Huajian 畫箋

Huajian畫箋 is a book on painting written during the Ming period by Tu Long 屠隆 (1542-1605). 明《鴻包》、《考槃餘事》、《游縣雜編》、《由拳》、《白榆》、《采真》及《書箋》、《帖箋》、《琴箋》、《紙墨筆硯箋》、《香箋》、《茶箋》、《山齋清供箋》、《起居器服箋》、《文房器具箋》等傳世。 《畫箋》計有論畫二十六則。每則一條，文字長短不一，長則數百字，短則十餘字。其條目依次爲：一賞鑒，二似不似，三古畫，四唐畫，五宋畫，六元圖，七國朝畫家，八邪學，九粉本，十臨畫，十一宋綉畫，十二看畫法，十三品第畫，十四無名畫，十五單條畫，十六古絹素，十七裱錦，十八學畫，十九軸頭，二十藏畫，二十一小畫匣，二十二卷畫，二十三拭畫，二十四出示畫，二十五裱畫，二十六挂畫。 《畫箋》所論範圍甚廣，有畫史、有畫理、有學畫、有品第、有觀畫、有收藏、有裝裱、有材料等等，幾乎無所不包。但文辭過簡約，點到即止，不及詳論。其中除一些收藏方法外，最具有理論學術價值的是附於論述唐、宋、元、明及習畫方法之中的有關繪畫「意趣」的觀點。 Huajian ("Notes on Painting") consists of 26 entries on painting. Each entry discusses a single topic, varying in length—some spanning several hundred characters, others as short as a dozen. The topics are arranged as follows: 1. Appraisal 2. Likeness or unlikeness 3. Ancient paintings 4. Tang dynasty paintings 5. Song dynasty paintings 6. Yuan dynasty paintings 7. Painters of the current dynasty (Ming) 8. Heterodox schools 9. Copybooks 10. Copying paintings 11. Song embroidery paintings 12. Methods of viewing paintings 13. Grading and ranking paintings 14. Anonymous paintings 15. Single-scroll paintings 16. Ancient silk and paper 17. Mounting with brocade 18. Learning to paint 19. Scroll ends 20. Collecting paintings 21. Small painting boxes 22. Rolling and storing paintings 23. Cleaning paintings 24. Displaying paintings 25. Mounting paintings 26. Hanging paintings The scope of Huajian is remarkably broad—it covers painting history, theory, learning, evaluation, viewing, collecting, mounting, materials, and more, almost leaving no topic untouched. However, the writing is very concise, often only touching on a subject without in-depth discussion. Aside from some methods on collecting and storing paintings, the most theoretically valuable content lies in its views on artistic conception and interest (yiqu, 意趣) found in the entries related to Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming painting, as well as on methods of learning to paint. 如「古畫」一則：「上古之畫，迹簡意淡，真趣自然，畫譜繪鑒，雖備而歷年遠，其箋素敗腐不可得矣。」 論「唐畫」一則：「意趣具於筆前，故畫成神足，莊重嚴律，不求工巧，而多自妙處。後人刻意工巧，有物趣而乏天趣。」 論「宋畫」一則：「評者謂之院畫不以爲重，以巧太過而神不足也。不知宋人之畫，亦非後人可運堂室。如李唐、劉松年、馬遠、夏圭，此南渡以四大家也。畫家雖以殘山剩水目之，然可謂精工之極。」 論「元畫」一則：「評者謂士大夫畫，世獨尚之，蓋士氣畫者乃士林中能作隸家畫品，全法氣韻生動，不求物趣，以得天趣爲高。觀其曰寫而不曰畫者，蓋欲脱盡畫工院體氣故耳。此等謂之寄興，但可取玩一世，若云善畫，何以上擬古人而爲後世寶藏，如趙松雪、黄子久、王叔明、吳仲圭之四大家及錢舜舉、倪雲林、趙仲穆輩，形神俱妙，絶無邪學，可垂久不磨。此其士氣畫也。雖宋人復起亦甘心服其天趣，然亦得宋人之家法而一變者。」 論「國朝(明)」畫家：「明興丹青，可宋可元，與之並駕齊驅者，何啻百家而吳中獨居其大半，即盡諸方之燁然者不及也。」 Regarding Ancient Paintings: "Paintings of the distant past are simple in traces and淡雅 in meaning; their true charm is natural. Although painting manuals and connoisseurship guides exist, due to the many passing years, their original silk or paper has deteriorated and can no longer be obtained." Regarding Tang Paintings: "The artistic conception and spirit fully manifest before the brush, so the completed paintings are lively and vigorous, solemn and disciplined. They do not pursue mere craftsmanship, yet often contain natural, wonderful elements. Later painters intentionally sought craftsmanship, resulting in paintings with objects’ likeness but lacking heavenly charm." Regarding Song Paintings: "Critics claim that court paintings are not to be highly valued, as their craftsmanship is excessive while their spirit is insufficient. Yet they do not realize that Song painters are not easily imitated by later generations. Li Tang, Liu Songnian, Ma Yuan, Xia Gui—these four masters flourished in the Southern Song. Though painters considered their work as mere fragments of mountains and water, it can be said that their craftsmanship reached the utmost refinement." Regarding Yuan Paintings: "Some say that only the scholar-official style is esteemed in the world, because paintings by scholars are created within learned circles and embody the quality of clerical script painting. They emphasize form, spirit, rhythm, and vividness, not mere likeness of objects, valuing heavenly charm above all. When they say these paintings are ‘written’ rather than ‘painted,’ it is because they wish to break completely from the painterly style of the academies. These works are called ‘expressions of mood’ and are only suitable for temporary enjoyment. As for excellent paintings, why imitate ancient masters to become treasured relics for future generations? The four great masters Zhao Mengfu, Huang Gongwang, Wang Meng, and Wu Zhen, along with Qian Shunju, Ni Yunlin, Zhao Zhongmu and others, all have exquisite form and spirit, with no heterodoxy, and can endure without fading. This is the scholar-official painting style. Even when Song painters revived, they willingly accepted the heavenly charm but modified the Song family methods." Regarding Painters of the Current Dynasty (Ming): "The Ming dynasty revived painting, comparable to the Song and Yuan. There are over a hundred painters who rival each other, but Wu School painters dominate most of them, and even the brightest painters from other regions do not match their brilliance." 又如「粉本」一則曰：「古人畫稿，謂之粉本，草草不經意處，乃其天機偶發，興意勃然，落筆成趣，自有神妙，有則宜寶藏之。」 論「臨畫」則曰：「臨模古畫，着色最難，極力模似，或有相似，惟紅不可及，然無出宋人。宋人摹寫唐朝五代之畫，如出一手，秘府多寶藏之。今人臨畫，惟求影響，多用己意，隨手苟簡，雖極精工，先乏天趣，妙者亦板。國朝戴文進，臨摹宋人名畫，得其三昧，種種逼真，效黄子久、王叔明畫，較勝二家。沈石田有一種本色，不甚稱，摹仿諸舊，筆意奪真，獨於倪元鎮不似，蓋老筆過之也。評者云，子昂近宋而人物爲勝，沈啟南近元而出水爲尤，今如吳中莫樂泉臨畫，亦稱當代一絶。」 Regarding “粉本” (Sketches or Drafts): "The sketches or drafts of the ancients are called '粉本.' These are roughly drawn, unintentional parts where the natural inspiration suddenly arises, and the spirited mood bursts forth. The brushwork spontaneously creates interest and possesses a certain wondrous spirit. When such examples exist, they ought to be treasured." Regarding “臨畫” (Copying Paintings): "Copying and imitating ancient paintings, especially in coloring, is the most difficult. Efforts to imitate precisely sometimes achieve resemblance, but the color red can never surpass that of the Song painters. The Song painters copied Tang and Five Dynasties paintings so skillfully it seemed as if they were originals. Many secret collections hold these treasures. Today’s painters, when copying, mainly seek influence and often use their own ideas carelessly. Even the most skilled copies lack heavenly charm, and the exquisite ones are still stiff. Dai Wenjin of the current dynasty copied famous Song paintings and grasped their essence, achieving various lifelike effects and imitating Huang Gongwang and Wang Shuming's styles better than those two masters themselves. Shen Shitian has a kind of innate style, which is not much praised. He copies the old styles, but his brushwork loses authenticity, except in his imitation of Ni Yuan-zhen, which is less successful because his old brushwork surpasses the original. Critics say that Ziang approaches Song style and excels in figure painting, while Shen Qinan approaches Yuan style and excels particularly in water. Today, painters like Mo Lequan of Wu School are also considered unparalleled copyists of our time." 其餘諸論，亦多有獨到發見，綜觀所論，雖然着力於意趣倡發，但其基本態度還是要求繪畫要能創造真實而富有趣味的形象，不象後世的文人畫説，盡去形似之基礎而泛論神韻之非師。因而，《畫箋》所論對於全面客觀認識理解中國古代繪畫是富有啟示作用的，也正是在這一意義，這卷簡約的論著常爲後人所引用、評述。 The other discussions also contain many unique insights. Overall, although the focus is on cultivating artistic interest and expression, the fundamental attitude still requires that painting create truthful and engaging images. This contrasts with later literati painting theories, which often completely discard the basis of likeness and merely talk about spirit and charm without grounding. Therefore, the discussions in Huajian (Painting Notes) offer enlightening guidance for a comprehensive and objective understanding of ancient Chinese painting. It is precisely for this reason that this concise treatise has frequently been cited and commented upon by later generations. 主要版本有：《説郛》本、《美術叢書》本、《中國書畫全書》本。, Baoyantang miji, Congshu jicheng chubian