What are the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou

The Eight Monsters of Yangzhou is a general term for a group of painters and calligraphers of similar styles who were active in Yangzhou during the mid-Qing Dynasty of China, also known as the Yangzhou School of Painting. "There were eight of them, they are Luo Lian, Li Fangying, Li (fish with single), Jin Nong, Huang Shen, Zheng Xie, Gao Xiang and Wang Shishen. Most of the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou came from the middle and lower intellectual classes, some of them were state and county officials who were dismissed from their posts, some of them were scribes who did not get the merit, and some of them were painters from poor families who made their living by painting. They either grew up in Yangzhou, or came to live here as expatriates from other provinces, and each had a rough experience, and successively assembled in Yangzhou to sell their paintings and calligraphy in the bustling calligraphy and painting market in Yangzhou.

The Eight Monsters of Yangzhou were a group of intellectuals with a sense of justice, who understood the corruption of the officialdom and the trickery of rich merchants. Faced with the difference between the rich and the poor in real life, they were strongly dissatisfied with the society in the light of their own experiences. They often sympathized with the suffering people and expressed their anger on behalf of them. However, because they were educated in feudal culture and the Qing Dynasty was in its heyday, it was impossible for their feelings and dissatisfaction to break through the barriers of feudalism. Among them, those who worked as officials strived to make some achievements so that the people could live and work in peace and contentment and the feudal order could be maintained. Those who had no intention of becoming officials kept themselves clean, did not agree with the common people, and boasted of their innocence. However, it is impossible for them to get rid of the economic dependence on the landlords and businessmen, so they are often in the extreme pain of ideological contradictions, in addition to cynicism, had to compromise in order to survive. Zheng Xie, the representative of the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou, left a lot of remarks and can be called the thinker of the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou. Li (fish beside the addition of single) in the works of the most painful and intense expression of the conflict, become the main object of attack.

The most prominent of the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou in terms of artistic outlook is the importance of individual expression. They advocated originality of style, advocated "self-establishment", they openly announced that their works are to sell money to earn a living, tearing down the past literati painters to create paintings as "elegant things" veil. In the subject matter of their works, on the one hand, they inherited the tradition of literati painting, the plum, orchid, bamboo, chrysanthemum, pine, stone as the main object of description, as a way to express the painter's innocence, solitude and vulgarity, on the other hand, they also use symbols, similes, metaphors and other techniques, through the title of the poems, to give the works of the profound social content and unique forms of ideological expression. For example, Li Fangying's Wind and Bamboo Figure symbolizes the stubbornness and unyielding character of people with the strong bamboo that defies the wind; Huang Shen's Group Beggar Figure and Luo Hire's Cow Seller's Song Figure show their careful observation of the reality of the society, and directly or indirectly express the inequality of the society. The Eight Monsters of Yangzhou, in terms of painting style, mainly inherited the techniques of ink and watercolor painting from their predecessors, and further utilized their ink and watercolor strengths, shaping objects in a highly concise manner, not confining themselves to the resemblance of branches and leaves. In terms of ink and brushwork, they were not bound by constraints, galloping across the board and expressing their feelings. Because their works were contrary to the prevailing style of subtle and elegant flower and bird paintings, they were often heavily criticized by critics and called "strange".

Although the art of the Eight Monsters of Yangzhou was only popular in Yangzhou and its neighboring areas, it had a profound impact on the development of traditional Chinese ink painting.

Gao Xiang (1688--1753), known as Xitang, Xitang, or Xitang, was a native of Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province. He was a lifelong clothier. In his later years, his right hand was crippled, and he often painted and calligraphed with his left hand. He was friends with Shi Tao, Jin Nong and Wang Shishen. Qing Dynasty. Li Dou, "Yangzhou Painting Boat Records", said: "When Shitao died, Xitang swept his tomb every spring, and never stopped until his death. His landscape paintings were based on Hongren and Shitao, and most of his garden landscapes were drawn from sketches, which were elegant, pale and moist, forming their own pattern. Painting plums (all sparse branches and thin dots, all in rhyme). He is also good at drawing portraits, the small portraits printed at the beginning of Jin Nong's and Wang Shishen's poetry collections are Gao Xiang's handwriting, with concise line drawings and realistic expressions. He was also good at engraving and printing, and learned from Cheng Profound. Also good at poetry, there is the West Tang Poetry Notes.

Jin Nong (1687--1763), the word Shoumen, Sinon, Jijin, the number of winter heart, also known as the Jiliu mountain people, Qujiang foreign history, Xieyeju Shi and so on. He was a native of Renhe (present-day Hangzhou), Zhejiang Province, and lived in Yangzhou for a long time. He was not an official in his life, but he was recommended to be a scholar and a scholar, and he returned to Beijing without being tested. He was a well-traveled man, and his footprints were half a day's worth of travel. He was a learned and versatile artist, skilled in seal carving and appraisal, and good at painting bamboo, plum, saddle horses, Buddhist statues, figures, and landscapes. He was especially good at ink plum blossoms. His plum blossoms are full of flowers and branches, and are full of vitality, and he also uses ancient jinshi brushwork in an elegant and simple style. However, many of his works were written by Luo Lian. He was also good at inscriptions (every painting must have an inscription, a touch of feeling), and was also good at calligraphy and seal engraving. He is also good at calligraphy and seal engraving. His calligraphy is based on the Tianfa Divine Confession Stele, Guoshan Stele, and Gulang Stele. He writes simple and ancient official script, and creates his own style of regular script, which is called "Lacquer Book". Seal engraving is based on the Qin and Han methods. His poems and writings include "Mr. Dongxin's Collection" and "Mr. Dongxin's Miscellaneous Writings", and his calligraphy and painting inscriptions are compiled as "Dongxin's Painting of Bamboo, Plum Blossoms, Horses, Self-written Photographs, and Miscellaneous Paintings Inscriptions", and so on.

Huang Shen (1687--1770 still in), the word Gong Mao. Huang Shen (1687--1770, still alive), the name of Gong Mao, Gong Shou, Ju Zhuang, the number of gallbladder , Ninghua, Fujian Province people. When he was young, he studied hard, because of his family's difficulties, he lived in the Xiao Temple, and he was a painter, and he did not get any wax at night, and he read under the bright light of the Buddha's temple. He was good at painting figures, and in his early years, he studied under Shangguan Zhou, and mostly made brushstrokes, but later, he was inspired by the real works of Huaisu, a calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, and entered painting with wild cursive strokes, which changed into rough brushstrokes of writing. Most of the historical and mythological stories, statues of the Buddha and the lives of men and women in literature as the subject matter, but also painted wandering beggars, fiberglass men, fishermen, etc., clothing lines, rabbits and migratory birds, many changes, and often a few strokes, that is, the shape of the spirit of both. He was also good at painting landscapes and birds and flowers. Huang Shen's cursive writing, get Huai Su brushwork, withered and strong brushwork, up and down the hook, like to make strange strokes, people are difficult to recognize. His poems were collected by Lei Hong, a fellow villager, and compiled into Jiao Hu Poetry Copy.

Zheng Xie (1693--1765), word Kerou, number Banqiao, jiangsu xinghua, should be examined for the kangxi-xiucai, Yongzheng ten years, the first year of Qianlong jinshi. Official Shandong Fan County, Weixian County, there is a political voice (to the yearly famine for the people to ask for relief, disobedience to the big officials, so begged sick to return. Before and after he became an official, he lived in Yangzhou and made a living by painting and calligraphy. He was good at painting orchids, bamboos, stones, pines and chrysanthemums, etc., and he had been painting orchids and bamboos for more than fifty years, with the most outstanding achievements. He took the method from Xu Wei, Shitao, and Bada, and developed his own method, with a sparse appearance and a strong style. He was a calligrapher, using the eight points of the Han Dynasty to mix in regular, running and cursive scripts, and called himself 〖six and a half points of the book〗. And the calligraphy brush is integrated into the painting. He advocated the inheritance of tradition (ten points to learn seven to throw three), (not mud ancient method), and emphasized the originality of art and diversity of style, so-called (not before painting, not to set up a pattern, and after painting, not to leave a pattern), which is still of reference significance to today. His poems and writings are sincere and interesting, and are popular among the people. He can also do seals (close to Wen He). There are "Zheng Banqiao complete collection", "Mr. Banqiao seal album" and so on.

Wang Shishen (1686--1759), the word close to the people, No. Chao Lin, alias Xidong foreign history, late spring old man, originally from Anhui Shexian, Yangzhou to sell paintings for a living. He was a painter of flowers, and his casual brushwork was exquisite and colorful. He was especially good at painting plums, and often went to the Plum Blossom Ridge outside Yangzhou to enjoy and write about plums. The plum blossoms, known for their dense stamens and branches, are light and elegant, and Jin Nong said: 〖The beauty of painting plums is that we have two friends in Guangling, Wang Chao-lin painting the busy branches, and Gao Xitang painting the sparse branches〗. (Plum Painting Inscription) But from the point of view of his surviving works of painting plums, not all of them are complicated branches, but also often painted sparse branches. Regardless of the complexity and simplicity, there are empty wrapped in sparse fragrance, wind and snow, the interest of the mountains and forests. At the age of fifty-four, he was blind in his left eye, but he was still able to paint plum blossoms, and his seal was engraved with the following words: 〖Left Blind Sheng〗 and 〖Still has an eye for plum blossoms〗. At the age of sixty-seven, both of his eyes were goze, but he could still write big characters in wild cursive, signing his name as "Xin Guan", so-called "Blind in the eyes, but not blind in the heart". He was a good poet, and was the author of "The Collection of Poems of Chao Lin".

Luohuai (1733--1799), the word遁夫, the two peaks, the flower of the temple monks, ancestry in Anhui Shexian, living in Yangzhou, lived in Caiyi Street, Mida Lane, claiming that the residence for the "Zhu Cao Poetry Forest". He was a disciple of Jin Nong. He was not an official in his life, but a good traveler. His works include objects, statues of Buddha, landscapes, flowers and fruits, plums and bamboos, which he inherited from his master, but was not bound by his master's method, and he created his own style with his own peculiar style of writing. His works are of many kinds, especially famous for his paintings of ghosts. The Ghosts and Interests Scroll is one of his most famous surviving works, in which the artist uses hyperbole to depict a bizarre and strange world of ghosts and monsters to satirize the social reality, making it an outstanding caricature of the ancient world. Yuan Mei, Yao Nai, Qian Daxin, and Weng Fanggang all inscribed their works. He was also a poet, and had a collection of poems called Fragrant Leaf Cao Tang. His wife, Fang Wan-yi, and sons, Yun-shao and Yun-sugar, were all good at painting plums, and were known as the Luo Family School of Plums.

Li Li (1686--1762), known as Zongyang, Fudang, or Chagrin Taoist, was a native of Xinghua, Jiangsu Province. In the 50th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, he was called to be an envoy of the inner court for 53 years, but he was sidelined because of his unwillingness to be bound by the painting style of the "orthodox school". In the third year of Qianlong, he was selected to be the governor of Teng County in Shandong Province, but he was dismissed from the court for being disobedient to the big officials. After two dismissals and one relegation, he went to Yangzhou to sell paintings for a living. He had the closest relationship with Zheng Xie, so Zheng had the saying that he sold paintings in Yangzhou and aged with Li. In his early years, he had learned to paint landscapes from his fellow villager Wei Lingcang, succeeding Huang Gongwang all the way, and when he was serving in the inner court, he had learned painting from Jiang Ting, and his painting method was exquisite; later, he also learned from the master of finger painting, Gao Qipei, and then advocated for writing. In Yangzhou, he was inspired by Shi Tao's brushwork, so he used broken brushes and splashed ink to paint, and his style changed greatly, forming his own unique style of waving freely and fusing ink and water into curiosity, and he liked to make long inscriptions on his paintings, and his handwriting was strewn all over the place, which made the picture very rich, and his works had a great influence on the bird and flower paintings of the late Qing Dynasty.

Li Fangying (1695--1755), the word Qingjiang, also known as Qiuchi, Clothes white mountain man, inhibition of the garden, the master of the garden, etc., Nantong, Jiangsu Province. In the eighth year of the Yongzheng period, he became the governor of Lanshan (now Linyi) in Shandong Province, but was arrested and imprisoned for offending his superiors, and was released in the first year of the Qianlong period, and was reinstated to his former post. He was released in the first year of the Qianlong reign and was reinstated in his official position. Later, he served as a magistrate in Qianshan and Hefei in Anhui, but he was still dismissed from his post because of his inability to meet with his superiors. When he was an official, he had a favorable government, and he was regarded as a man of virtue. After leaving the government, he lived in Nanjing and sold his paintings in Yangzhou. He was good at painting pines, bamboos, orchids, chrysanthemums, plums, flowers, insects and fishes, as well as figures and landscapes, especially plums. His works are bold and unrestrained, with a strong sense of ink, rough and disorderly, not sticking to the rules of ink and ink, and with a sense of being in between the green vine, the white sun, and the bamboo and the simple bamboo. Plum painting is known for its thinness and hardness, with old trunks and new branches, interjections and curves. The famous poem on plum painting has the line of "no breakage, no surprise". He also likes to paint the pine and bamboo in the gale. He was a good calligrapher. Able to poetry, later compiled a "Plum Blossom House Poetry Grass", only twenty-six, most of which are scattered on the painting.