Speaking of Dai Dunbang, we have to mention his origins with traditional Chinese culture, especially the four classical masterpieces.
In the 1950s, in order to commemorate the publication of the "Speech at the Yan'an Literary and Art Forum", the leaders of the magazine decided to compile and draw a new commentary drama adapted from the Yan'an Commentary Theater, "Three Dozen Zhujiazhuang", which was completed by Dai Dunbang and started with a hit.
In 1977, Dai Dunbang was invited by the Beijing Foreign Languages Publishing Bureau to create a three-volume English translation of the "Dream of the Red Chamber" album, which was also Dai Dunbang's favorite classical literary work when he was a teenager. This creation opened the way for him to professionally depict masterpieces of Chinese literature, and gradually entered a better situation.
In 1979, Dai Dunbang and other artists went north to visit Dunhuang, an art mecca. There he found that these works, which are called "treasures", are the essence of national culture and art, but the authors are precisely some folk artists, who have been unknown for a lifetime. After Dunhuang returned, in order to show his respect for these folk artists, Dai Dunbang used the "folk artist" seal on the paintings. Since then, he has begun to try to create Water Margin character paintings, and has repeatedly presented wonderful masterpieces, including "One Hundred and Eight Figures of Water Margin Characters", "Dai Dunbang Water Margin Character Genealogy" and "Dai Dunbang New Painting Complete Book Water Margin", etc., and has since formed an indissoluble relationship with "Water Margin".
In 1998, CCTV's forty-three-episode TV series "Water Margin" was launched, and the heroic roar of "the road is uneven and a roar, when it is time to shoot" resounded throughout the screen, and also brought out a visually shocking background - Dai Dunbang's "Dai Dunbang Water Margin Character Genealogy" created over three years. He used that magic pen to make the Water Margin figure jump from rice paper to the screen, becoming the "first person to paint the Water Margin figure" in contemporary China.
An important reason why "Water Margin" came out that year and was loved by everyone was that the actors were highly compatible with the gods of the characters in the play, and this must be attributed to the folk painter Dai Dunbang. Zhang Jizhong said that the previous three famous works have been successfully filmed, but there are also shortcomings, the biggest deficiency is that the actor positioning and costumes are a bit "blind", and lack of tailor-made personality characters and costumes. Zhang Jizhong wants to shoot "Water Margin" to avoid this regret. Dai Dunbang said, "Water Margin" I painted smoothly. I often tell people that I am a farmer, I am a small citizen, I am a grassroots. Most of the characters in "Water Margin" are grassroots, and a small number are nobles, large landlords, and surrendered officials. I am a grounded person with a sense of market spirit. When I paint Water Margin characters, I can always find the genes of Water Margin characters from the alleys and neighbors of the neighborhood, painting is a personal aesthetic thing, so I paint these characters to be particularly kind, and I have the most feeling. Dai Dunbang also had a self-styled nickname, the 109th General of the Water Margin. Dai Dunbang created a water margin hero image for the TV series "Water Margin" directed by Zhang Jizhong, and the artistic expression is three points, which makes hundreds of millions of viewers marvel.
When fixing the role, Zhang Jizhong happened to see mr. Dai Dunbang's "Water Margin" illustration, "Although there are only a few, but his spirit and temperament shocked me at once, this is exactly the "Water Margin" we are going to shoot. It was like seeing a light while looking for directions, and saying that I had the idea of going to him to complete this task for me. ”
Through the introduction of the playwright Mr. Bai Birch, Zhang Jizhong went to Shanghai to meet Mr. Dai Dunbang, who was in his 60s at the time. "He called himself a folk artist, he was very modest, and I told him, 'We don't get paid a lot if you painted us this picture.'" However, I did not expect that he said: 'I don't want money at all, this matter is really mr. Birch introduced, Zhang Jizhong went to Shanghai to meet Mr. Dai Dunbang, who was more than 60 years old at that time.' "He called himself a folk artist, he was very modest, and I told him, 'We don't get paid a lot if you painted us this picture.'" But, without my thoughts, he said, 'I don't want money at all, this thing really has to be done by me.' ’”
"Mr. Dai said that he has always wanted to fulfill his long-cherished wish through such a thing, I think this is a very wonderful thing to fight with people with common ideals for ideals..." Zhang Jizhong said, followed by 180 character paintings sent to Beijing one by one, and the crew pasted each batch of paintings on the wall, staring at these paintings "according to Tu Suoji" to find these actors with temperament: "For example, Song Jiang, at that time, the first thought was Li Xuejian, the second was him, the third was him, There are no other candidates, such as Ding Haifeng, although young and not famous, but we just feel that the temperament is appropriate..." In addition, all the costumes, makeup, and props are based on Mr. Dai's diagram, restoring the most common people in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Dai Dunbang's brilliant pen not only flows with line figures, but also pours out his emotions. For example, after Lin Chongheng was persecuted, he was cornered, forcing Liangshan and the hero to the end of the road, so that Dai Dunbang could not extricate himself and could not sustain himself when creating, and he even wept for a while.
As early as 20 years ago, Mr. Dai Dunbang drew a long scroll called "The End of the Hero of Liangshan", but it was not published to show the world over the years. Under the discussion of the two masters and apprentices, Elder Dai decided to change the original name to "For The Way of Heaven". Mr. Zhou took the subtitle of "Gang Xuan Gui Shen Tu" for the hand scroll - it was named after the stars of the Thirty-six Heavenly Stars and the Seventy-two Earth Stars. In addition, the introduction and trek of the hand scroll were written by Mr. Zhou.
In 2018, at the suggestion of Mr. Monday Xin, a disciple of Dai, it was decided that China Post would publish this magnificent hand scroll into a volume.
Source: Dai Family-like Art of Dai Dunbang