The Soul in Images—A Voyage to Wang Xinyao’s Painting Art

By Gong Xue

Wang Xinyao is more an artist than a university professor, an expert in oil paintings who also excels in traditional Chinese paintings. On December 24, 2018, he told us his story and feelings about his artistic career.

When we walked into his studio, the first painting we saw was Huang Xing in the Battle of Hanyang, which was painted in 1981 when he graduated from university. “It was under Huang Xing’s command that the famous Wuchang Uprising fired its first shot of the Xinhai Revolution in 1911. That’s why the color and composition of this work is full of stories and heroism,” Wang Xinyao said. “Influenced greatly by the literature and art of the Soviet Union, our contemporary art creation eulogizes heroism and puts high value on major historical themes, which is vividly presented in these works.” The painting also reveals his trains of thought during his artistic process.

In the mid-to-late 1980s, a group of painters from Hubei Province went to Tibet, and Wang Xinyao was among them. Back then Tibet was developing and very different from the central part of China in terms of landscapes, the geography, and people’s living conditions. “We were fascinated by everything we saw there: people’s colorful dresses, simple lifestyles, their eyes while communicating with outsiders, and the vast and pure natural sceneries,” said Wang Xinyao. Prayers of the Plateau was painted during that period.

While working on oil paintings, Wang Xinyao is also devoted to traditional Chinese paintings. The undulating mountains in Tibet, the rolling and changing clouds, and the unpredictable and turbulent natural phenomena were all mesmerizing to him. He said, “At first I tried to draw mountain compilations with simple colors, which I found unexpectedly interesting and relaxing because of the magical nature and my various attempts with different materials.”

Zhang Xiaoling, an art critic, once commented on Wang’s works, “Your painting is no longer a simple depiction of the landscape, but sublimation on the spiritual level. Instead of depending on the object itself, your works put an emphasis on feeling and interpreting the object.”

In the early 1990s, the city began its demolition campaign, during which old lanes and alleys full of vivid stories, bamboo stools still warm from body heat, fans and other old daily items, as well as the joy of sharing a good dish with neighbors all vanished against the background of fast economic development. Having grown up in the local culture of Wuhan city, Wang created works in accordance with his memories,

such as The Memory of an Old Lane and City Impression. By applying flat shading skills in colors and shapes, he gave these works a dreamy feeling, presented images subjectively, and reminisced on the time and memories of his generation. Old Lane, hung on the wall of his studio, was his representative work of this type, which clearly reflected the changes of his artistic style: from people to scenery, from oil painting to ink painting, from figuration to imagery. These works brought him fame and he became one of the representative artists who were born in the 1950s in Hubei Province.

The Memory of an Old Lane (No.6), oil on canvas, by Wang Xinyao 老巷记忆NO.6 布面油画

“While in university, I had the opportunity to attend many seminars and visits, which brought me to art galleries and museums all over the world, including the United States, Britain, Netherlands, Russia, etc.” Wang said that the combination and fusion of Chinese and Western art was the direction he has been exploring for the past few years. He believes that modern painting is no longer bound by the old and narrow definition of art. It has become a cultural form with broad definitions which crossed borders long before.

“As a modern artist, I often contemplate on the question of how to create works with individuality and responsibility in our time. I’m trying to find a merging point between traditional Chinese painting and oil painting,” Wang Xinyao said. “On one occasion it hit me that while oil painting is strong and heavy, ink painting is light and graceful. Therefore, the combination of the two might complement each other and cater more to the aesthetic requirements of modern people. So, I tried to use acrylic and oil paints to express the momentum of Chinese painting. Meanwhile I didn’t want my works to only depict the landscape and nature as I did in the past, but to express the traditional humanistic spirit of China in an abstract way and from a modern perspective.”

In line with China’s aesthetics, the style and nature of Chinese culture lie in simplicity, conciseness, majesty, and magnificence. In Wang’s office, we were attracted by a set of four oil paintings, which is one of his oil painting works with the theme of Chinese style. Along with applying the “formless” ink mass from Chinese calligraphy, he intensively explored the techniques of oil paintings such as scraping, sprinkling and spraying, to express the unique spirit and temperament of Chinese-style landscapes.

These flowing images look like natural forms such as mountains, clouds, oceans, and creatures. They can also be viewed as a phenomenon or an aura in life, expressing the unique magnificence of Chinese culture. When viewers look at them, they might have different interpretations. In terms of the relation between “shape and spirit” and “the subjective and the objective,” Chinese painting theory advocates “presenting spirit with shapes,” “learning wisdom and obtaining inspiration from nature, which renders one good artistic works,” and “the best artistic work lies between similarity and sameness.” Therefore, the emphasis on “spirit” and “image” and the concept of valuing emotions and presence became the cornerstone of Wang’s artwork.

Wang’s works went through several stages ranging from figurative art to imagery art to today’s abstract art. He commented that it is more difficult to draw abstract paintings because the painters need to consider how to showcase all kinds of reflections, feelings, and images. Abstract paintings emphasize more on self and instant passion by means of the diverse composition, color, and language expressions. There are no objects for reference in terms of choice of style and the processing of texture. It’s up to an artist’s taste and aesthetics. Painters need to use their brains and imagination in order to create new things. While painting, artists need to interact with and question the picture, painstakingly exploring and probing it in their minds. When they are not satisfied, they must scrap it and do it all over again.

On the road of integrating Chinese and Western art, Xu Beihong was the first one who introduced Western realistic sketching to Chinese paintings. Zao Wou-Ki advocated French romanticism in his early years. Wang Xinyao is different from them and is currently treading on an artistic path no one has traveled before. (Translation: Lu Qiongyao)

The Memory of an Old Lane (No.3), oil on canvas, by Wang Xinyao老巷记忆NO.3 布面油画

以形写神，妙在似与不似之间——王心耀的绘画艺术探索

文/ 龚雪

王心耀，中国湖北武汉人，中国武汉江汉大学设计学院教授、院长，汤湖美术馆馆长，武汉美术家协会副主席。当代油画家、国画家，亦广泛涉猎设计、插画、版画等艺术形式。油画《高原的祈祷》获“中国当代青年美展”金奖；油画《中国风》入选“第十二届全国美展”。作品被博物馆、美术馆、机构及私人收藏，艺术成就收入《中国现代美术史》《中国当代美术史文献集》。

王心耀不仅是一名大学教授，更是一位艺术家。他以油画见长，中国画也能信手拈来。2018年12月24日，他跟笔者讲述了自己对艺术创作的心得和感受。

王心耀工作室，进门第一幅画《黄兴在汉阳保卫战中》，创作于1981年大学毕业之际。“黄兴指挥武昌起义打响辛亥革命第一枪，所以这幅作品的色彩和构图充满了故事性和英雄主义色彩。”王心耀说，“当代艺术创作受文学、苏联绘画的影响较大，对英雄主义的讴歌、对重大历史题材的重视，都鲜明体现在作品中。”这张画也隐约道出了王心耀的艺术创作思路。

20世纪80年代中后期，王心耀等一批湖北画家去西藏，当时西藏还少有开发，原始自然，地理环境和生活状态与中部迥异。“藏民多彩的穿着打扮、朴素的生活方式、与人交流的眼神，以及西藏纯净、广阔的自然风光，都让人新奇、痴迷、流连。”王心耀说。《高原的祈祷》就是这一时期创作的。

在创作油画同时，王心耀也倾心于中国画创作。西藏山脉起伏，云浪翻滚，自然现象变幻莫测、波谲云诡。他说：“开始我尝试在宣纸上画一些色彩单纯、平面化的山，造物的神奇加上材料的尝试，我发现绘画变得很有趣味性，成为一种放松的方式。”批评家张晓凌曾评价他的作品：“你的绘画已经不再是描绘风景，而是一种精神层面的升华。绘画逐渐脱离对表现对象的依赖，而是去感受对象、表现对象。”

Chinese Style: Qi, acrylic on canvas, by Wang Xinyao 中国风·气 布面丙烯油画

20世纪90年代初期，城市开始大拆迁，那些烟火味的寻常巷陌，散发着体温的竹凳、蒲扇等生活物件，邻里分享一盘好菜的喜悦等等，迅速消失在经济发展的社会大背景中。在武汉本土文化中长大的王心耀，凭着回忆，创作了《老巷记忆》《城市印象》等作品，他在色调、造型上都做了平面化处理，营造出梦幻感觉，表明主观思想和意象，在作品里回顾了他这一代人的岁月记忆。代表作《老巷》，悬挂在工作室墙上，清晰地反映出王心耀艺术风格的变化：从人物到风景，从油画到水墨，从具象到意象。他也因这些作品而成为湖北画坛20世纪50年代出生的代表画家之一。

“大学期间，学习访问和交流活动都很多。我有机会参观了世界各地艺术馆、博物馆，包括美国、英国、荷兰、俄罗斯的等等。”王心耀说，中西结合、中西融合，是他近几年努力探索的方向。他认为，现在的绘画，已经不再是过去定义的狭隘的画种概念，而是早已跨界，成为一个大的文化范畴。

“作为一名当代艺术家，如何在时代背景下，创作一些有个性、担当的作品，是我时常考虑的问题，我尝试探索在国画、油画之间找一个碰撞点。”王心耀说，“一次偶然的机会，让我找到灵感：油画厚重、雄浑，水墨轻盈、通透，两者结合，相得益彰，更符合现代人的审美要求。所以我尝试用布面丙烯、油彩，来表达中国绘画的气势。同时，我又不想回到过去只停留在对山水、对自然的描绘，而是用当代的视角，抽象表达中国传统人文精神。”

单纯、简洁、磅礴、大气，这才是中国文化的气派和内涵，更符合中国的审美。在办公室一角，一套四条屏油画作品引起笔者注意，这是他近年来“中国风”主题油画创作作品之一。他借用中国书法的韵味，采用水墨“没骨法”的团块，同时大量探索油画中刮、洒、喷等技法，来表现“中国风”山水的特有意境和气质。这种流动、意象，既像是山、云、海洋、生物等自然形态，也可以理解为生活中一种现象、一种气场，它表现了中国文化中特有的雄浑，观者在欣赏时，充满哲思和遐想，欣赏角度也各不相同。在“形与神”“主观与客观”的关系上，中国画论主张“以形写神”“外师造化，中得心源”和“妙在似与不似之间”。崇尚“神似”和“意境”、注重画情感和气度的“形神观”，成为王心耀的艺术基石。

王心耀的创作从早期的具象、中期的意象，发展到现在的抽象。他说，画抽象画更难，因为画家要面临由各种印象、感觉、影像所引起的思考和表现。抽象画更强调自我、瞬间的激情，涉及画面构成、色彩、语言表达，比如样式的选择、肌理的处理，是没有对象可参照的，其中还涉及艺术趣味、审美情趣的高低。这些都需要画家动脑筋来发挥，甚至无中生有。创作时，常常与画面互动、对抗，反复探索，自我折磨。有时候不满意，刮了重新再来。

在中西融合的道路上，徐悲鸿倡导将西方写实素描引入中国画，赵无极早年崇尚法国浪漫主义。王心耀不同于他们，走一条前人从未走过的路。