Fang Guoxing's Artistic Criticism

Former Central Leader Wu Guanzheng:

If you stay in the beautiful forest, I will be a flower watcher when I go out.

Professor Qi Gong:

Mr. Fang Guoxing's Xiao Zhuan and Mo Lan are among the best today.

Mr Tao Wu Bo:

Mr. Fang is good at learning calligraphy, taking official script as seal script and accepting the brushwork of running script; Taking seal script as official script, it is also the pen of the North Monument, and at the same time taking the calligraphy of the North Monument as cursive script, melting the body in one furnace, creating a new picture and creating a new face.

Mr Fang's Xiao Zhuan and Zhu Lan are unique in contemporary times.

Professor Jian Kang:

I think Fang Jun's calligraphy is beautiful, flowers and birds are beautiful, and Cynthia is even more beautiful. His orchids are unique and vigorous, and the ink bamboo is vigorous and bold, which is worthy of the reputation of "the king of China Lanzhu".

"Bamboo shadow pen and ink will be passed down from generation to generation, and Zilan lines will be amazing for thousands of years."

Professor Yu Chungui:

Your orchid is free and easy, with rich connotations and endless changes. Bamboo is tall and straight, powerful and unique. I think your orchid bamboo is "the best in the world". Flowers and birds are smart, fresh and full of charm, especially plum blossoms, old trees are new and memorable. Looking at your Chinese painting, it is pleasing to the eye, fresh and refreshing in Tao Qing. Calligraphy is rich and simple, emphasizing tradition, seeking innovation and change, and forming its own style.

China arts and crafts master Wang Xiliang:

Mr. Fang, you have made great achievements in painting and calligraphy at the same time.

"Write a gentleman's flower on porcelain with a solid calligraphy pen"

China arts and crafts master Zhang Songmao:

Professor Fang's ceramic paintings are very good, even better than his Chinese paintings.

Rao Xiaoqing, Master of Arts and Crafts in China Jingdezhen:

Teacher Fang's understanding of pen and ink is full of "clumsy" charm, and clumsy is full of "clever" charm. His understanding of nature shows the concept of man and the natural universe together, and the changes of heaven and earth are United as if life had never left his art! His ceramic paintings are elegant and refined, full of atmosphere and literary spirit!

China arts and crafts master Li:

Teacher Fang shows the painting method of Chinese painting on ceramics, which has a refreshing special feeling! Printing poetry, calligraphy and painting, including ink painting, has a unique role in ceramics!

Professor Cheng Yun:

Mr. Fang's calligraphy, traditional Chinese painting and ceramic painting are all based on calligraphy, and there are few ceramic masters in this field.

Fang Guoxing's emphasis on "pen and ink" in ceramic painting is really commendable, which is rare since "Eight Friends of Zhushan" and Wang Bu.

Shi, Academician of Japan National Calligraphy Art Academy:

"A pen in the south of the Yangtze River is the king of China Lanzhu"

Millennium kiln fire opens a new rhyme.

-Talking about Fang Guoxing's ceramic painting art

(Excerpted from Jingdezhen Ceramics, No.4, 2007)

Chengyun

Jingdezhen became the center of ceramic production in China in the Ming Dynasty, which was a grand occasion when "craftsmen came from all directions and utensils became the world". Jingdezhen porcelain workers are good at absorbing the strengths of a hundred schools, learning from the skills and experience of porcelain experts from all over the country, and combining with local characteristics to carry out transformation and innovation, so that Jingdezhen ceramics will go to the whole country and gradually become the porcelain capital of China. Facing the whole country and even the world, this trend of openness, integration and innovation has attracted countless painters and ceramic lovers to the porcelain capital to promote Jingdezhen ceramic culture. Jingdezhen porcelain "China" represents China, which has a far-reaching influence in the world.

Ceramic art can also be said to be marginal art, which has extensive relations with many artistic styles, especially painting and calligraphy. The origin of porcelain The painting on painted pottery is the first in traditional painting and porcelain decoration. The painting styles and characteristics in different periods have different degrees of infiltration and influence on porcelain decoration, such as Li's realistic line-drawing figure painting in Song Dynasty, which had an influence on the blue-and-white porcelain art in Yuan Dynasty. Yunnan boneless flowers directly influenced the appearance of pastel porcelain. Kangxi's blue-and-white figures and colorful Kangxi all reflect the shadow of woodcut in Ming and Qing Dynasties to varying degrees. Jingdezhen traditional ceramic decoration techniques and styles are produced and constantly improved in the process of drawing lessons from sister arts such as calligraphy and painting. Jingdezhen ceramic art has the development footprint of ceramic decoration, ceramic painting and ceramic art.

Before the Republic of China, it was mainly ceramic decoration, characterized by the combination of patterns and ceramic painting. Most of the patterns are decorated on the mouth, shin, foot and turning point of the bottle. Painting is subordinate to decoration, and production is divided into many people. From each according to his ability, each shows his beauty, pays attention to the beauty of technology and craft, and shows the consciousness of imperial power. The characteristics of Jingdezhen traditional ceramics, with this kind of ceramic decoration as the mainstream and ontology. During the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the group of "Xin 'an School" painters, represented by Cheng Men, lightly painted porcelain with traditional Chinese painting, weakening the decoration and craftsmanship of ceramics and emphasizing the expressiveness of calligraphy and painting. On the basis of summing up the gains and losses of "shallow painting", "Eight Friends of Zhushan" used pastel techniques to properly emphasize the characteristics of craftsmanship and techniques, and used calligraphy to write paintings on porcelain, which was later called "ceramic painting". Because traditional painting emphasizes the connection between "writing" and verve, "pen" cannot be swallowed. "Eight Friends of Zhushan" are mostly masters of traditional painting, winning the "three flavors" of painting and calligraphy. Their ceramics only express the true meaning of painting and calligraphy with craft materials. Lyric and vivid, each with a hole in the sky. "Eight Friends of Zhushan" perfected the ceramic painting art initiated by the older generation represented by Cheng Men and pushed it to the peak of history. With its unique painting form, it marks the new thought in China's art history and has influenced the later generations. Traditional ceramic decoration is mainly "decoration", which means "carving" and pursues "ingenuity" arrangement. It is the requirement of arts and crafts and embodies the characteristics of ceramic art, which is the fundamental difference between ceramic decoration and ceramic painting in object representation. "Decoration" can be described, but painting needs "writing" and can never be described.

The development of contemporary Jingdezhen ceramic art is diversified, and ceramic decoration, ceramic painting and modern ceramic art compete with each other. In particular, ceramic painting has developed rapidly in recent years, mainly because some great painters and young and middle-aged painters came to Jingdezhen to paint porcelain. Such as,, He,, Lao, etc. Mr. Fang Guoxing, a researcher of Jiangxi Provincial Museum, a national first-class artist, an academician of the Central Ziguangge Chinese Painting Academy, a painter who has made outstanding contributions to enjoying the special government allowance of the State Council, and distinguished professor of Jingdezhen College, has become one of the most influential figures in Jingdezhen ceramic painting after "Eight Friends of Zhushan" because of his unique research and study environment for the works of art in provincial museums and his persistent pursuit and innovation in painting art. As mentioned above, ceramic painting should have the connotation and characteristics of painting art and be written with ceramic materials. Therefore, the master of ceramic painting must be a master of painting and calligraphy, just as the "Eight Friends of Zhushan" are all proficient in painting and calligraphy, so is Mr. Fang Guoxing.

Mr. Fang Guoxing's paintings and ceramic paintings are based on his calligraphy, and artistic calligraphy comes first. Contemporary famous calligrapher, vice chairman of Jiangxi Calligraphers Association, member of appraisal and evaluation committee of China Calligraphers Association. He is good at four aspects of calligraphy, especially calligraphy and seal cutting, and has won the appreciation of Master Qi Gong. His calligraphy was well-known throughout the country as early as 1980s, and he was named "one of the 37 outstanding young and middle-aged calligraphers in China" by Calligraphy magazine 1987. His calligraphy has won many gold medals in the "Japan International Cultural Exchange Exhibition" and many awards in the national calligraphy exhibition, which has a great influence. Mr. Fang's seal writing skills are profound. He made an in-depth study of Wei Bei, Deng's seal script and Kang Youwei's calligraphy, and combined them according to his own life accomplishment and personality, forming a simple, heavy, delicate and elegant calligraphy style. Mr. Fang's official script absorbed the advantages of classic official scripts such as "Zhu" and "Zhu", combined with his pen, collected and changed appropriately, and adopted northern inscriptions and seal scripts as official scripts. His seal script was obviously influenced by Deng He, and the brushwork of official script and cursive script was combined into one, which was the first of a generation. Mr. Qi Gong, a master of calligraphy and painting in China, said that his Xiao Zhuan and Mo Lan are unique today!

Calligraphy is the foundation of Chinese painting, and it is difficult to draw well without good calligraphy. Generally speaking, there are painting styles like books and words like people. Mr. Fang's paintings give people the first impression of simplicity, freshness and atmosphere. At first glance, they are dull and interesting. He is good at drawing flowers and birds, especially orchids, bamboos and plums. His orchids are written in seal script, the central strokes are round and powerful, and the flowers are smart and elegant in running script, exuding the spirit of beauty and elegance. Its ink bamboo uses Weibei and Li Fa to draw leaves, and the round pen wet ink stick means "seal". Mo Yun's "five colors" contrast is dark, dry and varied. Its "ink bamboo" has the artistic conception of "moistening the spring rain and cracking the autumn wind", giving people a vibrant beauty. Professor Jian Kang, the late chairman of Jiangxi Artists Association, once said, "I think Fang Jun's calligraphy, flowers, birds and orchids are more beautiful. His orchids are chic and vigorous, and the ink bamboo is bold and unrestrained, which is worthy of the reputation of' the king of China Lanzhu'. He also praised: "Bamboo shadow pen and ink have been passed down from generation to generation, and Zilan lines are magical for thousands of years." Mr. Yu Chungui, a famous painter and critic in Shandong, appreciated Mr. Fang's paintings: "Your orchids are free and easy, with rich connotations and endless changes. Bamboo is tall and straight, powerful and unique. I think your orchid bamboo is the best in the world. Flowers and birds are smart, fresh and charming, especially plum blossoms are dry and soft, and ancient trees are full of fresh aftertaste. Look at your Chinese painting, pleasing to the eye, fresh, ceramic, refreshing ... it is unique. " Mr Fang's plum blossom paintings are different from others. Branches often use thick and light wet ink, thick and light, dry and wet, dry and wet naturally. He writes with bold pen and ink, and the natural Mo Yun exudes a strong bone strength, and the spirit and lofty sentiments of plum blossom are vividly on the paper. The peony he painted is simple and bright, rich and gorgeous. His paintings of chickens and birds are exquisite, vivid and interesting.

Mr. Fang Guoxing is not only a famous calligrapher and China painter, but also a famous ceramic painter and calligrapher. After more than 20 years of exploration and practice, his ceramic painting has formed its own unique style and achieved remarkable results. His ceramic work "Youlan" won the first prize of "China Contemporary Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition". In addition, many ceramic paintings won prizes in the "Arts and Crafts Expo" and "Masterpieces Exhibition". His ceramic works are deeply loved by experts, ceramic lovers and collectors.

As mentioned above, the group of "light-colored" painters pioneered painting on porcelain in the form of traditional Chinese painting. Eight Friends of Zhushan perfected, developed and absorbed the advantages of literati painting, and also expressed the feelings of literati, pushing it to a historical peak. Mr. Kong Liuqing put forward in the article "The Historical Position of Eight Friends of Zhushan in the Field of Ceramic Painting": "Eight Friends of Zhushan is not only the end of the traditional development form of ceramic painting, but also the beginning of the modern development form of ceramic painting." This view is very incisive. In my opinion, "end" is a superficial imitation of this ceramic painting form, and "beginning" is a broad development space for this ceramic painting form to enlighten and open up modern ceramic painting. "Eight Friends of Zhushan" is at the end of the old era. In the specific period of the new era, the traditional culture of foreign powers invading China began to be generally impacted by western culture. Most of the ceramic paintings of "Eight Friends of Zhushan" are the products of this era. They all use pastels to express the feelings of literati with the skills of craftsmen. The works pay attention to the writing of traditional painting and calligraphy techniques and the inheritance of artistic conception. At the same time, the work opens the scrutiny of the relationship between the use of light and shade in western painting and picture composition. The ceramic paintings of "Eight Friends of Zhushan" stood at the peak of ceramic history and ended their specific era with inheritance and innovation. Ceramic painting needs to develop and coexist with other ceramic art forms, which is the law of diversified artistic development. Talented people come out in the Jiangshan generation, and the blue and white porcelain art in Wang Bu represents the peak of a period. His painting style is obviously influenced by Mr. Qi Baishi's Chinese painting, and he has exquisite blue and white water separation techniques, which shows people's recognition of the aesthetic style of Baishi's Chinese painting and has influenced a generation. It shows that ceramic painting is closely related to painting art. The painting style representing a certain period will definitely affect the ceramic painting of a certain period, because in this art, the process materials are all for painting. Otherwise, ceramic painting will be eliminated by ceramic decoration.

Nowadays, traditional painting in China is developing in the direction of pluralistic coexistence. The exclusive authority of Qi and Huang has been broken, and various opinions are very active. This is a social phenomenon under the background of harmonious development of tolerance, exploration and reform. This phenomenon is also reflected in Jingdezhen ceramic painting field. However, compared with the inheritance and innovation in the field of painting art, it is relatively conservative to keep pace with the development of the times. Fortunately, in recent years, many foreign painters came to Jingdezhen to create porcelain paintings, which brought new style to the Millennium porcelain capital and destroyed brilliant flowers. Mr. Fang Guoxing's ceramic paintings are one of the most dazzling.

The characteristics of Mr. Fang Guoxing's ceramic painting are as follows: First, he inherited the importance attached by "Eight Friends of Zhushan" and "Blue and White King" Wang Bu to the characteristics and connotation of traditional painting; Second, like the insightful masters in Jingdezhen today, they are good at using modern scientific and technological achievements to transform traditional craft materials; Thirdly, his works are characterized by the harmonious unity of painting, decoration and technology.

First, the characteristics and connotation of "pen and ink". China's traditional painting "pen and ink" has a lofty position. It is not only the trace of the materialization of the subject spirit, but also the hidden connotation of China's cultural spirit, and it is the information base of China's groups, individuals and historical inheritance. As Shi Tao said, "pen and ink should follow the times." Most older painters emphasize "pen and ink", while most young and middle-aged painters downplay "pen and ink". This situation is manifested as follows: first, social changes and cultural exchanges between China and the West, and the national inferiority complex leads to the loss of some aspects of traditional culture; Second, the young and middle-aged generation, some of whom are willing but unable to do so, lack the foundation and environmental atmosphere; Thirdly, some scholars have extended the concept of "pen and ink" from the traditional transfer.

As mentioned earlier, Fang Guoxing's calligraphy, painting and ceramic painting are all based on calligraphy. Many classic sayings, such as "painting and calligraphy are the same origin" and "painting bamboo also requires eight arts", have expounded the important role and far-reaching influence of calligraphy on painting. Mr. Fang's achievements in calligraphy and his influence in the whole country were introduced earlier, but the research of ceramic painters and calligraphers in this field was less. Mr. Fang's "three flavors" of calligraphy have raised his painting to a considerable height. Mr. Tao, a master of literati painting, called him the champion of the era of "Zhuanli" and "Zhu Lan". Therefore, it has the reputation of "a pen in the south of the Yangtze River, a bamboo, and a Meilan". Mr. Fang's ceramic painting can be seen from the red porcelain bottles, porcelain plates and inlays in his "Zhu Lan" blue-and-white glaze: the lines are drawn with silver hooks and iron pens, and the "pen and ink" is steady and agile, which reflects the profound artistic accomplishment of calligraphy and painting. It is quite difficult to draw on the blank with blue and white or glaze red as raw materials, because the blank has strong water absorption and the pen cannot be dragged on the surface of the blank. Without the wrist power that calligraphy and painting have been practiced for decades, and without a thorough familiarity with raw materials, it is impossible to have a higher calligraphy line as heavy and agile as a cone painting sand. Therefore, the texture of many ceramic paintings is flashy and lacks the connotation of "pen and ink". Fang Guoxing's ceramic paintings are durable and not eye-catching, but they are exciting. There is a wealth of "pen and ink" language hidden under the plain appearance, and the handwriting of every point, line and surface can be read out with heart the massiness of China's cultural spirit.

Second, be good at using the new achievements of traditional craft materials under the action of modern science and technology. Mr. Fang, like people of insight in Jingdezhen today, is good at discovering the unique aesthetic feeling of new technical materials and applying them to ceramic painting. For example, the traditional red pigment in glaze is often drawn with iron wire, based on the premise of uniform color and non-dispersion, and mostly based on meticulous techniques. At present, in order to meet the needs of freehand brushwork, the raw materials of underglaze red have changed. Under the specific firing temperature and kiln environment, under the condition that the blank, enamel and brush are in harmony, there will be changes in red and green, which will have unexpected artistic effects on the virtual reality and color of the picture. However, if the materials are not properly controlled, most of them will be baked in the kiln at a high temperature of 1300 degrees, resulting in the flow of pigments, which is beyond recognition. With the development of science and technology, shuttle kiln has changed the firing atmosphere of wood kiln, the new formula of materials and the new possibility of aesthetic development. With a keen eye, Mr. Fang worked hard for more than ten years, and failed and broken porcelain products piled up like mountains. Finally, I have mastered the modern technique of underglaze red, and applied it to "pen and ink", so that calligraphy, painting and ceramics can be integrated into one, reaching a high level and never getting tired of reading it. For example, in his blue-and-white underglaze red flower-and-bird works, the center uses a pen to penetrate the porcelain back, and the underglaze red pen is green in the middle, red as agate, green as jade, neither gray nor black nor immortal, which not only enriches the level, but also strengthens the vivid charm. The contrast between the steadiness of the pen and the agility of the hair color is very interesting, which enhances the artistic connotation. His blue and white, "elegant and fresh, simple and atmospheric" is generous. The use of blue and white material color is just right, the material color is as clear as ink, and the technology is exquisite. Without "material idiot" (technical defect), it is not easy to write a large area of deep materials. The color of the material and the pen are harmonious and natural. The pen is based on bone, and its color is rhythmic. It is easy to see the color of the pen, and it is difficult for ordinary people to write it from the heart. Such as blue-and-white four-screen "four gentlemen" porcelain plates, blue-and-white peony porcelain plates, etc. The blue hair color of blue works is steady and elegant, without dazzling "fire" spirit, which complements its painting and calligraphy style.

Third, painting, craft and decoration are harmonious and unified. In painting on ceramics, we should first consider the harmony between porcelain type and painting, which is determined by the decorative requirements of arts and crafts. Ceramic painting should make full use of the characteristics of process materials, which is determined by the independence of ceramic painting form. Eight Friends of Zhushan and his blue-and-white works have made great artistic achievements in this respect, and Mr. Fang's ceramic art fully embodies his thinking, deliberation and experience in this respect. He often lays out the picture composition relationship according to the characteristics of porcelain, connects the upper, lower, left and right sides of porcelain with the echo of images, connects the movements and rhythms of the pen, and uses the internal connection between "the pen is broken but still long" and the "hidden connection" of calligraphy techniques to open up the "reality" of painting and the "emptiness" of porcelain ground, making it a harmonious and unified whole. His porcelain paintings have the realm of calligraphy and painting, and he sees the beauty of craft materials, including decorative factors. For example, in his glazed orchid porcelain painting, two orchids grow horizontally from right to left, and the other orchid comes out from left to right. The lines cross each other to form an irregular square, which "coincides" with the horizontal porcelain plate. Another example is his blue-and-white glazed red "Plum Blossom Primate Spring" celestial bottle. The main composition of the spherical painting is full, the stroke lines are horizontal, the prunes extend to the bottle body, and the brushwork is fine, which echoes the bottle body. The modeling pictures are harmonious and unified, beautiful and atmospheric, and complement each other. Mr. Fang Guoxing's ceramic art is the product of his profound calligraphy and painting attainments and extensive artistic accomplishment, and it is also the materialization of his personality spirit.

The glory of the Millennium porcelain capital not only shines with the diligence and wisdom of local porcelain makers, but also embodies the painstaking efforts and experience of countless foreign craftsmen and painters attracted by Jingdezhen ceramics to explore ceramic art. We study the ceramic painting art of Mr. Fang Guoxing, a famous contemporary painter, and summarize his successful experience, so as to promote the ceramic painting art to meet the aesthetic needs of people at different levels, reflect the characteristics of the times and promote the harmonious development of ceramic art in a diversified direction.

(Professor Cheng Yun: a famous ceramic artist, theorist and Jingdezhen research expert. )