-Impression of Macau's visit to Dong Qichang Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition and the origin of writing this article: Cao Peng

Dong Qichang, a great master in the history of China's calligraphy and painting, is one of the key topics I have been paying attention to and studying for a long time. In other words, I try my best to collect and study all the information related to Dong Qichang; I always try to visit any exhibition with Dong Qichang's works: as for Dong Qichang's calligraphy and painting being taken out by collectors, no matter whether it is true or not, I have never refused a purposeful opportunity. In the third quarter of this year, the "Southern Compass" Dong Qichang Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition was held in Macau, which is the largest Dong Qichang special exhibition ever. When I heard the news, I was fascinated. It happened that Mr. Xu Daxuan of Belgoring Company invited me to write a landscape book, and I needed to visit many cities including Hong Kong and Macao, so I had a trip to Hong Kong and Macao in early winter. This also made me go to Macau to see the special exhibition of Dong Qichang's calligraphy and painting, which was a good thing for me to kill two birds with one stone-of course, xu teacher didn't know about it, and I didn't plan to visit Macau extra. Everything was arranged according to the schedule, so it came naturally. People are a little good to me, and I dare not forget it. It is a great blessing in my life to have this blessing, and I can remember it in my heart, so thank you by the way.

The exhibition venue is located in the newly-built Macao Art Museum, and the level and facilities of the exhibition hall have definitely reached the international first-class level. Thanks to the strong support of Macao authorities, MAM (Macao Art Museum for short) has successfully held many exhibitions since its opening, which is enough to make people look at Macao's cultural image and boldness. Dong Qichang Special Exhibition is the latest one. I knew in advance that there were about 100 works to be exhibited. When I arrived at the scene, I felt that the grandeur of the momentum was greatly unexpected, far from being comparable to the general 100 works exhibition. I calculated in my mind that this 100 piece refers to the name of the work, and each work often includes many exhibits. For example, no matter how many pages are opened, it is only one, no matter how long the book is, it is only one-the longest calligraphy book is more than 20 meters, all of which are spread in a glass cabinet, and the effect is shocking. In fact, there are hundreds of exhibits in this exhibition! In terms of scale and grade, it is the largest painting and calligraphy exhibition in Dong Qichang in history, and it can be called an art garden event.

Although the Macao Art Museum and the authorities have this feat, it is a pity that there are not many visitors (at least not many when I visit). On the one hand, there are too few harmonious people in Chun Xue, and on the other hand, there is not enough publicity and advertising. Moreover, it is not convenient for mainlanders to go to Macao, especially those with a certain administrative level, who have to go through official examination and approval procedures before leaving the country. )。 Of course, it is only relative to say that publicity is not enough. Organizers have done some publicity. On the platform of the Hong Kong subway station across the sea, you can see the poster of "Nanzong Beidou", but the layout is too small to have any influence. Besides, the elegance and effectiveness of graphic design are sometimes two different things. There are really too few experts who know both calligraphy and painting, plane and communication operation rules. It can be said that there is no one else in the world today, so we can't ask for perfection.

In the past Sino-French Cultural Year, both the Impressionist Art Exhibition and Picasso's solo exhibition were sensational, and the exhibition hall was crowded with people. Regardless of Dong Qichang and Impressionism. Picasso's ups and downs, in fact, among China people, people who really understand Impressionism and Picasso are far from Dong Qichang's. This is not the same as being a dwarf. The attraction of foreign art exhibitions is nothing more than great publicity and catering to the blind worship of western culture by Chinese people.

Such a high-level painting and calligraphy exhibition should have been a grand gathering of art theory and academic circles. There are so many national salaries, subsidies, funds and scientific research funds in China (needless to say, I have never received any of these things, although I think no one is more qualified in the professional fields I have studied. Today's intellectuals don't know what it means to kill three scholars with two peaches, otherwise hehe! Rousseau won a prize for his paper "On the Origin of Human Inequality" written to the French authorities. Unfortunately, there is no such system in China, otherwise this paper may win government funding for the author. It is supposed that someone who is engaged in the study of ancient calligraphy and painting will publish a big article, but so far I haven't read anything of real weight. You're welcome to say that even the previously published works on Dong Qichang studies are mostly vague and pedantic except the papers of a few mathematicians such as Mr. Wu Yifu. This is not surprising. Imagine that without Dong Qichang's consistent knowledge structure and values, attitude towards life, cultural accomplishment and artistic attainments, as well as his situation, vision, knowledge, friends, mentality and interests, how could he understand, recognize and explain Dong Qichang's literary skills? Dong Qichang quoted a saying, "You can't teach until you meet a teacher", which is a wise saying, that is, learning is like accumulating salary, and then you will come later. Of course, future generations should be more knowledgeable than their predecessors. At least when the researcher takes an ancient person as the academic object, it is absolutely necessary and necessary to master the basic situation of the research object. The ancients always had poems to celebrate this moment. Climbing high and empowering is a fine tradition of Chinese culture. Preface to Lanting is the most famous of its kind. In major events, the ancients often said that "poetry is indispensable", even those heroes in Liangshanpo who are far from fully reading poetry books are no exception. Although a mere scholar has been writing poetry, he knows that it is no longer the age of poetry (it is the age of songs), and he can still say "no matter" when he meets such a high-level painting and calligraphy exhibition. After returning to Beijing from Macau, I reread all the paintings, albums and historical materials of Dong Qichang, and I felt a lot. I didn't want to say anything unpleasant, so I wrote it down, which is good for both the public and the public.

Many people write academic papers and like to quote classics to show their norms. In a large number of works about Dong Qichang that I have consulted, the repetition rate of quoting Dong Qichang's painting theory or inscription is distasteful. This is also the characteristic of many Mr. Dong Bing. Without quotations, there is no way to make a statement. Because of the lack of their own views and opinions, they can only follow suit, sacrifice, lose money, and connect old materials with cliches. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, higher education has trained all these mediocrities, but these people who can't even write a word have become professors, tutors, researchers and research librarians, and even think that learning in the world is really that easy. This is really the shame and misfortune of China culture. Most people who write books for fame and reputation do not act as readers internally. However, any professional articles and books are valuable only if they are respected by professionals. As a writer, I have always been reluctant to learn from others and ashamed to share with others, especially those who are mediocre and vulgar. Therefore, this article will try to avoid quoting Dong Qichang directly. Of course, necessary quotations are still needed. Bibliography and book shadow are attached. I try to make readers who haven't read the original works and historical materials of Dong Qichang's paintings have a basic understanding. People who have seen Dong Qichang's works and historical materials actually don't have any quotations, so I can see that I am well-founded, and the so-called "no source" among painters. Some quotations are based on memory, but I am reluctant to check the specific page number. Please forgive me.

The first chapter is the distinction between true and false calligraphy and painting.

When I visited the exhibition, I was inevitably interested in the authenticity of the exhibits, and I couldn't help thinking of the famous saying in the advertising industry: "Of course I know that half of the advertising expenses are wasted, but the problem is that I don't know which half is wasted." To be sure, there are so many calligraphy and paintings in Dong Qichang, but we don't know what they are. More rationally, we should realize that Dong Qichang's paintings and calligraphy that we can appreciate today are not only Dong Qichang's handwriting and ghostwriting, but also an impostor who is regarded as a Dong Qichang-style fake, and of course, the imitation of others or future generations. In addition, Dong Qichang's original works were damaged and smeared by later generations. For example, in Yu Shaosong's Collection of Paintings and Calligraphy, it is recorded that "Wang Xiangquan and Dong Xiangguang have a long box and asked me to fill it in." If you can't find these materials, who can see the origin and authenticity of this painting?

Wu Hufan is a great collector of Dong Qichang's paintings and calligraphy. Many of the exhibits provided by the Shanghai World Expo are Wu's old collections, with inscriptions or postscript on them and textual research. In his April diaries 1933 and 14, he wrote: "Dongxiang, which belongs to the topic of Gu Sun, has a more obvious attendance rate than Qian Wen, the supreme of Shu Dong, but many people at sea know nothing about it, saying it is a fake book. Why be ridiculous?" Alas, calligraphy and painting are so difficult to learn! "Experts say that Dong's handwriting is hard to get. So fakes are much less than paintings, and identification is much easier. After reading this passage by Wu Hufan, you should know calligraphy and painting.

Identification is really not a simple matter. You know, all the experts he laughed at are much higher than the most authoritative experts now!

The authenticity of ancient paintings and calligraphy works is very complicated, and it is difficult to determine, especially in Dong Qichang, a representative writer, whether the fake is true or not. I'm afraid no one can tell 100% which one is true except himself. My attitude towards calligraphy and painting appraisal is that it is easy to judge whether it is good or bad, but difficult to judge whether it is true or not. If there must be a statement about truth and falsehood, it is easy to see falsehood, but it is really difficult to see falsehood. Of course, most of the poor artistry are fakes, and the high artistry is not necessarily true. You can often see some so-called experts in the field of calligraphy and painting, who show an authoritative posture in calligraphy and painting. It seems that the truth and falsehood are clear and irrefutable. In my opinion, this is either deceiving the world or deceiving yourself, which is by no means a scientific attitude. In the history of appraisal, it is recorded that Emperor Qianlong mocked two volumes of Fuchun Shan Jutu. In fact, this matter is not simple, because the imperial court has concentrated the top experts in calligraphy and painting appraisal, and no one dares to commit the crime of deceiving the monarch and dereliction of duty. So, I'm afraid the two volumes are really exquisite, at least with arguments or reasons. Imagine that even the emperor sometimes has nothing to do with the identification of calligraphy and painting. What capital do ordinary people have to be so arbitrary? Therefore, only the so-called authoritative appraisal is unconvincing. Even the very famous calligraphy and painting appraisal team in those days, despite the improvisation (especially Xie, Liu Jiu 'an and Liu Jiu 'an, whose works became classics and reference books for calligraphy and painting appraisal), was only skin and bones and could not be irrefutable.

In fact, the initial appraisal activities of the calligraphy and painting appraisal group were not so much academic tasks as administrative work. Because it is organized by the government, the appraisal is bound to have an official color-in other words, all the disadvantages of doing things within the system may occur. The parties also admit that there are contradictions and conflicts even among several appraisal institutions. Some calligraphy and painting are different, even if it is true when the team draws the work conclusion, it is not necessarily false, and vice versa. According to logical reasoning, what all members of the group see is true or false, or it may be unjust, false or wrong. After all, the question of authenticity is too complicated, involving too many factors and possibilities. Even the collector Dong Qichang's comments on the authenticity of calligraphy and painting are sometimes untrue. Wu Lifu once said that the evaluation made by Dong Qichang sometimes to win or sell a famous work is not necessarily true (see On Famous Artists, page 9 1). Of course, the collective appraisal after the cultural catastrophe has made indelible contributions to sorting out and protecting the heritage of calligraphy and painting, which cannot be ignored.

This exhibition produced four volumes of Huang Huang's letters, which were arranged scientifically. In particular, the Works Description Manual and Shang You Lu, which are collections of works by Dong Qichang Wenyou painters and painters, are divided into two volumes, which are convenient for browsing and distinguish different contents. Catalogue, interpretation and textual research, out of collective cooperation, of course, are mainly experts, which basically reflects the current level of calligraphy and painting appraisal, and also has some professional analysis on the authenticity of the exhibits, especially recording the specific opinions of Xu Bangda and other predecessors on specific works, which is of great reference value. If you read the text carefully, you will find that some mistakes are not technical mistakes, but mistakes made by the author of the text in reading sentences. For example, there is a sentence in the explanation of the title after the painting of "Eight Scenes of Yanwu": "See the teacher, reduce the number of teachers by half, and you can only teach after seeing the teacher." Obviously, "virtue" is mistaken for "line", so it is broken like this and won't work. This is a common saying. Dong Qichang's related materials have been quoted repeatedly, but there are still such mistakes. We'll know the rest. This is incredible.

The second chapter is Dong Qichang's ghostwriting and donation works.

Dong Qichang's status and position make it impossible for him to engage in commercial creation, because it is not necessary. He can forget all about eating and sleeping for painting and calligraphy, but he won't work regularly day after day to sell money. His interest in painting and calligraphy is entirely out of interest rather than interest. Just because he doesn't point to selling paintings for dinner doesn't mean he doesn't get involved in the painting and calligraphy market. His calligraphy and painting don't sell for money. He didn't intend to make money by calligraphy and painting, but he turned out to be the leader in the calligraphy and painting market. Because of his reputation, Dong Qichang's paper was used as an arch wall, and he didn't want to sell it. However, people who want to buy his works flock to us, and at the same time, the inevitable entertainment and dismissal also follow, which is natural through the ages. Therefore, it is normal for Dong Qichang to have a ghostwriter, and he will make a temporary choice. In other words, with Dong Qichang's position and vision, the painters he instructed or appointed must have first-class artistic level. Of course, it is said that there are also people in his family, specifically mistresses or even n mistresses, which is a little gamification, so it is very complicated.

With Dong Qichang's talent, Dong Qichang's diligence and enthusiasm, and Dong Qichang's diligence and conditions, his accomplishments in painting and calligraphy certainly far exceed those of his contemporaries. If Dong Qichang is looking for someone to grab a knife to save trouble and be lazy, if he is plastic surgery, looting, or even enriching himself, then we should not falsely accuse the ancients. Some scholars think that Dong Qichang's own brush is clumsy, and he relies entirely on ghostwriting, which means that dogs look down on people.

The biggest essential difference between literati painters and commercial painters is whether the purpose of creation is for themselves or for others. Writing for oneself is an elegant style that literati can bear. Whether anyone buys their own works will not affect their creation. On the other hand, the painter devotes himself to serving customers. When painting, they want to sell. If there is no business, they will definitely jump ship. Of course, these two choices are not only determined by realm and taste, but more importantly, there are two economic situations: rich and poor. Literati painting is natural and unrestrained because the literati are pampered, and the painter has to be market-oriented because of food and clothing. According to this standard, the current Chinese painting circle is basically a painter, which is nothing more than the price level. A daughter looks very happy. As long as she is a money word in the end, her identity can be determined.

In the past, because people in the upper class were educated, they were considered to know everything about poetry, painting and calligraphy. Therefore, all prominent officials and celebrities have writers. In particular, high-ranking officials and dignitaries will hire a professional secretarial team from lawyers (criminal names or legal advisers) to accountants (accountants) and secretaries. At that time, it was called entering the curtain, and according to western parlance, it was a personal assistant. Dong Qichang is no exception. Xie He has studied the ghostwriters in Dong Qichang. There is no doubt that besides the known "suspects", there will be many possible ghostwriters, because Dong Qichang traveled around the country in several stages, and he wanted to be famous at that time. I'm afraid the calligraphy and painting business can't stop once it starts, so it's normal to find a ghostwriter according to local conditions. According to the social environment and habits at that time, all works created for sale or entertainment, in my opinion, are basically made by people. There is a simple reason. Dong Qichang has money, so he doesn't need to invest to sell it. Of course, he won't push the money delivered to his door. Therefore, it is natural to find someone to ghostwrite. At that time, ghostwriting was not only a shame, but also a style. The parties will not feel guilty about the fraud, but feel at ease-as long as the inscription and seal are true, it means that Dong Qichang has approved it. For buyers who want to show off and brag, it is enough to have the works of famous artists and have a certain relationship with them (so ancient paintings and calligraphy will be accused of embellishment in the last paragraph). The calligraphy and painting market is not for experts to spend money, and experts will not spend money. From ancient times to the present, it is still strong.

For artists, bosom friends are the most precious. So, on the one hand, Dong Qichang has a ghostwriter to cope with the market-any painting that is too beautiful, too detailed and too big may be a ghostwriter, because Dong Qichang thinks that the style of painting is not for people like himself; On the other hand, there are many excellent products that are given to intimate friends for nothing. Li Rihua said that "Dong Zongbo likes to be attached to calligraphy everywhere". Although he is talking about calligraphy, it is also applicable to painting. His best works are either paid for by friends, or neither printed nor paid for at all. Wu Hufan said that the best paintings in Dong Qichang are often inscribed and not printed. There is more than one album in this exhibition, and one of them doesn't even have an inscription. By the way, in my opinion, in the era of Dong Qichang, the layout of paintings was basically fixed, and lettering became an indispensable part of works. Therefore, if there is no inscription or seal, it is not necessarily particularly exquisite, but it is more likely to be a random work or an unfinished work. Looking at the giant axis is a powerful proof that there is no work without money and seal. Of course, having complete stamps is part of the sale, isn't it?

It is also true that the author does not intend to sell the printed instructions.

In the former, the famous gracefu hut map was presented to Chen Jiru. In this exhibition, Jiashu's dark scrolls were presented to Xuan Yin Bibi, Gaoyi's scrolls were presented to Jiang Daoshu, and so on. There are also many farewell words in the previous paragraph. Dong Qichang must have many friends from all over the world on business trip. Not only personally, but also send paintings to friends, such as the inscription "Why the World", which records that "Sanchishan was tested in the past and sent from Wuyi."

One of the biggest differences between China painters and western painters is whether they give away their works for free. Painters in China have been sending paintings since ancient times (powerful people will insist, and Gong Xian's death is an obvious example), because China culture cherishes friendship and bosom friends, and literati disdain to sell money with calligraphy and painting. For a painter in Dong Qichang's position, he can give it for nothing, but no one else can. In contrast, western painters are much more pitiful, petty, haggle over every ounce and believe in the principle of equal exchange. Therefore, on the grounds of cherishing their artistic labor, they are determined not to give it away for nothing and can't afford it. In the west, no one has to ask the painter for nothing, and the painter will not give it for nothing. Recently, the west wind has gradually spread eastward. On the contrary, the art world regards the style of western painters who are only willing to sell money and refuse to give it away as self-esteem and value, forgetting that all works of art are not commodities. If all works become commodities, they are not China's paintings and calligraphy. Handan is a toddler, forgetting one's ancestors is unreasonable.

Several senior painters and painters I respect are very generous. For example, Mr. Xu Hongbin, a famous flower-and-bird painter and the first fine-brushwork national artist, presented me with paintings at the first meeting. At that time, I was just a junior scholar, with no status and no rights. In fact, I have been unable to help Mr. Xu for many years. The old man probably thought I was still studious and congenial. Later, I learned that this is how xu teacher taught him. All the students can get his paintings as models, not to mention his colleagues and friends. He said that this was given to him by his teachers and other famous teachers. This is the wind of the ancients.

Whether a work is given away is actually a very convincing external indicator to judge whether a person is a painter or a literary painter. Mr. Cao Yulin elaborated this in his book Dong Qichang and the North-South School of Landscape Painting, and pointed out that Dong Qichang emphasized that the South School "takes painting as a gift and takes painting as a pleasure", which is not for the benefit of painting, at least not for selling paintings for a living. Dong Qichang knew that the vitality of art lies in communication, especially in getting people, that is, finding an ideal admirer for himself. From this perspective, it is very important for a painter to know who to sell his works to, and more importantly, to know who to give them to. The former only has economic value, while the latter is related to artistic value and even artistic status. Because since most people who spend money are amateurs, if you want to ensure that your artistic creation is understood and valued, you have to be targeted. This is the case with the late painter Huang. He would rather give his paintings to people who can appreciate and understand his works than sell them to rich people who simply don't understand them at a high price. Facts have proved that this strategy is far-sighted, and the fame behind them actually depends mainly on intimate friends. Chen Chuanxi, a famous art critic, once told me about Yaming and joked that if he gave himself twenty paintings, he would make Yaming's artistic achievements more influential behind him. Although it is a joke, it makes sense to think about it. Because of this, I have great respect for my predecessors who sent me calligraphy and painting. On the one hand, I was flattered, on the other hand, I couldn't help but have an interest in further research. In fact, the original paintings and calligraphy are also the most important first-hand materials for art research.

On the other hand, high-priced painters in the market now sell more money to whoever pays, and no one will give it away for nothing except the National Art Gallery and Museum and interested officials. This only shows that these people are poor-because they already have a lot of money, but money worship makes them greedy and become businessmen who can only sell money. It is precisely for this reason that there are fewer real painters now, and more are self-employed and nouveau riche who paint.

Chapter III Dong Qichang's collection, copying and antiques.

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