Bulletin Number One 1985

the elegant expression of Zheng Xie and his disregard for formal likeness also went one step beyond Zheng. That is why his paintings have been described by some critics as 'not abiding by any rules'. In this painting, the artist thoroughly explored the abstract quality of the calligraphic brushwork and the sharp contrast of dark and pale ink in depicting the sturdy bamboo growing behind an irregularly shaped rock. It looks as if the artist was venting his anger and frustration from life through the thrusting, blunt strokes of the bamboo leaves, conveying a dynamic and powerful feeling. The suggestion of a wind blowing through the bamboo, a treatment o f the bamboo motif commonly found in Li's paintings ， not only reflects the artist's unyielding character, capable of withstanding hardships in life, it also corresponds to the inscription at the left, which informs us that the artist compares himself to a refreshing breeze which sweeps away the vulgarity of the dusty world. The most outstanding achievement of the ‘Yangzhou Eccentrics' is the painting of flowers and birds in the free and spontaneous xieyi styles — an achievement in which they were able to inject new feelings into traditional themes and at the same time explore new frontiers. Their attention was also drawn to the humble wild flowers and grass, vegetables and fruits from daily life. They discovered beauty in the commonplace and an air of intimacy and casual charm pervaded their paintings. There are many such works in the exhibition and we cite Li Shan's Album of Miscellaneous Subjects (Plate 3) as an example. Li Shan (1686-after 1760), was a native of Xinghua, like Zheng Xie. He passed his juren examination at the relatively early age of twenty- five and served as ‘painter-in-waiting' (gongfeng) at the Qing court. His official career was also full of frustrations and even when he had returned to his native place and was struggling to earn his living as a professional painter in Yangzhou, he made attempts to re-enter official service. Often he used free and bold brushwork in the paintings to give vent to his indignation and bitterness. Li Shan was best known for his ‘splashed ink' renditions which the Qing critic Zhang Geng ( 張 庚 ） described as 'galloping freely and quickly like a horse. He was independent of any rules and achieved a spirit of artlessness.' Quite often his brush manner became so excessive in the eyes of more conservative critics that he was criticized for not being able to rid himself of 'an air of vulgar audacity'. The Album of Miscellaneous Subjects, dated to 1734, belongs to his middle period, Li Shan depicted for us some familiar things from daily life, including fish, scallions and ginger in one leaf, and lotus roots and water caltrops in the other. These objects are accomplished in a few cursive lines that move in a playful rhythm. The composition in the second leaf, with the long lotus root dissecting the painting almost diagonally into two and the long inscription i n the ‘running’ script filling up the upper part, has an interesting contrast of solid and void that reflects the artist's ingenious conception. The painting is made very appealing by the use of colour, either applied as a wash over the sketchy lines or used directly to create form, as in the depiction of the water caltrops. Such masterful treatment of colour betrays his early training under Jiang Tingxi (蔣廷錫 ) , a noted flower-and-bird painter in the detailed and decorative style. The youngest member of the ‘Eight Eccentric Masters' was Luo Pin (1733-1799), who had studied under another ‘Eccentric Master' Jin Nong (1687-1764). Luo was bom of an Anhui family who had settled in Yangzhou. He did not enter an official career but practised as a professional painter all his life. Luo was a versatile artist, equally proficient in figures, landscapes, flowers and birds. He was best known for his paintings of ghosts which he claimed to see in the daytime but were in fact used as a means to satirize the injustice that he saw around him. Landscape paintings by Luo Pin were quite highly regarded. The style was dense and heavy, so that his contemporaries Yuan Mei ( 袁 枚 ) a n d Weng Fanggang (翁方綱) compa r ed him respectively to Fan Kuan ( 范 寬 ) o f the Song dynasty and Wang Meng ( 王 蒙 ) o f the Yuan. However, it is evident that his real achievement lies in freeing himself from the stereotypes o f the ‘Four Wangs' and in painting from his personal experience. Paradoxically the landscape painting in the exhibition, Mountain Pass in Sichuan (Plate 4 and cover) is entirely executed from imagination. The artist informed us in the long inscription that this painting was done for a friend, Shuiwu Xiansheng ( 水屋先生）， who was about to go to Sichuan to assume an official post. The painting was subsequently inscribed by his friends on the mounting silk, including Zhang Wentao ( 張問陶)， Zhao Huaiyu ( 趙懷玉)， Shao Jinhan ( 邵晉涵 ) , S o n g Baochun (宋葆淳）， Jiang Jian ( 江健 ) ， Wu Xiqi ( 吳 錫 麒 ) a n d Weng Fanggang at a later date. Shuiwu was the literary name of Zhang Daowo (張道渥） w h o was an official posted to Yangzhou and Sichuan. He enjoyed meeting with men of literature and art and was himself known for his poetry, calligraphy and painting. The painting with its many colophons can be considered a souvenir of his friendship RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 15