Modern Express News (Reporter Liu Jingyan/Wen Shi Xianghui/Photo) Laomen West, an area west of the South Zhonghua Gate in the old city of Nanjing. The Modern Express "Nanjing Laomen West Watchman" once reported that there is a group of "watchmen" with an average age of more than 70 years old, spontaneously collecting and excavating, exploring the stories of the depths of time, and creating the "Most Memorable is Jinling" WeChat public account.
Recently, their first officially released album ,Pyrotechnic Gate West) is coming out. On the white and simple cover, a wall tile with an inscription runs through the front and back covers.
Tao Qiming, 78, is the president of the Nanjing Laomenxi Cultural Watchmen Association and the editor-in-chief of Fireworks Menxi. He said that he hopes that the book will become a "brick" to inherit the culture of lao Menxi and retain the fireworks memory of old Nanjing.
The personal experience of 55 authors continues Menxi's "Six Dynasties Smoke and Water Vapor"
Smoke and rain gate west, smoke cloud gate west, fireworks door west... What exactly is the title of the book? At the beginning of the consultation, it caused a discussion within the association and the readership. Tao Qiming said that a total of more than 20 names were received, and the final choice of "fireworks" was because it best represented the culture of the city. For the old Nanjing people, Menxi is not only a "big container" carrying a heavy history, but also a daily life of chai rice oil and salt.
"Listening to my mother, when I was 4 years old, she took me from the train station to Menxi Diaoyutai and lived in our home, a house facing the river..." The first article included in "Fireworks Gate West", "Home In Menxi", the author Sun Guanmao is an old Menxi person. Tao Qiming said that this is also the first article about Lao Menxi in the WeChat public account they founded, "The Most Memorable is Jinling".
300,000 words, 73 articles, 55 authors, 220 pictures... Tao Qiming told the Modern Express reporter that from planning to publish to now, it has taken 7 months, and the sample book is currently being proofread, and it is expected to be officially published soon. This book includes the fireworks memories of lao menxi in the public account article, taking its essence, and divided into four chapters: "Crooked Alley", "Broken Shadow Old Traces", "Ancient Customs and Modern Styles", and "Celebrity Ordinary Men", which includes the layout of the streets and alleys, personal memories of the past, folk customs, and characters. There is no grand narrative of the theme, some are just the ordinary and trivial in daily life, which are all personally experienced by the author.
The authors of the article are all natives of the old Menxi, they come from all walks of life, including university professors, scholars, media people, retired workers, ordinary residents. More than 10 of them are over 80 years old. Tao Qiming said that the local histories handed down from generation to generation are not all officially revised, but also completed by non-governmental forces. Chen Zuolin, a famous scholar of literature and history in the south of the old city of Nanjing, devoted himself to the collection, collation, research and writing of local historical documents. "What we are doing is also an imitation, relay and tribute to Chen Zuolin." Tao Qiming said.
"In the "History of Ru Lin", it is depicted that in Nanjing, 'the vegetable maid bartenders all had six dynasties of smoke and water'. I think this book is the continuation of the 'Six Dynasties Smoke and Water Vapor' in Menxi. In Nanjing, the 'capital of world literature', everyone has the potential to become a writer. Fan Bin, special editor of "Fireworks Gate West", said.
The cover design, inscription, and sketch are all from famous artists, which are minimalist and simple
On the white cover, the quaint words "Fireworks Gate West" occupy the right half of the canvas. In the left half, the sketch of half of the city wall bricks is "slightly outcrop". Unfold the book, the front and back cover facing upwards, you can see a whole wall brick, the inscription is clear, the texture is clear. In addition, it is a large blank space, no other elements, simple and plain.
Tao Qiming said that this is the cover designed by Yang Zhilin, a professor at Nanjing Academy of arts, and Liu Jingdan, a student, for "Fireworks Gate West". The profound sense of history and concise historical language highlight the long-term and peaceful culture of Nanjing, the style is simple, and there is a sense of historical precipitation. The clear title of the book, the tone of black and white and gray, tries to pull the reader's mind farther away.
"The cover design is quaint and has a sense of history. The city wall bricks are the basic elements that make up the nanjing city wall; every article in our book is a brick and stone of menxi culture. That's what we're trying to say. Tao Qiming said that many young and middle-aged people in the association's readership like this cover design. Su Taichun, the "watchman" of the association, said that this is "a combination of virtual and real, and the integration of tradition and modernity." Traditional calligraphic inscriptions, combined with modern minimalist forms, are special. ”
The person who inscribed the title of the book for "Fireworks Gate West" was Su Taichun's brother and the famous painter Su Taixi. The author of the city wall brick sketch is the famous painter Qian Dajing.
The editing and publication of "Fireworks Gate West" has also been supported by all walks of life and cultural celebrities. Xi Yongming, former vice mayor of Nanjing, and Ye Zhaoyan, a famous writer, served as the directors of the editorial board, and scholars Jing Shenghong and Xia Weizhong served as members of the editorial board.
Spread the original old Menxi culture and retain the fireworks
Tao Qiming hopes that "Fireworks Gate West" can spread and inherit the culture of Lao Men Xi, let more people feel the original old Nanjing fireworks, and also provide some literature references for the renovation of Lao Men Xi.
The conservation and regeneration project of Lao Menxi has been attracting much attention. The Modern Express reporter learned that the design team of Southeast University officially entered the Hehuatang Historical and Cultural Block in November last year to investigate the buildings and aborigines here. At present, the preliminary investigation has basically ended, and the planning plan will be reviewed in the near future. On the basis of the experience of the transformation of Xiaoxi Lake, Lao Menxi will further explore and try, and gradually update it on the basis of respecting the wishes of residents.
As aborigines, the Old Menxi Cultural Watchmen are also very concerned. They hope that the upcoming update will preserve some historical information. And what they are doing is to sort out and record this historical information.
For example, is the Sugar Mill Langhe Room a wall of clear water or a wall of powder? They found an old photograph taken from the 1950s and 1960s with a neat wall of clear water, which was later painted as a powder wall in the renovation.
For another example, is the word "Fu" posted on or upside down? The brick carved "Fu" character in the old photo can give us the answer.
Also, many people know about horse stones and horse stakes, but do you know the iron horse ring?
These things, which are already difficult to see, are in the old photographs and the memories of the old Menxi people. "Fireworks Gate West" contains the memories of the old Menxi people, as well as precious old photos they have preserved or taken, the earliest of which was taken around the 1940s.
What makes Tao Qiming feel pleased is that the association and the public account have had a certain impact on the society for so many years, and more and more people have begun to pay attention to and talk about Lao Menxi. Recently, the WeChat public account of Shuangtang Street in Nanjing's Qinhuai District, where Lao Menxi is located, has also been renamed from "Happy Shuangtang" to "Menxi Feelings".