Accumulating Bits in Brush and Ink, Makes Sincerity Outstanding

---Thoughts of Flower-and-Bird Paintings of Mr. Li Wei

Written in Chinese by Liu Dajun

Recently when surfing the net, I saw paintings of Mr. Li Wei and two comments on Mr. Li Wei. One was Appreciating Flower-and-Bird Paintings of Mr. Li Wei by Mr. Ge Lu, the other was Collecting Widely and Extensively, Originally Creating and Seeking Fresh – Thoughts After the Paintings Show of Mr. Li Wei by a friend Mr. Jiang Chengqing. Being an old friend of Mr. Li Wei, I was more than happy, and full of thoughts. So I wrote the humble words as follows.

According to th e Appreciating Flower-and-Bird Painting of Mr. Li Wei by Mr. Ge Lu, Mr. Li Wei's painting works, influenced by Taoism, “are seeking simplicity and nature”. Besides it, I think paintings of his old age even have a kind of Buddhist thoughts that “everything has its own natural character”. Buddhist thoughts can release the sparks hidden in the cockles of everyone's heart. Because he was animadverted on wrongly when he was young, Mr. Li Wei had been twenty years in Gansu in exile. In spite of the hard experiences, his artistic talents and sparks were just oppressed and contorted, never snuffed out. In his old age, through the subtlety of Buddhist thoughts, this freedom of worldly cares can be set free, expressed, and outspreaded freely. It is because of the comprehension that “one's own natural character is Buddha ”that Mr. Li Wei prefers his own feelings in paintings when he is in his old age, and thus gains a kind of spiritual freedom! One thing gave me the deepest impression. In the summer of 2001, when Literary History Research Institute in Jilin Province held an individual paintings exhibition for Mr. Li Wei in China Art Gallery in Beijing , Mr. Qi Gong went to exhibition in person in spite of his venerable age and summer heat, and cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony. Later, Mr. Qi Gong looked round at the paintings on display carefully. When he saw a painting named “Winter Sparrow” , Mr. Qi Gong watched for a long time at the interesting and lingering charm with which the winter sparrow flying freely in front of withered branches, and said gently, “So free!” After the event, the painting was published on The Study of Zhouyi , the same with Yi , The Book of Changes , and I wrote a poem, complimenting the ease and freedom of “enjoying water, enjoying mountain” in Mr. Li Wei's paintings:

(General meaning: Withered branches and old trees were hanging over the mountain stream, and a winter sparrow was flying with ease and freedom. Although it was windy and cold on the branches, it enjoyed mountain rather than enjoying water.)

Mr. Shi Tao said in Quotations of Monk Ku Gua , “Paintings are the natural rules with which the sky corresponds with the land, the essence of the positions of mountains and rivers, the edification of the ancient and modern world, and the current of Qi and Yi and Yang (in Chinese thought, they are the two opposing principles in nature, yin feminine and negative, yang masculine and positive). I think painting is just describing everything both in the heaven and on the earth through brush and ink!” If Mr. Li Wei doesn't have profound knowledge, how does he know “the natural rules with which the sky corresponds with the land”, or “the current of Qi of Yin and Yang”? It is because of Yi that Mr. Li Wei and got to know each other, became attached to each other, and finally became bosom friends. In the winter of 1987, Mr. Li Wei took part in “The First International Academic Seminar of Zhouyi” called and held by me. Also during this meeting, I got to know Mr. Jiang Chengqing. On this meeting, Mr. Li Wei came out with his essay Beauty Lies in Yi which studied the great Yi culture and Chinese Painting. The essay probed into the relations between painting and Yi theories such as “the way of three features”, “the two principles in Taiji, in ancient Chinese thought, Taiji, which is a circular image divided into two principles Yin and Yang, is the origin of everything in the world)”, “the heaven and earth are thick due to the dense mist”, and “Yin and Yang are uncertain”. Especially in Yi theories, he thought “the theory that Yin and Yang are uncertain is a field in aesthetics that cannot be neglected”. He wrote, “There is mystery in Tao. The mystery lies not far from everyone, yet not so close for ever. This is the place in which the ever-lasting charm lies. And this is the very point that paintings of Ba Da Shan Ren are excellent.” I was greatly attracted and moved by the essay. While Mr. Jiang Chengqing came out with his essay Zhouyi and the Spirit of Chinese Art . The essay was different in approach but equally satisfactory in result with Mr. Li Wei's theory. In the summer of 1997, “The Third Academic Seminar of Zhouyi of Both Coasts of Taiwan Strait” was held in Beijing , and this time Mr. Li Wei came out with his essay The Recipe of Chinese Calligraphy and Painting lies in Taiji . Using Yi theories, he probed into this famous sentence said by modern great master of landscape painting Mr. Huang Binhong. He analyzed and introduced deeply Taiji, brush-using, ink-using and appreciating of calligraphy and painting, and pointed out that connotation was one of the basic characters of Chinese aesthetics. We might taste this connotation in many aspects, involving all artistic categories. In the first edition of The Study of Zhouyi in 2000, he published essay Talking Again about Zhouyi and Chinese Painting . In this essay, he probed theoretically and all-roundly into the relations between upright, foursquare and harmonious. What I admire the most is that Mr. Li Wei is not only a famous Chinese Painting master, but also an excellent scholar who, combining with Yi theories, probes into Chinese Painting theories.

How can Mr. Li Wei have such intensive study of Yi theories? Talking about this, we may not avoid talking about the forming of the style, the charm and the techniques of Mr. Li Wei's paintings: In his early years, Mr. Li Wei served Mr. Han Buyan, a famous Chinese Painter, as teacher. Mr. Han was a student of Great Master Ku Chan. Because he was appreciated by Great Master Ku Chan, he was recommended by Great Master Ku Chan to his teacher Venerable Elder Baishi (honorific title of Mr. Qi Baishi), and later Mr. Han served Baishi as teacher as long as seven years. Thus Mr. Han Buyan learned the vigor of painting styles of his teachers Mr. Ku Chan and Mr. Baishi completely. Mr. Li Wei learned from him uniquely. He has special talent and such natural disposition that he dislikes seeking fame and wealth. So we may well say that “Only calm lake can get spring rain, and only dense flowers can fix in a thatched cottage”. Mr. Han Buyan appreciated Mr. Li Wei so much that he sent Mr. Li Wei's paintings to great master Mr. Li Kuchan. Great Master Ku Chan checked, commented, and perfected Mr. Li Wei's paintings one by one carefully, and went to the post office to sent the paintings back in person. He also informed by an autograph letter, “The keys in theories of Chinese Literati Paintings lie in Yi .” The sentence of Great Master Ku Chan shook Mr. Li Wei so greatly that in 1962 he aspired to read Yi as well as study Yi . More than ten years later, because Mr. Li Wei can describe things with the implication of Yi , little by little his paintings came to a stage of “flag moves not because wind moves” but “one who feels flag and wind move because he himself in moved”.

Just because there is the Yi spirit of “clean, profound and subtle” in Mr. Li Wei's paintings, he can give up invariable, apply the brushes freely according to the situations, and express the quality of natural, pure and mild through each brush when he is painting. And he just placed hardships and happiness of life on this painting stage throughout these years. Mr. Dong Qichang in Essay on Meditation Hall of Painting , “The Tao of painting lies in that the whole universe is in one's hands and one can see nothing but vital force. Thus the painters tend to have long time.” Each time when Mr. Li Wei took part in an academic seminar, and there were meetings of calligraphy and painting during the seminar, I would see Mr. Li Wei's indulging feelings which were forthright and sincere. Each time he's painting, he always couldn't help dissolving himself into the paintings. Sometimes he drew a painting of “ Crane Warbling in the North of Mountain ” which was far, light, clear and with ease. Sometimes he drew a painting of “ Tiger Howling ” which was pure, austere, simple and thick. In his paintings, the light and swinging brushes, and quiet and deep flavor would always enlighten watchers with flawless taste, and made watchers let off their noble spirit. This is also the reason why Mr. Li Wei could always keep healthy and calm during his busyness.

Maybe because of my preference and prejudice, in my eye, Mr. Li Wei's paintings are almost all “beautiful works”. Just as a friend Mr. Jiang Chengqing said, “Even a grass, deadwood has it special aesthetic value, and causes watchers fascinated.” While at the same time, Mr. Chengqing believed, “Because of thinking too much on ‘way of water', some modern Chinese painters tend to harm the brusher. That is, using water inappropriately tends to made the whole painting a dense pitch-dark. And in several places, Mr. Li Wei sometimes also has this carelessness and misplay. “In my humble opinion, the “carelessness” and “misplay” that Mr. Li Wei “sometimes” has, is the very stage in his paintings of obtaining ease, interest, rhyme, and charm when he is in his old age. This is like what Mr. Ni Zan said in Collected Edition of Qingmen House (Volume Nine). Postscript of Painting Bamboos . “Yizhong loves watching me painting bamboos. I just want to express my leisure and mood for enjoyments through painting bamboos. So who cares about if they are true to the real one, if their leaves are flourish or sparse, and if their branches are straight or slanting? Or sometimes I paint them thick for a long time; someone would take them as flaxes or bulrushes, and I would not defend oneself by sophistry that they are really bamboos.” In Yuan'an Lying in the Snow by famous painter Wang Wei, the painter even painted a cluster of bananas in the snow just expressing his artistic conception, regardless of the space-time conception in common people. And this also belongs to the stage.

When a painter comes to this stage, views this kind of charm, he can express his bosom through painting, similar while transformable to the real image, not seeking time and space, or similar in shape. This is the very subliming course of a painter from one stage taking persons as teachers, up to next stage taking real things as teachers, and again up to the stage taking his feelings and bosom as teachers, that “first taking shapes, and then learning the real source is one's heart and spirit”. This stage of aesthetics seeking comes from Chinese traditional culture in which painters' virtue, self-cultivation, and temperament are influenced by the theories of Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism. Just as Mr. Su Shi said, “Watching different people's paintings is like watching horses all round world, just taking their bearing and spirit.” So in Mr. Chengqing's saying, the “carelessness” and “misplay” that a painter “sometimes” has is very likely an “aura of his new stage”. This is literati painters' superb stage of not sticking to be similar in shapes.

Mr. Chengqing and I have been old friends for many years, and Mr. Jiang Chengqing is many years older than me. So as a younger brother, I sing a tune opposite to Mr. Jiang, “shielding a shortcoming of fault” for Mr. Li Wei. I think Mr. Jiang most probably won't blame it. According to Mr. Jiang, “The coverings of fans that Mr. Li Wei painted are very appealing and interesting in which there are not many brushes, and colors and ink are light and delicate, while the lingering charm is far-reaching.” Because I hadn't seen many of them, I won't say much about it.

In general, Mr. Li Wei's paintings are natural, leisure and comfortable, clear and moist, while at the same time having ancient styles. The flavor is inherent, not acquired during his life. While what can be learned during his life is that he insisted on self-amusing, and constantly strived to become stronger through painting in spite of all the hardships he experienced. He was eager to learn tirelessly even in difficult position, reading a large quantity of books, traveling a lot of different places. Clearing away all the dirt and dust, thus he had nothing left but mountains in his mind. Especially when he was in his old age, Mr. Li Wei admires the most Great Master Li Kuchan. While what common people admire Great Master Ku Chan the most is that in his paintings, there isn't even one fawning works. So his works con express the real Chinese literati painting spirit to the greatest extent. Mr. Li Wei gasps from the bottom of his heart in admiration. “This virtue of Mr. Ku Chan is the very one I want to learn in my whole life, but cannot acquire for ever. Never reach it!” Mr. Li Wei can put literati styles and spirits, which are in books of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, into his own works. Accumulating bits in brush and ink makes sincerity outstanding. There is one sentence in Yi , “When one has grand and intelligent views and develops them fully, everything goes smoothly in his mind!” Now when I'm watching Mr. Li Wei's painting works, I prefer this sentence in Yi as the most suitable comment.

   (Originally published in the Painting Works of Li Wei)