From The d exit of Balizhuang Station on Line 7 of the Chengdu Metro, on the right hand side is a residential building construction site under construction. Keep going a few steps and the navigation will tell you: The destination is coming right away. But in fact, you still need to continue to go forward a little, turn right at the intersection and enter Minxing Road, you can see the entrance of the "Hongcang 101 Art Museum".
Cai Yinkun's "Hua Chongjinguan - Guan Shi Shu Yi ShoutIng Lotus" calligraphy and painting exhibition by the large freehand flower and bird painter cai Yinkun is exhibited here. The exhibition opened on May 21 for a two-month period and will end on July 21.
Cai Yinkun calligraphy "Happy Rain on Spring Night"
Recalling the opening day, the scene was very lively, and in the evening, it rained, and Cai Yinkun was very happy, because the theme of his exhibition, "Hua Chongjin Guan", came from Du Fu's famous poem "Spring Night Happy Rain". "Sneak into the night with the wind, and the moisturizer is silent... Xiao looked at the red wet place, and the flowers were heavy in the official city. "When creating calligraphy works, he wrote more than one poem, ranging in size. Du Fu's poems, he could not write enough.
The scale is large, the pen is large, and the weather is large
It can be called the largest solo exhibition in the history of Sichuan art
Although the location of the exhibition hall is slightly off, the audience has continued to flow since its inception. The on-site staff told the Red Star News reporter that they noticed that some spectators had come more than once and stayed in the venue for most of the day. "There are also teachers who bring students to sketch on the spot, a lot." They also noticed that some viewers stopped for a long time in front of the biggest "Shouting Lotus" and were moved to tears.
Cai Yinkun in front of "Shouting Lotus"
For this exhibition, which is set up in two huge exhibition halls with a total area of 12,600 square meters, even if it is just a sloppy flower, it will take a certain amount of footwork and time. A very intimate detail is that in order to take care of those who are older or have difficulty with their legs and feet, the organizers have specially arranged a sightseeing battery car, ready to take the car with the audience in need to watch the exhibition.
Exhibitions that need to be viewed by car are also extremely rare in the whole country. Wei Xuefeng, a famous art historian and chief expert of the Sichuan Provincial Museum, said: "This personal exhibition of Cai Yinkun, with a large scale, a large brush stroke and a large meteorology, exhibited nearly 400 works, an exhibition area of more than 10,000 square meters, and the painting format is mostly a masterpiece, which is the largest personal art exhibition in the history of Sichuan art. ”
A corner of the exhibition hall
For Cai Yinkun's works, Xie Chunyan, a famous Chinese art critic and painter, also gave high praise: "An era should always have works that echo the pen and ink of heaven and earth, and what Junzhi does will be worthy of his ears." Former sages taste cloud literature is human studies, painting things as it is, flowers and birds are not as good as it is, the flowers and birds made by Jun are unique in the country, and they are my most appreciated people since Zion (Shiraishi). ”
After seeing Cai Yinkun's paintings, Lu Muxun, a famous Chinese art critic and famous painter, believes that his painting style is not only unique in China, but also unique in the world. "Cai Yinkun's paintings do not repeat others, nor do they repeat themselves, [he] will continue to explore new ways in the future."
Gao Huimin, a famous Chinese flower and bird painter and former dean of the Art College of Harbin Normal University, is a good friend of Cai Yinkun, and he arrived in Chengdu before the opening after being invited. "When I got there, I went straight to the showroom. When I entered the exhibition hall, I was shocked! Gao Huimin sighed, "I've been painting flowers and birds for almost 50 years, but when I walked up to his biggest "Shouting Lotus", I was really stunned. I've never painted a painting that big in my life, and I've never seen a painting with such a big aura. Cai Yinkun integrated his state of mind and the essence of his life into the painting. After that, Gao Huimin stayed in Chengdu for a week, spending five days at the exhibition site to see paintings.
Zhang Jingyue, a famous calligrapher, commented: "Cai Yinkun's work today is very representative of the atmosphere of our times, and he can fully symbolize the flow of this era... I feel like he's the one who got the ticket for the iconic painter of the 21st century, and I want him to be a representative painter and a representative calligrapher of the 21st century. ”
The whole exhibition is rich in layers
The big place is imposing, and the small place is meticulously detailed
In fact, some of the works exhibited in this exhibition are also small-scale, and the content is mostly animals: rats, rabbits, frogs, monkeys, fish... Smart and simple, cute and interesting. There are also several portrait paintings, such as Dharma facing the wall, Zhong Kui catching ghosts, or closing their eyes in contemplation, or having to be angry, although a few strokes, but all of them convey the spirit.
It is said that the eyes are the most difficult parts to draw well, but in Cai Yinkun's pen, the concise and exquisite Chinese freehand painting is most fully expressed in the eye part: if you look closely, it is obvious that there are only two ink dots, or a straight line (representing the closed eyes), but the expression and even the inner world of the characters are clearly explained.
The animals in his paintings also have a human demeanor, such as the cat he painted, the eyes are two thick vertical lines, but the cat's pupils are squinted into a vertical line in the sun, which is vividly expressed.
If you look closely at the labels next to the works, you will also find another intention of the painter: the names of each painting are in place, and even point out the meaning outside the picture. For example, in a painting about a fish about to be hooked, a big red fish with big eyes and a big head is stunned and rushes to a straight fishing line, and the hook hangs bait on the hook, and the hook tip is extremely sharp - Cai Yinkun gave this small painting the name "What Intention".
"What is the Heart", 39cm×68cm, 2012
This also unlocks a "hidden Easter egg" for the exhibition - after seeing the painting, look at the name of the painting, the two cooperate, and the wonderful multiplication. Moreover, the labels of these paintings are not simple printed fonts, but calligraphic small characters handwritten by Cai Yinkun's students. This is also one of the most impressive places in this exhibition: the momentum of the large places is very large, and the details of the small places are very careful, and the whole exhibition is rich in layers, full of fun, and it is not tired of watching for a long time.
Cai Yinkun did not care about this. "That's how leisurely I play with tickets." He laughs and says that when drawing these interesting and philosophical characters and animals, you need to pay special attention to grasping the scale, "Once you overdo it, it will become a comic." ”
"Big Lucky Sheep" 240cmx120cm, 2014
Hanma, 45cm×80cm, 2009
Although he strictly positioned himself as a freehand flower and bird painter, Cai Yinkun never stopped trying to do other subjects other than flowers and birds, in addition to people and animals, landscapes, houses and other elements have appeared on his painting paper. "My paintings of flowers and birds start from calligraphy; my figure paintings are expressed in the artistic conception of flowers and birds. The understanding of one subject can be integrated into the understanding of another subject, so that they nourish each other, inspire each other, and the inspiration is endless. Cai Yinkun said, "In this life, people must constantly enrich themselves and constantly cultivate themselves." ”
"It's not a retrospective"
About 400 works created in the past 40 years are exhibited
When did China's freehand flower and bird art first originate? Some Chinese art historians believe that the origin of China's freehand flower and bird painting art can be traced back to the Neolithic Hehuang faience pottery (faience pottery found in the Yellow River and Huangshui River basins of Qinghai Province).
The patterns on the river huang faience pottery are mainly water patterns, frogs, fish, birds and animals, which are simple and natural, and they are harmonious and harmonious. The instrument with strong tension, the simple and free graphics, and the romance and mystery presented in the patterns are regarded as the root and soul of Chinese freehand art. Some people use "great beauty is not self-evident, big coincidence, big simplicity is not carved, and the atmosphere is majestic" to describe the beauty of this kind of big writing, and the above features can also be used to describe the impression left by Cai Yinkun's large-scale flowers and birds.
"Lotus Wind", 180cm×400cm, 1984
Among the three disciplines of chinese painting, figures, landscapes, flowers and birds, large-scale freehand flowers and birds are the most expressive, lyrical, and abstract in pen and ink expression, which provide a space for the artistic creation of those artistic geniuses to fully display their individuality. Capitalization is not a general sublimation, but a poetic and profound sublimation based on simplicity, so it is particularly moving. Freehand painting is through calligraphy, poetry, opera, philosophy, and Zen. Cai Yinkun also lamented that the longer you trek and explore in this field, the stronger your willingness to innovate and create.
So, although this grand exhibition includes about 400 works spanning nearly 40 years, Cai Yinkun still does not think that this is a "retrospective exhibition": "If you look back now, do you feel that I am too old?" He laughed.
He should not look back, but continue to broaden and deepen his artistic world. "After this exhibition is over, I plan to draw a series of characters, with the word 'yang' as the theme, such as 'yang de', 'yang heart', 'nourishing sex', 'nourishing qi' series, all related to the quality of people, and paint twelve pictures."
Grab only "models" to sketch
Painter and rat "meet head-on"
Everyone is familiar with the descriptions of "words as their people" and "texts as their people", and it is also generally agreed that an artist must maintain his authenticity in order to maintain his creativity. Therefore, when you see the vivid and interesting animal figures in Cai Yinkun's pen, it is natural to think: Does this painter who loves to wear a buttoned robe and has an ancient style of temperament also hide a naughty and interesting side in his heart?
"Blessings in Front of You" 178×96cm, 2020
Cai Yinkun told a story about him and the mouse.
"I've always been interested in small animals like rats. They have been close neighbors of human beings since ancient times, both in the homes of ordinary people and in the homes of dignitaries and nobles, and they occupy the top spot of the zodiac. Cai Yinkun said, "Mr. Qi Baishi has painted a lot of rat paintings, which are wonderful and realistic - maybe it is too realistic, and I am sometimes a little afraid to look at it." ”
When confronted with real rats, he confessed that he was really scared. One day about twenty years ago, cai Yinkun's home cupboard was invaded by rats, "I began to think that only one of them had entered, so I slammed the cupboard outside, thinking that after knocking the rat unconscious, I grabbed it out and observed it, so that I could draw." ”
With the idea of grabbing a "model" to sketch, Cai Yinkun knocked vigorously for half a day, and finally heard no movement in the cupboard. He confidently opened the cabinet door and was about to look inside, only to see four small shining eyes in the shadows, rapidly approaching him! There were two rats!
"Hey, I saw four 'Miso Mimi (the fruit of the Misader, black and round)' and pounced on me at the same time!" Between the electric light and flint, Cai Yinkun flashed backwards, and pulled the lady with his hand, blocking it in front of him as a "shield"... This meme has been circulating in his home for many years, and all the friends who have heard him tell this funny story have laughed.
"So when I drew the mouse, I did some artistic treatment, using the head of the squirrel, the body of the rabbit and the tail of the mouse to combine, so that the mouse that I drew looked much more cute." Cai Yinkun said. "A lot of collectors who belong to rats come to me for paintings."
He will love and observe Chengdu
Integrate into the art of large-scale flowers and birds
In his face-to-face conversation with Cai Yinkun, he also left a stark impression on the Red Star News reporter: the Chengdu painter, born in 1963, described things in Chengdu dialect, which was particularly vivid.
Cai Yinkun
In addition to using the phrase "Mimi" to describe the mouse's small black eyes, Cai Yinkun described how naughty the monkey he painted was under the plum blossoms, saying, "It's going to rip off that plum blossom and tear down a cake (a bunch)!" When he was in Jingdezhen, preparing to paint on a plain billet vessel, he asked the person next to him to help him "palm up (support)!". When he explained why he said that painting people and animals was just "playing with tickets", he used a dialect saying to summarize it - "ten fingers can not press ten clams (ten fingers can not hold ten fleas at the same time)", which is vivid and interesting, far better than a serious explanation.
The kingdom of Tianfu, which was praised by Du Fu with a succession of poems, has a long and long literary atmosphere, and the sense of beauty is endless, nourishing countless literati and inkers, artistic masters, and also nourishing Cai Yinkun's freehand flower and bird art. Lotus ponds, moonlights, birds, flowers... He integrates his love and observation of the city into his art creation of freehand flowers and birds bit by bit, as well as into his life experience and artistic thinking.
"National Color Tianxiang", 180cm×400cm, 2011
Nantang Yanqiu, 580cm×365cm, 2019
The largest solo calligraphy and painting exhibition so far was held in Chenghua District, which is also a point that Cai Yinkun is particularly satisfied. "I grew up in Jinniu District, and Chenghua District used to come less. Holding this calligraphy and painting exhibition, seeing today's Chenghua District, really amazed me - everywhere is well built, greenways, parks are full of vitality. Various characteristic cultural tourism blocks have appearance, culture, temperature, and special fashion. ”
The stunning changes in Chenghua District also reflect the elegant pace of Chengdu's continuous upgrading in the steady progress, "Chengdu has a deep history and is also a vibrant city full of innovation and creativity, which can attract people to come and stay here to live happily." Cai Yinkun said, "As a painter, this park city under the snowy mountains will always be my ideal spiritual residence." ”
Red Star News reporter Qiao Xueyang photojournalist Wang Huan
Edited by Li Jie
(Download Red Star News, there are prizes for the newspaper!) ）