Philosophy of Chinese Ink Art

Abstract

We require an interpretation for principles of Chinese aesthetics that will help us describe how contemporary Chinese artists can express images that are authentically Chinese. In particular, we require an interpretation for Chinese aesthetics that will help us assess whether Jizi’s compositions represent the unification of subject with object and observable nature with dimensions of a larger universe. Where shall we begin? Jizi states that his compositions are influenced in part by the paintings and writings of Jing Hao (c. 855–c. 915) and Shitao (1642–1707). Jing Hao is recognized both as a painter (Fig. 5.1) and as a writer who brought guiding principles of Chinese aesthetics to landscape painting in a way that led to the unsurpassed landscapes of the Northern Song (960–1127) and Southern Song dynasties (1127–1279). So, it is reasonable to inspect the aesthetics of Jing Hao’s Bi fa ji (Notes on Brushwork) for any principles that might be interpreted in a way that strengthens contemporary Chinese aesthetics. The text expresses six principles: vital energy, resonance, thought, scene, brush, and ink. It is the first two principles—vitality or spirit (qi 氣) and rhythm or resonance (yun 韻)—that are of immediate interest for they lead to a discussion of what the painter must do to create a true or authentic (zhen 眞) representation of nature. The aim then is to interpret the principle of the authentic image in traditional Chinese aesthetics so that contemporary Chinese artists have guidance today in making images or installations that are alive and resonant with the vitality of nature. The live hypothesis here is that the description in Bi fa ji of the authentic image of nature may provide a present-day standard for assessing whether a work of contemporary Chinese art is authentically Chinese.