Introduction
Working on this assignment I have gotten deeper into the gist of Chinese landscape painting solely on the example of Shitao. The overall analysis of features discussed in his Huayu Lu helps in delineating particular points in the style of painting. Further still it is quite clear to me now that landscape painting is not an ordinary reflection of the natural sceneries, as they are. Owing to the Sections 11 and 12 in the book, I could make up my mind over the techniques and philosophy implemented in the art by Shitao. Following the way of how the painter embraces the main scenes and particular attributes in his pictorial art, I am aware now of the uniqueness incorporated in his works as opposed to his contemporaries.
What is more, I have learnt that the movements of wrist and brush respectively should be in focus, first of all. Art is not just a product of an artist’s imagination, but a way of how an artist could materialize such creative ideas at large. This point has been taken by me as a credo which Shitao secured during his entire life. To date, I can definitely approach to the mastership of arranging trees on the back of mountains in paintings. Furthermore, it is up to me to make it as Shitao admits in his book. All in all, such a sort of extended maturity in terms of arts was perceived by me due to a deeper evaluation of everything briefly encompassed by the painter in a few sections of his book. Nevertheless, everything gotten due to this course will serve as a great prerequisite for further readings in Chinese art.
Summary
The two sections represented in Huayu Lu provide Shitao’s commentaries on painting, as he understands it. The first part (Section 11) is titled Shortcuts. Here the author calls attention to the main six features which are to be analyzed as the pivotal points in Shitao’s art. The scope of their evaluation is concise and requires an observer to consider them for personal understanding of the gist in Chinese landscape painting by Shitao. These elements are represented at the very outset and are as follows:
- Focusing on the main scene but not on the mountains;
- Focusing on the mountains but not on the main scene;
- A slanting scene;
- Supplementing a scene;
- Creating a sense of detachment;
- Depicting steep and dangerous scenes (Shih-T’ao 11).
All these features are discussed in the section with mere evaluation of each in its philosophical and stylistic peculiarity. The philosophical approach is constituted on the example of ramifications which the author places as the optimal way to understand each among aforementioned scenes. Continuing discussion on ordinary existence of the main elements in landscape painting, the painter moves an observer’s attention toward the significance of brush and brushstrokes as something transcendent. For Shitao the primordial value of this section is to put a reader into the picture as referred to the peculiarities of style and formal attributes personified in his paintings. This idea is further extended in the next part of the analyzed Huayu Lu (Section 12).
The section is called Forests, Trees, and Plants. The main accent done by Shitao in this part is to show author’s attitudes toward describing trees, in particular. Their spectacular arrangement might attract a viewer, for the painter counts each single tree as important for the whole conception of the painting style. The author gives a reason to the movements of brush and wrist to incorporate a unique depiction of trees.
The main discussion hereby is focused on the tactics chosen by the painter in creating specific strokes which reflect the peculiarity of Shitao’s style. It looks like a set of instructions to be taken for an amateur in following the style of painting trees.
Furthermore, the author especially emphasizes the capability of creating intensity while dispersing the ink on the canvas. It is felt considerably in Shitao’s personal speculations on how to master this style outlined in few sentences. Here one should approach to the reading as solely instructive handout as the whole Huayu Lu is. The author in this section notes the entire importance of his technique not only for painting trees but also mountains. In other words, the author is rather strict in evaluating personal techniques and approaches as the only to reflect his individual style of painting. Nevertheless, such an attitude is provided by Shitao in order to magnify the power of pictorial art as opposed to the power of ordinary words.
Reflections on Shitao’s conception of painting
First read the book, I have understood Shitao’s conception of painting which is in most features repeats his vision of “no style” where the style still exists. Such a controversial standpoint requires more emphasis on the capability of a painter to feel the difference in what is described in the frontal (main) foreshortening and in the background. Painting preached by Shitao hereby declares detachment of the main elements, not their blending.
I have encountered a scope of questions which are directed to the specificity of the work. Painting is dynamic. This particular feature in painting also incorporates the gist of pointing out the main scene and the mountains separately when they are united essentially in one vision (Shih-T’ao 11). Thus, the scope of details which characterize a somehow mysterious and philosophically well-crafted observation of personal style is peculiar for Shitao.
The role of the brush is prior than the hand of a painter. This statement comes out to be true due to the significance which Shitao designates for brush as such. I tried to illuminate the gist of the main message out of the book. There are no limits in painting, as I see. As well, there are no restraints in that a painter could reflect the reality of nature. At this point my personal investigation of the painting, as Shitao draws it up, turns toward the observation of the main details.
It is no wonder that Shitao pays special attention to the power of brush as a means for expression of marvelous episodes in painting on the whole. This is why the painter admits: “To appear truly marvelous, the force of the brush should be revealed” (Shih-T’ao 11). Here lies the essence of Shitao’s philosophy of giving more grounds to such an important instrument in hands of a master.
Chinese traditional philosophy is applicable to Shitao who seeks trustworthiness in natural landscapes. It is amazing that since I first read the sections outlined, I have found out what makes Shitao’s paintings so interesting. The question is that the painter applies to the “creation of detachment sense as something beyond ordinary scope of real things (Shih-T’ao 11). In other words, the painter sees the realm of painting in somewhat transcendent reality of imaginary looks and lines that impress a painter.
In turn it attracts Shitao’s observation of the unique Chinese nature as a fabulous terrain of artistic mastership. Huayu Lu depicted by Shitao singles out the pivotal role of a single stroke implemented in ornamenting the background as well as the attributes referred to the main scene (Shih-T’ao 11). Hence, Chinese colorful traditional features in Shitao’s painting are beyond disagreement.
Detachment spreads over the entire composition of the main elements in paintings by Shitao. It is no surprise exactly, for the painter feels like responsible to mirror the liveliness and spectacular character of mountains, rivers, and trees. It means that Shitao leans toward the execution of true tints and severed measures as related to trees, mountains, and rivers (Shih-T’ao 11). Here lies a component of the want of finish. As a matter of fact, it stimulates a viewer to fantasize about the continuation of the artistic thought in each among Shitao’s paintings. This idea is seen in the author’s personification of the “spirit of nature” which is seen in terms of transcendent reality of a particular kind.
Nevertheless, in commenting his own paintings, Shitao follows a logical way of description. Thereupon, the main attention is grabbed to the most dangerous elements on a painting as they appear to be in reality. It considers steep cliffs, dangerous streams of rivers, or cantilevered paths through the mountains (Shih-T’ao 11). Here lies the only way to perceive these elements of art – that is through transcendent approach. With this kept in mind, Shitao therefore admits: “Only Transcendents could dwell there, no human could fully imagine it” (Shih-T’ao 11). Thus, detachment of main features in paintings leads toward transcendent understanding of the pictorial art by Shitao.
Shitao is a master of experiment applied to form and lines of trees scattered about the hills and mountains, in particular. I felt it after I have read the sections secondly. While painting the sketches reflecting the manner of Shitao I could finally recognize the essence of forms and lines which are magnified by the painter. Once again, the painter admits the significance of detachment among his paintings. Wherein, each element should symbolize a unique untouched feature of the whole painting.
It is Shitao’s honor to magnify and glorify the nature in its diversity but through a detailed description of each element as such. Here emerges his genius in making the holistic observation of vivid and realistic landscapes that lifelike and impressive. The author had chosen the way of describing trees in their many-faceted nature. It means that trees are not depicted as frozen or spiritless. They reflect a detached life of a living creature in the vortex of the proper development in nature. Thus, Shitao apportions trees with particular spiritual values. In part, it should be understood through delineation of “dancing character” of trees, as Shitao views it (Shih-T’ao 12). Further still, an observer should criticize the painting mastership by Shitao in his intentions directed into the wild.
The vividness of trees is supported by the emptiness and spirituality at once. This claim goes forth to the vision of the painter when he paints pines and cedars. An accurate viewer should realize the essence of mystery which is embodied in each single tree as it is in each “single stroke” by Shitao. Based on the sketches by ny own, it is no wonder that there are so many similarities. Moreover, I can explain why I have used this or that feature on a sketch.
This makes the whole thing different. He, actually, ruminates over the features of discontent reality as one with particular precursors for suchlike issue. The method chosen by Shitao is arranging trees in an odd-numbered sequence. It sparks interest in strategic views of the author who wants to personify warriors in such trees (Shih-T’ao 12). To make it plain, an observer is better to take a look at the fragmentary images created by the author.
In this respect the overall estimation of nature is more focused on the tripartite unity of trees, forests, and plants (Shih-T’ao 12). These elements are all over the artistic work by Shitao. Thus, every now and then, the painter take notice of how each element is adjusted to neighboring ones. Nonetheless, it gives grounds to assume that Shitao, perhaps, wanted to impose traits of equilibrium, as a universal rule. Thus, trees which Shitao wants to explain in his paintings take over the devotion of a viewer due to distinctiveness of lines and forms shaping them.
The changeability of trees and mountains can be understood through the change of seasons. In this case Shitao looks at the sceneries in winter and spring. Their characterization is, of course, different. However, the author draws up some explicit parallels. Mountains stay almost the same all year round, while the characterization of trees is transformed through slanting scenes (Shih-T’ao 11).
This is why, as might be seen, Shitao ignored any among banal implementations of traditional themes in Chinese painting. Hence, he invigorates a viewer to look some feature “behind the scenes,” meaning the life each tree lives separately on canvases. With a change of seasons mountains change in their characteristic associations with something old (in winter) and obscure (in spring). The main approaches to explain this characterization of trees on the back of mountains can fall into a two-type demonstration of slanting and supplementing scenes. Despite them, the author was not inclined to manifest something more. Hence, there is mere suggestion to take Shitao’s art as a given.
To understand Shitao’s conception in landscape painting, it is necessary to focus on six main shortcuts outlined in Huayu Lu. My vision now is more grounded on the way I could follow Shitao’s mastership but with personal kind of strokes on a sketch. These parts briefly underline the main motives in painting which Shitao turned out into a whole teaching in Chinese pictorial art. In this respect, as the author represents it, one should not mix the six shortcuts suggested by Shitao, namely: highlighting the main scene but not the mountains; paying attention to the mountains but not on the main scene; implementation of slanting scene; incorporation of supplement scene; providing a sense of detachment; amplifying steep and hazardous scenes (Shih-T’ao 11).
Bearing these particular traits of Shitao’s painting style, one can easily discuss the way in which all paintings by the author can be evaluated and separated into a unique and specific niche in terms of Chinese art.
Dispersing intensity on the living objects in paintings, Shitao creates a vivid and fresh outlook of the scenes at large. This is why the set of the main tools along with a scope of the main ideas are aimed directly at discovering the power of visual objects taking over the power of words. Shitao himself thought of it through a specific implementation of techniques of representation decline and recovery of the nature with comprehensive accord as of trees and mountains as entirely lively creatures. The author wants a viewer to interpret his paintings as such being in perpetual dynamics year by year.
Incompleteness of severed mountains and rivers projects hypothetically the next step in the nature’s development mirrored on Shitao’s paintings. Here one also should convey the philosophical implementation of images: “To evoke a fragmentary image with freshness and pungency is a mystery beyond the power of words to explain” (Shih-T’ao 12). Hence, the ascending interest toward Shitao was constantly sparking in me between the first and the next times I read the book. It proved my current great involvement into thee art of painting that is demonstrated on the personal sketches.
Works cited
Shih-T’ao (Shitao). Enlightening Remarks on painting. ed. and trans. Richard E. Strassberg. Pasadena, CA: Pacific Asia Museum Monographs, 1989.