[Personal profile]
Cao Wenhai Born in 1959, a native of Wuwei, Gansu Province. Graduated from the Fine Arts Department of Zhangye Normal College and Northwest Normal University, and completed the first advanced training course for professional painters of the National Painting Academy of the Ministry of Culture. He is a full-time painter at the Gansu Painting Academy, a first-class artist, a member of the Chinese Artists Association, a judge of the National Art Fund Expert Committee, and a former director of the Gansu Provincial Artists Association and a director of the Gansu Provincial Literary Critics Association. The calligraphy works won the Excellence Award in the exhibition hosted by the Chinese Calligraphers Association. Traditional Chinese painting works have been selected into exhibitions sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and Chinese Artists Association for many times. Three Chinese landscape paintings were collected by the National Art Museum of China. The monograph "Wen Hai Yi Hua" was published by Gansu People's Fine Arts Publishing House. Many art reviews and papers have been published in national and provincial publications.
【Appreciation of Works】
"Mountain Light Self-Glory" 50cm×50cm
image of goal
——Thoughts on the pilgrimage
Cao Wenhai
At the moment of walking toward the soul, involuntary presuppositions or assumptions will appear, and different paths may lead to the same destination. Regardless of whether the artistic quality is vulgar or sublime, weak or solemn, it will be quietly materialized and presented clearly due to the logic of human cultural life.
"Jihai Summer Dream" 50cm×50cm
In the process of pursuing the authenticity of art, it is still the heart that gets rid of illusions and distinctions. In the Buddhist Zen philosophy, "things are real" and non-thinking wisdom can lead to the instant achievement of sublime transformation, it seems that only pen and ink are the most convincing. If you read it carefully and appreciate it attentively, you will still be influenced and understood by the philosophy of indivisibility and loneliness of the life and universe. Whether it is the creation of paintings of figures, flowers and birds, or landscapes, in the eyes of wise men, they are by no means a record of physical observations, but a description of the enlightenment of the mind and the brightness of the self. Chen Cunfu of the Ming Dynasty said that "nature is determined by enlightenment". He said that the mysteries of Taoism and Buddhism should be so clear and direct. However, enlightenment is not true enlightenment, and the order is different. It is nothing more than the degree of human mind's observation of images, mind, color and emptiness. Just say goodbye. Nothing is said here. The creation of artworks has the attributes of "physics", "emotion" and "painting". Of course, it must also have the principles of heaven, which is the truth. The origin of the root of the connection between life that can be seen here seems to be Zhuangzi's "the empty room is white, and the auspiciousness stops" on the plain paper, or the "non-dual method" of spiritual enlightenment, which is also the endowment of illumination. , the haze, the misty fantasy, etc. have materialized into reality. It is obvious that the level of artistic taste still lies in people rather than things.
In the wandering between "purpose" and "goal", utilitarianism is entangled, which often becomes a trouble for artistic reproduction. The mind can be free and happy, but the creation of art requires true feelings. If you need to transcend the appearance, get rid of yourself, and hide the true taste that you want to see in front of you, and those hidden learning and savings are indispensable, it will show up from time to time, and you will be self-satisfied without seeking, and you will also reap a rich harvest, it seems. It's a matter of course. The goal determines the direction, and the goal is just hope. On the way to the true view, the heart is the key to understanding. All skills should become the prerequisite and foundation for creation at this time. Those stereotypes and stereotypes will greatly reduce creativity, and also make the mentality autistic and helpless. It is revealed that those who follow the law and follow the law will also become addicted to it, and will make the heart chakra repeat the same mistakes without realizing it, and will also step into the self-pleasure of ignorance. Because they are familiar with the road, and because they spend no effort, they are at ease, comfortable, and lazy... The old appearance of art has become a companion, and it seems that there is no end in sight and they are at a loss. Obviously, what lies on the road of art is not just bumpy and muddy, but also self-restraint, and the need to gather energy to achieve great heights. Everyone knows these truths, but when it comes to the difficulties in individual life, it requires full strength. can be effective. In all the logic of human nature, biochemistry marches left and right, faltering. As we all know, what is consistent and unified in the strategy of drawing things is the way of nature and spirit. In addition, the level of cultural inheritance and awareness cannot be underestimated. In short, artwork is a complex cultural complex that needs to be studied and reflected on. Under this vast sky, every life is a miracle and has its own merits. If you have a broad mind and no stubborn opinions, you will definitely be academically harmonious, realize wisdom, equality, and respect individuality. All deliberate efforts will damage the law of artistic creation. We don’t dare to imagine that we can sing high and sing forever, but we must not belittle ourselves or give up on ourselves. On the real road, we do not expect to benefit from any name or brand. If we want to be at the forefront, the picture of "famous for future generations" has long been proven by culture and history to be unworkable, because art has the laws of art. , sociology has sociological rules. As a martyr of art, you don’t have to pay attention to those extra spaces. Just like the prostrate on the pilgrimage road in Tibet, you only want a bright scene in your heart, so that you can get closer to the holy site step by step and cleanse your heart of dirt step by step. As a practitioner of art, there may be a day when you can be calm and your mind is free and your hands are alert, and the birth of artwork will be a natural thing.
"Snow Runs Longshan Ming" 160cmx144cm
In the image of this artistic goal, falsehoods flourish and slogans are impetuous and even harmful. Any external will needs to be internalized. In the life of taking in ideas and images, submerging and reciprocating, poetic philosophy is the key, and it must be established by the bones of a cultural person. When we are wandering in the chaotic space in front of us, it is really hard to be sober. Only the soul has reality. If we can abandon the notion of time, explore the future, integrate everything, and turn it into a new chapter, it will be possible. Of course, the old appearance has been stripped away, and the space for uniqueness and solitaryness is still open, waiting for those who are willing to cultivate it. The ancients said, "There is no ultimate way." This way is based on talents and methods, it is controllable, it is feasible and feasible, and it is extremely common.
On the pilgrimage, it is not for the sake of "victory", but for the mind to feel unwise, without differentiation, and illuminating itself. Naturally, the heat in the brain will be exhausted, and the coolness will appear in front of the eyes. However, the reconstruction of art may have an extraordinary effect under the cultural background of the times. day. By then, groups of explorers will all be aging, but their hearts will be strong, and their paintings will surely be brilliant.
"Everything Is Buddha" 122cmx244cm
"Image of the Western Region" 62cmx46×9cm
Assume and seek
——Thoughts on Dunhuang Painting Style
Cao Wenhai
What do we want to do, what can we do, and what can we do well?
When we explore the essential laws of art and hope to make discoveries, the numerous problems before us often make us look around at a loss, helpless and embarrassed. As a mediocre person, I have never experienced the transcendence of my abilities, and the existing knowledge structure is powerless in the face of an "artistic assumption". I can only explore possibilities based on the laws of malleability and variability of history and culture, and grasp the unknown in terms of unified principles and details.
Reality is a simple existence. The cultural people of Gansu, which is located in a rich land of traditional culture, are positive. The will of the group encourages individuals to open their minds and face themselves - in fact, this is cruel.
"A Millennium Dream" 240cmx150cm
——It has become a reality to find that you are unable to support yourself and that you are extremely weak. With such fragile willpower, we barely have a spirit of reflection, looking for "importance" from the specificity of individual things, completing a preliminary hypothesis in a "hypothetical" way, "the simplicity arising from the general social relations of civilization" "Concept" (Eng. Whitehead) to construct an ethereal thinking mode and reach into the perceived horizon, but the horizon is still a part of the concept. The concept itself is also vague. At this time, it seems too early to talk about the directional definition of artistic style. The Dunhuang painting style is still an incomplete concept. In a real existence without a clear trajectory, "what can we do" is very important.
Counting stars in the dark night is a childhood pleasure, but moving forward in the dark night requires experience and courage. On the road of artistic pursuit, if you adjust your assumptions at any time, it is like walking on a muddy road at night. There are often puddles in bright places. The clearer the place, the more dangerous it is, so you have to adjust your steps from time to time. The more artificially certain things are, there are often uncertainties, which are intertwined with a lot of ambiguity and variability, and the effectiveness of all experiences is unpredictable. The purpose of this description is to tell everyone that there is a distance between the objective existence of things and subjective wishes, and they are even contrary to each other. The style of Dunhuang painting seems to be the northwest wind blowing back and forth.
"Mountain Tingyao" 210cmx136cm
There is a hard choice based on the goal of "assuming", and choice becomes a common need behavior of living things. There is no good or bad in the choice itself. What is good or bad is the difference in quality, that is, thinking about whether there will be any results after choosing to take measures.
Choice is related to interest, "concrete truth is the variation of interest, abstraction is the entire field of vision" (English Whitehead). In artistic thinking, what arises from awareness should be the assumption made in advance that restores the pattern of that field of view. From this we feel its "importance" and "possibility". At this time, "importance" and "possibility" are surrounded by hierarchical concepts of belonging, creating another visual space, forming an illusion of possible existence. On this axis of thinking, imagination seems to have replaced a clear goal. Everyone's "self-scale" potential is fermented and amplified. However, it is not certain that the fermented product will be "sour" or "sweet". In fact, Joining in the process is the key to changing the unknown. The importance in this thinking produces a certain result in the fusion of the finite and the infinite. It is the extraction and addition of unknown nutrients from the disorder and ambiguity of life that promote the generation of new things. It seems that the Dunhuang painting style is that the raw ingredients are being processed before the meal, and the mirror image is emerging in the sky.
In the ethereal world of infinite feeling, the finite is transformed in the potential of positive achievement. It reveals a part of the universe and is also the necessity of reflection under the philosophical picture, that is, the true portrayal of "thinking and existence".
Under this premise, "what we want to do" must be guided by action. In the nature of interpreting reality, the behavioral methods of art are diverse, may be single, or even changeable. Dunhuang painting style should be diverse, and it has infinite variables.
"Twelve Figures in a Panoramic View, Part Two" Diameter 50cm
"One of the Twelve Views from the West" 40cmx50cm
In the process of "wanting", we need to organize our thinking and classify the information. If we want to achieve the goal, we must find ways and be prepared to fight. At the same time, shorten the time as much as possible to achieve practical results, so that all experience can be used and all power can be transformed. Only in this way can we encourage new life to facilitate growth and development.
Here, I don’t want to open a history of Dunhuang Buddhist art, expound its beautiful attributes to describe the rich reality, and then assert that it is the traditional Dunhuang style, because it is too harmonious, too auspicious, and it is Its style changes with history and becomes colorful with time; it has carried thousands of years and is a three-dimensional incarnation. Baishui Ci such as this style cannot be used as a commentary on the true nature of the Buddhist kingdom, because Dunhuang art was not originally designed for style but to directly point to the mind. When we look through the colored mirror of the times, please never only focus on the eyes and forget about the soul. We should realize that the mental schema is religious, and its art is just an accessory. As for the Dunhuang painting style we are chasing, it is just a by-product of a by-product, but it is a very beautiful thing that the attributes of this product are reborn during the conversion.
We clearly see that the contrast between the two artistic realities makes the integration of Buddhism and secularism inevitable. If what we want is not close to the consciousness and mind of Buddhism, then it is not really what we want. It is just food from begging, which can only satisfy our hunger but cannot be self-sufficient. As far as Dunhuang Grottoes art is concerned, it cannot be measured by ordinary artistic standards. Neither before nor after this can we surpass it. what to do? We can only become derivatives, and we have to follow the lineage from the ancient birthplace of mankind to analyze its existence, the social history, cultural background, and schema expressions influenced by religious connotations it has experienced. Only with this kind of piety, perhaps we will be able to find the original truth of human beings from the commonality of human beings without taking a long time, and acquire artistic style based on personal origins. At this point, what "we want to do" has the sparkle and shine of the aura of life, and the Dunhuang painting style will inevitably be born in a certain opportunity in history in the future.
In the process of deciphering, we learn to purify our mind. Looking at the grotto art, under the guidance of Buddha and Bodhisattvas, we can ignore all its rituals, but its beautiful laws require careful study: on its central axis, in the four continents of Mount Sumeru, there live What, or in what way, is expressed or symbolized and developed by extension? We need to explore, study and expand. In the grotto art, the rhythm of music is clear and exquisite. What does she symbolize, what does she embody, what does she persuade? The pure meaning of her colors is symbolic, the images are symbolic, and her method of convenience is still the same. The images performed in her artistic form have the characteristics of Buddhist "Dharmakaya", "Sambhogakaya" and "Incarnation". Characteristics, and the future Dunhuang painting style seems to be like an "incarnation".
When applying methodology in actual work, the rigor of systematic engineering must be followed. When any academic attempts to enter the system, it must seek order. This is where the “what can we do” proposition comes into play. Only when we are capable can we win possibilities, not waste time, and only then can we have enough courage to break through the average aesthetic space of the past in reflection, and transform from the inertia of established reality. Attitude determines the start, goals need to be searched, and practice leads to maturity.
"Twelve Views from the West Part 2" 40cmx50cm
When we are groping forward, there are many difficulties. It is these countless twists and turns, and the strategies and methods of adapting to them. The gains and losses in them force us to put aside certain elements of ink painting and escape. In another space, this kind of reverse behavior or flea-like behavior will make future work often driven by frustration. The illusion is that one day loses something big and gains something small, but one day it is inevitable to lose something small and gain something big. In the past three years, my art practice has not stopped, and I have experienced it personally. I believe this is not a lie, because actions are more convincing than words.
What we can do can only be verified by examining our own state of self-examination, acting in a self-pleasant way, and obtaining satisfactory results. It goes round and round, pursuing it relentlessly. When the fire reaches its peak, experience purifies everything. Everything is under control and everything will be understood.
When a real materialization is completed in the process, what remains is the precise adjustment of the whole and the parts, as well as the controllability of the details, which becomes a normal work. The most important thing is the penetration of a high degree of aesthetic emotion, which is the catalyst for fluidity and change. As for the cultural upbringing and "encouragement" (Shi Tao's words) that have gone through years, it seems to be all hidden. It is hidden in A quantity that appears due to internal energy movement, that is, a vector related to physics. In the investigation of the structure of art, it is similar to the structure of human life, so there is communication and emotion between people and art, and the Dunhuang painting style should be the product of the interaction of hot and cold winds.
At this point, "what good can we do" is placed in front of us. "Good" has limits and is relative. Of course, absolute right and wrong, good and bad do not exist. Bounds range the state. On this bumpy and muddy road of exploration, on the premise of obtaining aesthetic images, the depth of artistic thinking is very critical. The subsequent work is assisted by professional rules and carried out relying on artistic rules. Only those who can "approach the Tao in technique" It is something done by a genius, but under normal circumstances the behavior is simple and unpretentious, striving to be effective, and the dream is close to purity.
When the standard of "good" is defined in terms of thinking, it becomes a goal and becomes a mixture in the process, at the expense of time. Not all practices will be profitable, and the probability of even being damaged is very high. Artistic actions often lead to unsatisfactory results when they approach their dreams again and again. On the road of intelligent compounding, "if it's good, it's good, if it's not good, it's bad", and every painting product is "good" again and again. It is like the bars on the music score, the phrases in the articles, and the flatness of the poems, all of which strive for beauty. The degree of "goodness" is immeasurable, and the beautiful form has entered into fractal geometry. It seems to have the order of numerical control, the balance of vision, or the memory of the mind. In this arduous temper, human will plays a role because of its endurance. If you can complete a career with three to five years or a lifetime of energy, it is great. Cao Xueqin in the Qing Dynasty was such a person.
In the analysis of the quality of artistic works, cultural weight and thickness are usually relied upon, which is a very correct standard. However, in the prism of excellent works, there are other hidden human feelings, suffering and joy, etc. But in any case, do not ignore the materiality on the material level. If the Dunhuang Grottoes art does not have all-round material coexistence, it cannot be said to be the remains of art. Looking at the grottoes themselves and the colorful sculptures and murals, they use natural and simple materials to create a religious ashram - a Buddhist kingdom on earth. This is true and true, and this is true cause and effect. It should also be the basic condition for the creation of Dunhuang painting style.
When we enter the kingdom of beauty, at the moment when creativity is constantly sprouting, we also have choices and abandonments in the combination of technology and materials. As for the structural development of works of art, we need to face all the excellent traditions in history and communicate and apply them comprehensively. "Using" is faster than stealing. How to use it? That is a personal matter, that is, the effectiveness verification of ability will always accompany it. It is not difficult for us to find that the way to do something well is to start from doing one thing well, so that we can deduce it and avoid being scattered. "Good" must be reflected in the """ of each work, and this """ is the """ of a large number of works. Only with a certain amount of works can there be a qualitative leap, and only with a group of outstanding works can a school of aesthetic form be formed. The generation, growth, prosperity, and failure of anything are manifestations of the energy laws of the universe, and artistic creation cannot avoid them. Only from this standpoint can artistic reconstruction gain new life through "keeping one's fate" and "fighting one's best". Dunhuang painting style will also be spoken by the work itself, and its charm will be self-sufficient.
So far, I have written so many feeble words, but I still cannot fully express my intention. It is not as direct as the works. I just want to express an original intention, to study and practice the strategies we want to do, what we can do and what we can do according to the laws of art. When considering cultural and technical aspects, work should be carried out according to the individual. Only in this way can the new Dunhuang painting style supplement history, write history and withstand the test of history.
