聚会之地——中国文人的花园

Margaret Trey

For centuries， the traditional Chinese garden has been an idyllic paradise and a source of creative inspiration for scholars and artists. In traditional Chinese culture， the garden is a place to discover ones self. The garden serves as a place for self-cultivation， solitary contemplation， as well as for social or literary gatherings.

For the first time， the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art displays its entire permanent collection of artwork celebrating these recurring themes in Chinese gardens.

Maxwell Hearn （Metropolitan Museum Asian Art Department Head）： It introduces one thousand years of Chinese painting history， all focused on the theme of Chinese gardens， and how gardens have been an inspiration throughout the centuries.

Another recurring theme focuses on how gardens serve as a venue for literary gatherings. This is best illustrated in the Gathering at the Orchid Pavilion—a hand scroll in ink and color on paper. It tells the story of a well-known calligrapher Wang Xizhi and his friends meeting at the Orchid Pavilion to hold a poetry competition. Cups of wine float downstream， as poets compose their verses by the meandering river.

Maxwell： This legend， of this extraordinary outdoor gathering， was a terrific inspiration for later garden designers who often love to create these winding waterways.

Water has a special symbolic meaning in a Chinese scholars garden. It represents the essence of life. Hence waterfalls and waterways in the garden symbolize the flow and rejuvenation of life.

Likewise， rocks have a special meaning in traditional Chinese gardens.

Four types of rocks are used in The New York Chinese Scholars Garden. These include 1）granite for building rockeries， 2）stalagmite for vertical accents， small goose egg-shaped pebbles on the walkways and the 3）mosaics of the courtyard， and the Tai Hu sculpture rocks.

Rocks play an important role in Chinese poetry and landscape painting—a past time of the Chinese scholars as they seek 4）refuge in the garden.

In the Ming-style garden， rocks， waterways， and plant life thus provide a serene and idyllic setting for the Chinese scholar—as he sits in his garden to do his calligraphy， painting， or write his poetry.

数百年来，传统的中国园林都被建造成隐逸仙境，并由此成为文人墨客创作灵感的源泉。在中国传统文化中，园林是了悟自我的绝佳之地。园林是个可供陶冶性情、独自思考的地方，也是个供文人雅聚的社交场所。

纽约大都会博物馆第一次展出了它全部有关中国园林这类主题的馆藏艺术创作。

何慕文（大都会博物馆亚洲艺术部主任）：这次展览同时介绍了有上千年历史的中国古典绘画，都以中国园林为主题，并以此展示了园林对于文人创作的影响。

有一个反复出现的主题关注到了园林作为文人雅聚之地的社交功能，这在这卷《兰亭修禊图》字画手卷中得到了很好的诠释。它画的是著名的书法家王羲之与他的友人们在兰亭举行赋诗比赛的场景。他们将盛了酒的觞放在溪中，任之由上游浮水徐徐而下，文人们在弯弯曲曲的溪流边饮酒赋诗。

何慕文：这次聚会盛事为之后的园林设计者提供了灵感，所以在园林中常见蜿蜒的流水。

水在中国文人的园林中有着特别的象征意义。它代表着生命之源，因此园林中的瀑布与溪流象征着生命的流动不息与青春活力。

同样地，山石在中国传统园林中也有着特殊的意义。

纽约史坦顿岛的寄兴园中用到了四种石头，包括用于建造假山的花岗岩，用作竖直景观造型的石笋石，用来铺设走道的小鹅卵石和铺设庭院的锦砖，以及便于雕刻造型的太湖石。

中国文人在园林中寄情山水时以诗歌与山水画打发闲暇，而山石在其诗歌与山水画中占有重要的一席之地。

在明代时期的园林中，山石、理水和植物为中国文人提供了一处安宁、闲适之地——让他们能在园林中惬意地练字、作画、写诗。