Chinese Art: Shen Zongqian: Part IV
15. Set the Goal High
There are four ways to reach the high goal: (1) Keep your mind pure, rid of all earthly thoughts; (2) Read well to gain true understanding of the world of inner laws; (3) Avoid early popularity in order to reach a higher goal; (4) Befriend the people of culture in order to keep to the classic forms.
Art is just an expressions of the person’s mind. The mind may be cluttered with worldly considerations, which make impossible a state of detachment, or it may be filled with pride, which makes impossible concentration and calm.
The nature of the world is infinite, especially seen through paintings, where only by subtle observation can we grasp what it is all about. This subtle penetration is not for shallow minds. Unless helped with reading, one’s mind remains crude and superficial, without depth, or common without the flavor of the poets. Paintings by the true artists have always been valued because they were steeped in book learning. Therefore, read well to gain true understanding of the world of inner laws.
The ancient kings had collections of paintings on the left and historical records on the right. Thus one should surround oneself with paintings and books. Therefore a good artist draws strength from his own spirit, but still must depend upon the interaction with a cultural environment. Such an situation makes for true refinement of spirit and for the highest goal of art.
16. Mellowness
There is a mellowing that takes a whole lifetime, and that of a moment. A person in their youth picks up knowledge and information left and right. They are anxious to know everything as if he could never have enough and learn fast enough. When having all of this material, rich and well chosen, he must then calm down and suppress his energy a little in order to attain that mellowness of personality seen in the ancients. This is a pot that must simmer slowly.
There is also the momentary impulse, the sudden, irresistible inspiration, which must be seized and recorded before it disappears. At the moment when a rough sketch has been made, one must take a pause to consider the possible flaws and weed out the irrelevant elements. One must mentally fuse it and melt it into something fine and deep with a lasting flavor. This is the mellowing moment. A painting starts with a rapid sketch and finishes with a merged, well-integrated product. It is done quickly where it should be done in the moment, and slowly where it should be deliberate.