Dai Dунбэн's newly drawn Water Margin

Author: Dai Dunbang
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-04-01
Features: The Water Margin, written in the early 14th century, is a foundational masterpiece of classical vernacular Chinese long novels and the first extended serial novel in literary history to feature a group of ordinary people as its protagonists. The innovative scholar Li Zhi of the Ming Dynasty ranked it alongside The Records of the Grand Secretary and Du Fu's poetry as one of the "Five Great Literary Works in the Universe." The individualistic writer Jin Shengtan of the Qing Dynasty called it, together with Li Sao and Zhuangzi, one of the "Six Great Works of Literary Talent." Foreign scholars have praised it alongside Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Golden Lotus, and Dream of the Red Chamber as one of the "Four Great Marvelous Novels of Chinese Fiction." The Water Margin employs highly artistic expression and vivid literary language to unfold dramatic and gripping plots, creating numerous characters who are both legendary and lifelike, with particularly skillful portrayal of their individual personalities. Jin Shengtan praised it extensively: "In The Water Margin, when a character appears, it is as if a biography of that person unfolds" (quoting Reading the Fifth Masterpiece of Literary Talent); "It does not speak of ghosts or monsters, which is a testament to its extraordinary power. Whenever Journey to the West struggles, it is always saved by Guanyin Bodhisattva from the South Sea"; "Only The Water Margin is never tiresome to read, for it brings to life the personalities of all 108 characters. Each character speaks in their own unique way—truly extraordinary!" (quoting Reading the Fifth Masterpiece of Literary Talent). The rich literary and artistic imagery in The Water Margin has also inspired many painters, and substantial illustrated editions appeared as early as the Ming and Qing dynasties. These illustrations, either following the chapter titles or depicting the plots, resemble (). Additionally, Du Jin and Chen Hongshou (Lao Lan) created portraits of Water Margin characters. Most of these works, as seen today, are woodblock prints, characterized by simple and rustic compositions. Among them, Chen Lao Lan's Forty Water Margin Leaves is particularly well-known. There are many contemporary painters who excel in painting The Water Margin, but none are as renowned or accomplished as Mr. Dai Dunbang. In the late 1950s, his serial painting Three Attacks on Zhuojiazhuang was a resounding success, earning admiration from his peers and predecessors for its "promise of the younger generation." After that, he created illustrations and cover designs for various versions of The Water Margin, as well as portraits of Water Margin characters, earning praise from readers both in China and abroad. In late 1994, he was invited to serve as the chief designer of character costumes for the large-scale television series The Water Margin, completing 184 character designs in two years. The show's executive producer Ren Dahui and chief producer Zhang Jizhong deeply remarked, "When these works were hung for the creative team to view, everyone was utterly amazed. The accuracy of the character personalities conveyed in the portraits provided a vivid guide for the casting team. Dai's divine touch also provided a basis for costume and makeup design. Even the actors' performances were inspired by the precise expressions in Dai's paintings, allowing them to break through and fully embody their characters. Time may pass, but Dai's art is eternal."
Presented before the readers is Dai Dunbang's New Paintings of The Water Margin, another masterpiece of his. He began work on it at the turn of the new millennium, completing it this year. The collection consists of two parts: the first is based on the conventional 70-chapter version of The Water Margin, with two illustrations for each chapter's main theme, totaling 142 pieces (including two for the prologue). The second is a set of 108 artistic portraits of the Water Margin heroes. All were newly created in the past two to three years, with no reused works from previous years. To my knowledge, the publication of such a large-scale, national painting collection of The Water Margin is unprecedented in publishing history. Mr. Dai Dunbang, with his exquisite and unparalleled skills in national painting and color, has fully brought The Water Margin to life, carving a new page in the history of painting that has never been seen before—a truly celebratory achievement. The entire collection is brimming with vitality and exudes a masculine energy, perfectly conveying the spiritual essence of the literary original while reflecting the painter's unique interpretation of it. Each painting is like a poem, with high artistic standards, profound meaning, and endless layers of depth. The composition and layout are rich and natural, with dynamic and engaging use of negative space. Whether depicting the plot or setting the atmosphere, every stroke is deliberate, expressive, and captivating, drawing readers into its world. The portrayal of various characters, with their different identities and emotions, is lifelike and distinct, leaving no room for confusion. Readers can almost hear their voices and meet them in person, engaging in long conversations. The works also intentionally use relevant details of the scenery and characters' gestures to recreate the social life of that era. Elements such as cultural etiquette, clothing systems, social dynamics, urban and rural customs, seasonal festivals, the three teachings and nine streams, martial arts practices, banquet scenes, tea houses and taverns, official residences, temples, theaters, transportation, banners, furniture—all are imbued with the traces of history, adding to the work's depth.
When it comes to ancient paintings of The Water Margin, one cannot forget Chen Lao Lan; when discussing modern paintings of The Water Margin, Dai Dunbang is undoubtedly the first to come to mind. Character painting has long been considered a weak point in traditional Chinese painting. With his inspired brushwork, Mr. Dai Dunbang has blended the past and the present, creating such rich and expressive Water Margin characters that not only surpass the old masters but also breathe new vitality into the art of national painting figures in the new era, once again demonstrating the infinite aesthetic value of this thriving traditional Chinese art form.
At the turn of the new millennium, I was involved in the publication of Dai Dunbang's New Paintings of the Complete Dream of the Red Chamber (Note: This collection won the 13th China Book Award and the First National Outstanding Art Book Award). I visited Mr. Hua Junwu, Mr. Cai RuoHong, and Mr. Ding Cong in Beijing for this event. These venerable masters of painting all praised Dai's works. As early as 1998, when Dai Dunbang's Classical Literary Masterpiece Painting Collection was published, Mr. Hua remarked, "This is a rare and excellent painting collection of recent times. The portrayal of historical figures is innovative and unconventional, with rich imagery, aesthetic form, and profound meaning—making it hard to put down. Dai Dunbang is one of the few contemporary serial painters. Lu Xun once predicted that great painters would emerge from serial painting, and in my view, Dai Dunbang is one of them." Mr. Ding Cong said, "Dai Dunbang is an extremely hardworking painter, with a range of work unmatched by anyone else. The characters he paints have a sense of their time, and his understanding of literature and history is profound. The subtlety of his Dream of the Red Chamber characters and the ruggedness of his Water Margin characters are so vividly brought to life that readers immediately connect with them. Whether for experts or general audiences, his works are deeply moving and worth revisiting again and again."
Indeed, it is precisely because of Mr. Dai Dunbang's relentless pursuit of art that his skills have reached a transcendent level, making him a unique and outstanding master on the Chinese painting scene. During my years before retirement, I had the privilege of editing four large-scale painting collections by Mr. Dai Dunbang (in addition to the three mentioned above, there is also Dai Dunbang's Daoist Figure Paintings). Mr. Dai insisted that I write the preface, so I can only share some impressions and thoughts from the perspective of an editor and reader.