Seon1: Cultural Symbols of Chinese Landscape Painting

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Well established as a major genre of Chinese art and an important part of Chinese culture, landscape painting has been evolving over thousands of years, from the crude and archaic representation in the pre-Qin periods (before 206 BC) and during the Han and Tang dynasties (206–907) to the revival of realism in the Northern and Southern Song dynasties (960–1279), from embracing archaism and the expression of cultural ideals and personal feelings in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties (1260–1912) to the display of a keen interest in innovation by modern and contemporary artists (from 1912 onwards).

For thousands of years, Chinese painters have depicted landscapes in a wide range of schools and styles and gradually developed a formalised system of techniques and methods such as “gou 勾” (outlining), “cun 皴” (texturing), “ca 擦” (shading), “ran 染” (washing) and “dian 點” (highlighting). Among these, “cun”, or “seon1” in Cantonese Romanisation, is a distinctive way of expression for Chinese painting. “Seon1”, meaning “texture stroke”, stems from painters’ observation of Mother Nature as they process what they see into brushwork that captures the construction, roughness and texture of a landscape setting and reveals the rendering of shadows and light. The terrains of various regions in different seasons and weather conditions at different times evoke distinct emotions in painters, who then create a fine range of texture strokes. Some painters favour using particular texture strokes to establish their unique styles, developing aesthetic traditions of Chinese painting.

For example, Dong Yuan (? –ca.962) and Juran (second half of the 10th century) painted the gentle atmospheric scenery of the southern reaches of the Yangtze River with “hemp-fibre texture stroke”, while Fan Kuan (ca.950–after 1032), Guo Xi (ca.1023–after 1087) and Li Tang (ca.1049–after 1130) used “raindrop dot texture stroke”, “roiling-cloud texture stroke” and “axe-cut texture stroke” respectively to reproduce the steep and rocky mountains in northern China. Mi Fu (1052–1107) and his son Mi Youren (1074–1151) depicted the dreamy and misty atmosphere with the iconic “Mi-dot texture stroke” in their cloudy mountains in the rain. Ma Yuan (active 1190–1224) and Xia Gui (active 1180–ca.1230) created their famous one-corner and half-side compositions using “axe-cut texture stroke”. Huang Gongwang’s (1269–1354) “long hemp-fibre texture stroke”, Ni Zan’s (1301–1374) “bent-ribbon texture stroke” and Wang Meng’s (1308–1385) “ox-hair texture stroke” conjure up the plain tranquillity and natural charm in their depiction of southern landscapes, creating new role models in regards to perceiving nature and interpreting painting traditions for generations of artists to come. What is interesting is that texture stroke has since been taken into consideration to differentiate between schools of painting. In the late Ming dynasty, art theorist Dong Qichang (1555–1636) divided Chinese painting into “Northern” and “Southern” schools and analysed the traditions of both branches, judging the Southern school of painting to be far more superior. Consequently, “hemp-fibre texture stroke”, “bent-ribbon texture stroke” and “ox-hair texture stroke” gained popularity among the literati and became central features of literati painting. In contrast, the “axecut texture stroke” was associated with artisans, who offered mere visual appeal, and considered to be inferior.

Since then, the use of texture stroke has become an important basis for landscape painting, emphasising the reinterpretation of ancient styles of the earlier masters and assimilation of their brushwork. Feeling compelled to do things differently, modern and contemporary artists draw inspiration from nature for their artistic practice, but at the same time sketch the scenery ardently on their extensive travels and experiment with various materials to find a new spirit with novel expressions for these modern times. Fu Baoshi’s (1904–1965) signature “Baoshi texture stroke”, Fu Chuan-fu’s (Fu Juanfu, 1910–2007) “rift texture stroke” and Liu Kuo-sung’s (Liu Guosong, b.1932) “‘stripped tendons, peeled skin’ texture stroke” are great examples of the artists’ rediscovery of tradition. It is worthy of note that a painter would make the best decision for his art by mixing different texture strokes to present various natural landforms in a single painting, customising the texture strokes for the composition to an extent that the strokes are unnecessarily in their original forms, and even deriving new texture strokes from the traditional ones for the need of more diverse brushwork. Evidently, texture strokes are indeed cultural symbols of Chinese landscape painting. They have become part of the painting tradition over thousands of years and will continue to evolve in the coming years and beyond, making them an excellent entry point to understanding Chinese landscape painting and its culture.

Jointly organised by the Oil Street Art Space (Oi!) and the Art Museum of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, this exhibition invites six Hong Kong artists, including Wong Hau-kwei, Ou Da-wei, Raymond Fung Wing-kee, Hung Hoi, Hung Fai and Yau Wing-fung, to recreate one or more masterpieces from the collection of the Art Museum and present the landscape of their mind in their texturing technique, echoing the theme of the exhibition “Majestic Vistas: Selected Landscape Paintings from the Collection of the Art Museum, CUHK”. These artists are active players in today’s art world. Some of them learned their craft from their teachers and their inherited traditions; some have been trained at art schools, and there are also selftaught artists. They produce art in different media and styles. Some are landscape painters, while others pursue experimentation in ink art or explore the use of various materials in their work, revealing infinite possibilities of landscape painting in the present day. To increase the depth and diversity of this exhibition and accommodate the objective conditions that do not allow the Art Museum’s collections to be displayed at Oi!, the Art Museum presents the “Majestic Vistas” exhibition, which appears to be a separate display of landscape paintings, to complement each other. In this exhibition, the audience can experience how contemporary Hong Kong artists understand traditions, borrow from the works by their predecessors and draw inspiration from their travels and hiking trips to create their own landscapes. They may also find the natural charm that lingers forever in Chinese landscape paintings and enjoy a tranquil moment brought by the landscapes as well as Chinese art and culture.

These artists are active players in today’s art world. Some of them learned their craft from their teachers and their inherited traditions; some have been trained at art schools, and there are also selftaught artists. They produce art in different media and styles. Some are landscape painters, while others pursue experimentation in ink art or explore the use of various materials in their work, revealing infinite possibilities of landscape painting in the present day. To increase the depth and diversity of this exhibition and accommodate the objective conditions that do not allow the Art Museum’s collections to be displayed at Oi!, the Art Museum presents the “Majestic Vistas” exhibition, which appears to be a separate display of landscape paintings, to complement each other. In this exhibition, the audience can experience how contemporary Hong Kong artists understand traditions, borrow from the works by their predecessors and draw inspiration from their travels and hiking trips to create their own landscapes. They may also find the natural charm that lingers forever in Chinese landscape paintings and enjoy a tranquil moment brought by the landscapes as well as Chinese art and culture.