Summary:
This paper discusses the formation process of traditional Chinese painting style, and analyzes the context and characteristics of the development of traditional Chinese painting from the perspective of the common influence of history, geography and historical background. The article discusses the longevity, diversity, and inclusiveness of traditional Chinese painting, as well as the importance of the influence of classic works on later generations.
I. Introduction
As an important part of Chinese civilization, traditional Chinese painting carries rich historical and cultural connotations, showing unique aesthetic value and artistic charm. With the changes of the times and the development of society, the formation of traditional painting style has undergone a long period of historical precipitation and cultural accumulation, and every brush and line carries the wisdom and emotion of thousands of years. Understanding the historical, geographical, and historical background of the formation of traditional Chinese painting styles can help us better understand its essence and grasp its uniqueness.
In today's context of globalization, the inheritance and innovation of traditional culture are particularly important. As a treasure of Chinese culture, traditional Chinese painting not only has a profound cultural heritage, but also contains rich aesthetic and philosophical connotations. By exploring the formation process of traditional Chinese painting style, it can help us better inherit and promote traditional culture, and also provide inspiration and reference for contemporary art creation.
II. The Historical Evolution of Traditional Painting
A. Characteristics of ancient painting styles
Ancient Chinese painting has formed a unique artistic style in the long process of development, and its characteristics are mainly manifested in the following aspects:
Artistic conception of brush and ink: Ancient Chinese painting pursued the expression of artistic conception with simple lines and elegant colors, focusing on expressing emotions and artistic conception through the use of brush and ink, and emphasizing the conciseness and subtlety of artistic conception.
Pay attention to freehand: Ancient paintings emphasize "freehand" rather than "writing", not sticking to the likeness, but focusing on outlining the aura and charm of things through concise brushwork, so that the viewer can perceive more artistic charm between the blank spaces.
Advocating artistic conception: Ancient painting pursues the expression of artistic conception, emphasizes the expression and communication of the painter's soul, advocates the spiritual sustenance beyond the material, and reflects the feelings and realm of traditional Chinese literati.
B. The evolution of painting styles in the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties
Tang Dynasty: Tang Dynasty painting was dominated by landscape painting and figure painting, emphasizing the use of brush and ink and the expression of artistic conception, forming an artistic style of "flying white" and "natural" with Tang Dynasty characteristics, and representative works include "Bird's Eye View".
Song Dynasty: Song Dynasty painting emphasized the pursuit of freehand and artistic conception, forming two major schools of "Southern Song Dynasty Literati Painting" and "Northern Song Dynasty Court Painting", representing the pinnacle of Chinese painting history, such as "Traveling in Streams and Mountains" and "Snow and Bamboo in the Cold River".
Yuan Dynasty: The paintings of the Yuan Dynasty were influenced by the culture of the northern ethnic groups, showing a more bold and unrestrained style, and also retained the softness and freehand of Song Dynasty paintings.
Ming and Qing dynasties: The painting style of the Ming and Qing dynasties gradually tended to be realistic, especially the Qing Dynasty paintings, which paid more attention to the expression of images and delicate depictions, and at the same time, many literati painters adhered to the pursuit of freehand and artistic conception, representing the profound evolution and inheritance of traditional painting styles.
C. The influence of historical events on the development of painting
Historical events have had a profound impact on the development of traditional Chinese painting, including political, social, cultural and other factors. For example, wars, regime changes, social changes and other events have directly affected the creative environment and ideological mood of painters, which are reflected in their artworks. At the same time, historical events have also promoted the evolution and innovation of painting styles, and stimulated painters' thinking and expression of reality and ideals, tradition and modernity.
For example, the invasion of the Jin Kingdom and political chaos during the Southern Song Dynasty led many literati painters to cross to the south, forming the "Nandu Literati School", a historical event that directly affected the painters' living environment and aesthetic feelings, and promoted the formation and development of the Southern Song Dynasty Literati School. Similarly, the social changes and cultural exchanges during the Ming and Qing dynasties also provided new opportunities and space for the diversification and development of painting styles.
III. The Geographical Environment Shapes the Painting Style
A. Differences in painting styles in different regions
China's vast geographical environment has given birth to a variety of painting styles, and the natural scenery, climatic conditions, and cultural history of different regions have influenced the formation of local painting styles to a certain extent.
Northern Region: The northern region is vast, the terrain is flat, and the climate is dry, which has created the bold and frank nature of northern painting, focusing on the magnificent scenery of mountains and rivers and rough folk customs with brush and ink. Northern painters often use majestic landscapes, vast fields and masculinity as the subject matter of their creations, forming a unique and bold style of northern painting.
Southern region: The southern region is mountainous and hilly, with many water towns and humid climate, which makes southern painting more graceful and beautiful, focusing on the use of brush and ink to outline the soft and smooth artistic conception of the landscape and the tranquil atmosphere of the water towns in the south of the Yangtze River. Southern painters often use beautiful landscapes, twists and turns of small bridges and flowing waters, and graceful feelings as the creative themes, forming a unique and beautiful style of southern painting.
B. The relationship between the natural environment and the subject matter of the painting
The subject matter in ancient Chinese paintings is mostly influenced by the local natural environment, and painters often integrate it into their artistic creation by observing and perceiving the scenery and changes in the natural world.
Landscape themes: Ancient Chinese landscape paintings have always been an important subject of painting creation, which is inseparable from China's vast geographical environment. Landscape painting takes natural scenery such as mountains, rivers, and cottages as the objects of expression, reflecting the ancient Chinese painters' awe of nature and their pursuit of the artistic conception of mountains and rivers.
Theme of flowers and birds: The climate of the southern region is warm and humid, which is suitable for the growth of various plants and birds, so the flower and bird paintings have a relatively rich expression in the southern region. Painters often use flowers, trees, and various birds as themes to create fresh and beautiful pictures, showing their love and praise for natural ecology.
C. The influence of regional culture on the elements of painting
The cultural traditions and historical backgrounds of different regions have also had a profound impact on the elements of painting, shaping the uniqueness of painting styles in different places.
Influence of Northern Culture: The northern region has always been the birthplace of Chinese civilization, and the majestic and bold characteristics of northern culture have profoundly influenced the local painting style, and northern painters often show the pursuit of history, war and heroism through their works.
Southern cultural influence: The southern region has an elegant literary style since ancient times, and the graceful and beautiful and tender characteristics of the southern culture have injected a unique literati temperament and timeless artistic conception into the southern painting style.
IV. The Evolution of the Aesthetic Concept of Painting in the Context of the Times
A. The influence of social institutions on the style of painting
The formation of traditional Chinese painting style was profoundly influenced by the social system of the time, and the political system and social structure of different historical periods directly affected the development direction and aesthetic orientation of painting style.
During the period of feudal society, due to the supremacy of imperial power and the strict patriarchal hierarchy, painting was often promoted and funded by the imperial court and aristocracy, showing an aesthetic taste and ideology of the feudal ruling class. The court painting academy flourished, and most of the paintings were based on palaces, banquets, sacrifices and other scenes, focusing on the expression of royal glory and power, forming the style of the court painting school. In addition, the popular concepts of etiquette and Confucian ethics and morality in society have also influenced the content and form of painting, making painting pay more attention to the expression of traditional values such as the righteousness of kings and ministers, and the love of father and son.
With the changes in the social system, such as the reform and opening up in the late Qing Dynasty and the democratic revolution in modern China, the aesthetic concept of painting has also changed. The artist began to pay attention to the social reality and people's life, pursued the expression of individual emotions and national spirit, created works that reflected real life, and formed a new artistic style and aesthetic orientation. This change also made the painting creation pay more attention to the artist's individual creativity and expressiveness, and opened a new chapter in modern Chinese painting.
B. The promotion of painting creation by cultural trends
The promotion of cultural trends on painting creation is an important influencing factor in the development of traditional Chinese painting. The cultural trends and ideologies of different periods have had a profound impact on the artist's creative philosophy, choice of subject matter and aesthetic standards.
In ancient China, the rise and spread of different schools of thought, such as Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, etc., provided rich cultural resources and spiritual connotations for painting. Confucianism's emphasis on ethics such as benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faith influenced the depiction of human figures and human conditions in paintings; Taoism's pursuit of natural harmony inspired the pursuit of landscapes and artistic conceptions in painting; Buddhism's promotion of compassion and liberation inspired the expression of the spiritual world and transcendence in painting.
In modern times, the introduction of Western culture and the rise of the New Culture Movement have promoted the renewal of the aesthetic concept of Chinese painting and the diversification of artistic expressions. Under the influence of Western modernism, impressionism and other artistic trends, Chinese artists began to try to express objects in a more free and abstract way, breaking the shackles of traditional painting and expanding the expressive space of painting.
C. The impact of technological progress on pictorial expression
The impact of technological progress on pictorial expression is a factor that cannot be ignored. With the progress of science and technology, painting tools, materials and techniques have been innovated and developed, providing artists with more means and possibilities for expression.
Ancient Chinese painting mainly used pen, ink, paper and inkstone for creation, but with the rise of printing, photography and other technologies, painting faced new challenges and opportunities. The popularization of printing technology has allowed paintings to be disseminated on a large scale, and the emergence of photography has provided more materials and inspiration for painting, and at the same time, it has also prompted artists to explore more unique forms of expression and style.
In modern times, the application of digital technology has further expanded the field of expression of painting, and the application of new technologies such as virtual reality and digital painting has made paintings more modern and technological. Artists can achieve more complex image processing and expression through digital tools, breaking the limitations of traditional painting and opening up a new space for artistic creation.
V. The formation and inheritance of traditional painting styles
A. The Evolution and Continuation of the Painting Tradition
Traditional Chinese painting has a long history and has undergone a long process of development, forming a unique artistic style and aesthetic concept. Ancient Chinese painting originated from rock paintings and pottery paintings in the prehistoric period, and gradually formed a traditional painting system with figures, landscapes, flowers and birds as the main themes after the development of the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the Qin and Han dynasties, the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties and other periods.
During the Sui and Tang dynasties, with the prosperity of the court painting academy and the gradual maturity of painting techniques, traditional Chinese painting entered a glorious period. In the Tang Dynasty, art forms such as murals, silk weaving paintings, and gongbi figure paintings reached their peak, laying a solid foundation for the development of painting in later generations. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, literati painting in the Southern Song Dynasty and freehand landscape painting in the Yuan Dynasty emerged one after another, creating a new situation in traditional Chinese painting, focusing on the expression of individual emotions and artistic conception.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the court painting academy continued to develop, and at the same time, folk painting also flourished, and the forms of folk landscape painting, flower and bird painting, and folk customs painting were rich and diverse, forming a rich and colorful pattern of traditional Chinese painting. In the face of the impact and challenge of Western modern art, traditional Chinese painting has not only absorbed the essence of foreign art, but also adhered to the foundation of traditional culture, forming a unique contemporary painting style.
B. The influence of the classics on later generations
Many classic works emerged from traditional Chinese painting, which were not only of great significance at the time, but also had a profound impact on the development of painting in later generations. For example, works such as "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" and "Picture of a Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" show the prosperity of ancient Chinese society and the life of the people through the true depiction of social features and natural scenery, and have become classics in the history of Chinese painting.
The calligraphy works of Wang Xizhi and Mi Fu, as well as the landscape paintings of literati painters Huang Gongwang and Wen Zhengming, have had a profound impact on later generations of painters. They paid attention to the expression of individual emotions and the pursuit of artistic conception detachment, which created a new realm of traditional Chinese painting and provided valuable artistic inspiration and creative reference for later generations of artists.
C. The contemporary value of traditional painting styles
The traditional Chinese painting style integrates the essence of the 5,000-year-old culture of the Chinese nation, has profound historical accumulation and cultural connotation, and has important contemporary value. In today's society, traditional Chinese painting, as an important part of Chinese culture, not only has aesthetic value, but also carries the spiritual heritage and humanistic feelings of traditional culture.
The traditional painting style emphasizes the use of brush and ink, the combination of form and spirit, and the detachment of artistic conception, which still has important enlightenment significance for the development of contemporary art. On the basis of inheriting the tradition, many contemporary artists combine the needs and aesthetic tastes of modern society to create works that integrate traditional and modern elements, showing the contemporary vitality and innovation of traditional painting styles.
VI. Conclusion
Traditional Chinese painting has a long history and has undergone a long historical development, forming a unique artistic style and aesthetic concept. Historical, geographical, and historical backgrounds have all influenced the formation and evolution of traditional Chinese painting.
The development of traditional Chinese painting integrates the artistic achievements and cultural essence of various historical periods, and forms a traditional painting system with figures, landscapes, flowers and birds as the main themes. The painting styles of different periods are constantly innovating and developing in the process of blending with each other, reflecting the diversity and inclusiveness of Chinese painting art.
Classic works such as "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" and Wang Xizhi's calligraphy works have had a profound impact on later generations of painters, laying an important foundation for the inheritance and development of traditional Chinese painting. These works show the prosperity of ancient Chinese society and the life of the people, and have important historical and artistic significance.
Traditional Chinese painting style still has important value and influence in contemporary times, which is not only an important part of Chinese culture, but also a source of inspiration and innovation for contemporary art creation. The continuation and innovation of traditional painting will inject new vitality and impetus into the sustainable development and prosperity of Chinese art.
Author: Lu Xilin
Bibliography:
History of Chinese Painting
History of Chinese Painting