Spirit of Chinese Art

Author: Xu Fuguan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-11-01
Features: The artistic achievements in Chinese culture, since the Ming and Qing dynasties, have declined to become mere collectibles in the hands of antique enthusiasts, turning into a dim and inaccessible corner that the general public cannot touch or understand. The motivation behind writing this book is to reveal its true nature through organized modern language, allowing it to merge honorably into the broader cultural stream and engage with the world. After completing A History of Chinese Human Nature Theory: Pre-Qin Period, some friends learned that I was planning to write a book on Chinese art and were very concerned. They felt that my broad interests and scattered energy might prevent me from completing the academic work systematically. Indeed, at times, I have wasted my limited. However, my decision to write this book was made after serious consideration. Morality, art, and science (Appendix I) are the three pillars of human culture. The mainstream of Chinese culture is human nature, the nature of the present world. Therefore, it is impossible for its mainstream to contain anti-scientific elements. However, Chinese culture has ultimately taken the path of excessive harmony between humans and nature, lacking a strong sense of conquering nature for personal use. As a result, scientific knowledge focused on nature has not developed smoothly (Appendix II). Thus, China's achievements in the "pre-scientific" era only hold historical significance, not modern significance. However, by uncovering the roots of morality and the value of life within the concrete life of the human heart and nature, without relying on myths or superstition, each person can firmly establish roots and stand firm in the real world through a moment of self-awareness. Moreover, through human self-awareness, we can resolve the contradictions and crises arising from these contradictions—China's achievements in this regard not only have historical significance but also modern and future significance. I wrote A History of Chinese Human Nature Theory to highlight the significance of Chinese culture in this aspect. By uncovering the roots of art within the concrete life of the human heart and nature, and grasping the key to spiritual freedom and liberation, many great painters and works have emerged in painting. China's achievements in this regard not only have historical significance but also modern and future significance. Although Chinese intellectuals over the past hundred years have not, like the above moral achievements, subjected this aspect to frenzied condemnation, since the Ming and Qing dynasties, the long-term decline of intellectuals under the imperial examination system has gradually made these achievements marginal and vulgar, disconnecting them from the broader culture, leaving them as a dim and inaccessible corner in the hands of antique enthusiasts. The motivation behind writing this book is to reveal its true nature through organized modern language, allowing it to merge honorably into the broader cultural stream and engage with the world. Therefore, the book I am publishing now, along with the already published A History of Chinese Human Nature Theory: Pre-Qin Period, are like brothers in the kingdom of human nature. They show the world that Chinese culture indeed has two pillars—morality and art—among the three pillars. But I am not writing this book to merely boost the prestige of Chinese culture. I firmly believe that fighting for empty prestige for oneself or one's nation is not only a waste of energy but also paralyzes genuine effort and misleads the direction of progress. My reasons for writing this book, like my writing A History of Chinese Human Nature Theory: Pre-Qin Period, are based on serious research, recognizing that historical facts and the cultural issues facing humanity today are indeed as I describe. To illustrate this, I will briefly describe the process of writing this book. Driven by curiosity, although I often read theories on Western literature and art, seven years ago, I knew almost nothing about Chinese painting. And eight of the ten chapters in this book are dedicated to Chinese painting. In my life, I have the habit of flipping through newly arrived books or light reading before going to bed. Because I bought a Compendium of Fine Arts, I happened to read it in bed and found it interesting, marking important parts of the theory and history with a red pen. To gather my scattered thoughts, I also developed the habit of copying books, intermittently transcribing the marked materials. Over time, I realized that there was more to it than just collecting antiques, and my attitude gradually became more serious. I then further collected materials, including painting histories and theories beyond the Compendium of Fine Arts (Appendix III), poetry collections of Song and Yuan dynasties, works by modern and Japanese scholars, and accessible art albums. During the collection process, it was common to finish a book without gaining anything. After this process of sifting through sand to find gold, I traced the ideas back to Wei and Jin Neo-Daoism and Zhuangzi. Then I discovered that Zhuangzi's concept of the Dao, when applied to life, represents a noble artistic spirit, and the mind he grasped through the practice of "sitting in quiet" is actually the subject of artistic spirit. The true content and results of Wei and Jin Neo-Daoism, which evolved from Laozi and Zhuangzi, are an artistic way of life and artistic achievements. The spiritual realm achieved by great painters and art theorists in history often unintentionally aligns with the realm of Zhuangzi and Neo-Daoism. The influence of Zen on painting after the Song dynasty, to be honest, is the influence of Zhuangzi and Neo-Daoism. I myself do not have a predetermined aesthetic system, but through exploration, it naturally forms a Chinese aesthetic system. Although I avoided the suspicion of fabricating theories by writing it according to the development of historical facts rather than theoretical structure, some parts may inevitably be fragmented or repetitive. But this does not hinder its systematic nature derived from internal connections. From the perspective of materials, this system is a "coat" made by "collecting scraps" (Appendix IV), meaning it is a system derived from the inductive method.