cheng's landscape is characterized by agility and delicacy, and Guo's inheritance from him in Early Spring is mainly manifested in several aspects: the trees in the picture are similar to the "crab claw tree" in Li Cheng's Reading the Stone Tablet Painting; In terms of pen use, Guo applied Li Cheng's Cirrus Cloud to the extreme. In painting, it is difficult for us to feel the existence of a rigid and clear outline, which really feels like "the stone moves like a cloud"; And the favor of light ink is also an extremely important point that the two are interlinked. The ink pen full of moisture is either hooked or dyed, and a blue light is floating in the unified atmosphere of Shan Ye, with a full sense of picture. Everything seems to be in the long transpiration and cloud transpiration. Later people called it "LiGuo School", which was a very important school in landscape painting and had a great influence on landscape painting in Yuan Dynasty.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

The Picture of Early Spring was originally a screen painting hanging in the hall, commonly known as "Big nave". This painting has always been regarded as a panoramic landscape painting comparable to "Wandering the River and Pine Wind" by Fan Kuan's The Journey to the West and Li Tang, and it is known as one of the "Three Treasures of Town and Courtyard" of the National Palace Museum. Looking at the whole ink landscape painting, it gives the viewer a real feeling of the mountains and rivers in the north, which can lead to the fun of being feasible, promising, tourable and livable. Early Spring is the most representative work of Guo, a painter in the Northern Song Dynasty. No matter the composition, techniques or the grasp of the depicted seasons, they all present a poetic artistic conception, and everything reflects a perfect artistic realm. This painting is undoubtedly a masterpiece of landscape painting.

A collection of interesting paintings.

Guo was a master of landscape painting in the late Northern Song Dynasty. He was called "LiGuo" with Li Cheng, and "Guo Heyang" with Hao Jing, Guan Tong, Dong Yuan and Ju Ran. In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, due to the great influence of painters Li Cheng and Fan Kuan in the painting world, there was a strong imitation of "Li Fan" in the society. Guo, because of his talent, ingenuity, high understanding, meticulous painting, and a certain degree of calligraphy and painting skills, copied Li Cheng's "Shower Map" six times at that time, and his brushwork improved greatly, reaching a situation where it was difficult to distinguish between true and false. Celebrities and giants rushed to ask him to paint, and his painting name grew.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

Guo's hometown is in wen county, Henan Province, and there are no predecessors studying painting at home. He is naturally fond of painting, so he likes to travel around. I lived in nature for the first half of my life, and I have an accurate observation and profound understanding of natural mountains and rivers. Guo, who often travels between famous mountains and great rivers, naturally won't let go of the majestic Taihang Mountain range, which is only a few tens of kilometers to the north of his hometown. Guo once said: "Taihang pillow is China, but the face is forest." It can be seen that Guo's extensive travel, foresight and profound and thorough understanding of the landscape situation have laid a rich practical foundation for him to become a master of landscape painting.

His early works were exquisite and delicate, but in his later years they became magnificent and unique in composition and brushwork. Besides being good at scroll painting, he is also good at murals. He once painted large-screen paintings and murals in palaces and temples in the capital. During the Jiayou period (1056-1063), he had a certain painting name in the upper class and had certain contacts with people from these classes. 1065, due to heavy rain, the river overflowed and the murals of Suoguo Temple were destroyed. In the first year of Ning, JaeHee (1068), Guo was called into the palace after participating in the restoration of murals, and thus entered the Palace Painting Academy, which won him great favor. This is the biggest turning point in his life. In the later days, Guo was promoted to the highest position in the Academy of Painting-Governor Hanlin, who was awarded the Academy Art, responsible for the assessment of painters, and asked him to evaluate the grades of the famous paintings of Han and Jin collected by the Neifu. I appreciate his paintings very much. Many of Guo's works are hung in the palace, so there is a saying that "God is good at painting".

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

In addition, many departments of the Song Dynasty imperial court also hung his paintings. Wang Anshi's murals on the walls of Xinli Zhongshu, Menxia Province, Privy Council and Yutang during the Reform Period. Because of what he did. At that time, many murals in the palace yamen were made by Guo, and it was recorded in the literature that "Guo painted trees and stones in the official offices and the halls of the two provinces, all of which were shot down by servants". The most famous painting he recorded in the literature is a screen of "Riverside Scenery" by imperial academy, which is contemporary with the flowers and bamboos painted by another painter in Yutang. At this time, Guo's landscape painting style became the mainstream painting style of the Northern Song Dynasty Palace Painting Academy. It's a pity that we can't see this masterpiece that many people admire today, so we can only try our best to find that pleasant scene from Su Shi's poem: "Jade Hall hides spring leisure in the daytime, and Guo paints spring mountain." Bai Bo Qingfeng is not human, when pigeons and Ru Yan start to sleep. However, after that, I was not interested in Guo's paintings. He replaced all Guo's paintings in the palace with ancient paintings, and Guo's paintings were also returned to the library. It is not the worst to retreat into the library, even in the library as "rejected materials" as silk cloth to wipe the table, Guo died alone in cold eyes.

On the left side of the Early Spring Map, the words "Guo Xibi in the Year of Early Spring" are engraved. This year, the painter is a 72-year-old man Painters of this age, especially great painters like Guo, have long been familiar with mountains and rivers. When they create, they often include more personal feelings for nature in their pictures. Guo's paintings in his later years are specifically mentioned in "Xuan He Hua Pu". "Lyric ... Although he is old and strong, he looks old." We can learn something from Early Spring Map.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

Guo is very concerned about the emotional contagion given by the seasonal characteristics of landscape painting, and often talks about the saying of "four images" of mountain painting: "Spring mountain is as plain as a smile, summer mountain is as green as a drop, autumn mountain is as bright as makeup, and winter mountain is as bleak as sleep." What we are talking about here is mountains and vitality. If we have the opportunity to build a mountain to accompany people day and night, we prefer to choose a spring mountain as simple as a smile or an autumn mountain as clear as makeup. We rely on fantasy to try to figure out people's wishes in life, and believe that indifferent scenery is more convenient to unload the chaos and pressure of material desires, so as to reach the realm of selflessness. Perhaps the deep valleys show wonders, but the company day after day may not be comfortable. It is more appropriate to describe this picture of early spring with "a bleak smile on the spring hill". The scenery in the picture is ethereal and bright, full of fun, which really makes you feel like a spring breeze. Although the branches haven't turned green yet, they don't feel cold at all. The ideal realm pursued by Guo's landscape painting is explained in detail, which has the aesthetic significance of combining mystery, purity and closeness.

Guo advocates Confucian literati thought and the unity of poetry and painting. "There is a painting in poetry, and there is a poem in painting", "Poetry is an invisible painting, and painting is a tangible poem". He believes that the creator can only paint vivid and natural works by personally experiencing the beauty of mountains and rivers, and that landscape painting is a good work only if he can see, swim and live, which means that when he sees a painting, he becomes interested, and then he wants to go to the place where he painted, and then he wants to live in such a good place. Su Dongpo has a poem saying: "Guo paintings opposite Yutang have flourished in the green forest." This shows that Guo's works can really make people feel immersive.

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

Guo is also an excellent painter, and his great contribution to landscape painting lies in his painting theory of Lin Zhi. Lin Zhi, edited by his son Guo Si, is a complete, systematic and theoretical monograph on landscape painting. It not only records the summary of Guo's painting theory, painting writings and creative experience, but also preserves many records of Guo Si's father's life story, which has become a must-read book for painters and painting scholars in past dynasties. In it, he put forward the famous theory of "three-distance method", which had a great influence on the development of later paintings. At that time, landscape painting was highly mature. Combining with his own creative experience, Guo made an incisive exposition on the social significance of landscape painting, the painter's personal accomplishment, the conception, techniques, ideas and styles of landscape painting. Among them, the theory of "three distances" divides landscape painting into three concepts: "height", "distance" and "distance", which has far-reaching influence. When it comes to the personal cultivation of landscape painters, he advocates the tradition of "eclecticism and learning from others", and at the same time emphasizes "taking mountains and rivers as the body", "taking advantage of the situation from a distance and getting the essence from a close look" and feeling the changes of the four seasons. Even if you look at landscape painting, you should "face it with the heart of nymphs", and the painter will integrate his body and mind into the landscape, which is the ideal realm of "harmony between man and nature" and "simplicity and innocence" pursued by scholars in past dynasties.

Guo's artistic creation and painting theory also played a connecting role in history. He not only made the landscape painting of the Northern Song Dynasty brilliant, but also had a far-reaching influence on the landscape painting of the Southern Song Dynasty. Guo established his immortal position in the history of painting in China with his superb landscape painting art and theoretical masterpiece Lin Zhi.

Biography of famous artists

Part of the "Early Spring Map"

Guo (about 1023- 1085, another about1020-109) was born in Wenxian county, Heyang (now Henan province), and was a painter and painting theorist in the Northern Song Dynasty. Painting landscapes, self-taught without a teacher, was skilled in his early years, and later he studied under Li Cheng, making great progress in painting. In his later years, he was able to sit back and relax and painted many large-scale landscape paintings. Painting rocks often uses "cirrus clouds" or "grimaces"; Painting branches hang like crab claws, brushwork is vigorous, pen and ink are clean, often in huge high walls, making long pine trees, winding cliffs, beautiful peaks and mountains, changing clouds and smoke, forming a school of its own.

Xuan He Hua Pu said that Guo's landscape paintings were mysterious, secluded, abrupt and dangerous, beautifully laid out and varied. Guo opposes conformism, while advocating learning from nature, advocating "full travel and observation" and daring to be original. However, he is not confined to a family. Guo once said that his paintings are "eclectic, broad-minded and unique". In addition, he also made in-depth research on the expression techniques of landscape painting and made great achievements in painting theory, including the painting theory of Lin Gao Quan Zhi. Guo's landscape paintings pay attention to the in-depth observation of life, which can truly, meticulously and skillfully express the characteristics of different regions, seasons and climates and create extremely rich and moving artistic conception. In addition, he is also good at shadow sculpture, piling up relief landscapes on the wall with mud, which is unique.

Works handed down from generation to generation include Early Spring Map (collected by the National Palace Museum in Taipei), Flat Stone Map (collected by the National Palace Museum in Beijing), Tree Color Dry and Far Map, Guanshan Chun Xue Map, Mountain Forest Map, Autumn Mountain Travel Map and Valley Map (half).