The statement of literati furniture may have been influenced by literati paintings. Chinese literati painting originated in the Tang Dynasty, and became the mainstream of Chinese painting through the Song Dynasty and the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Literati paintings are vast in terms of related writings, specific practices and surviving works, but there is no furniture made (created) by literati in China.

Recently, Jiang Qigu, professor of the Department of Painting and History at the Art Institute of Chicago, and director of the Asian Art Institute of Chicago, published his new book "White Wood Furniture in the Ming and Qing Dynasties" in Sanlian Publishing. The most important thing in the aesthetics of literati furniture is to reflect the literati spirit, and to reflect the literati's position and attitude towards life. This stance and attitude can be summed up in the word "simplicity", which is simple and plain, which is the opposite of complicated and pretentious. "Today, everyone says that they admire the literati spirit and love literati furniture, but after they really understand what the literati furniture aesthetic is, they can sincerely accept a piece of furniture that looks simple and ordinary, but contains the literati spirit. It's not easy anymore," the author writes in the book. The Paper specially selected the section "Furniture Aesthetics of Literati".

The aesthetics of furniture involves many factors, especially those directly related to those who own and use them, and are a reflection of the aesthetic and even political positions of different groups of people in society. The aesthetic orientation of furniture, such as style, material, and decoration, is largely determined by the social status of their owners, such as the dragon chair, which symbolizes imperial power. Ming and Qing court furniture adopted the highest grade and standard at that time in terms of materials and workmanship, and the style must conform to the status of the emperor and his relatives. The aesthetics of the ancient Chinese court was a part of imperial rule, and it was established to demonstrate power to maintain and consolidate the rule of the regime. But at the same time, China also has literati aesthetics, which is a completely different aesthetic system; it does not aim at maintaining imperial power, nor does it use materials and workmanship to determine the level of aesthetic value, but conforms to the laws of aesthetics itself, advocating simplicity and nature. Noble or finely crafted wood is beautiful. Although the literati's aesthetic concept is reflected in some specific ancient furniture, the aesthetics of literati furniture is a field that is rarely discussed, and it is a great challenge to clarify this issue.

Now we often hear that "literati furniture" or literati aesthetics had a huge impact on furniture production, and even literati directly participated in the production of furniture, etc., but in fact "literati furniture" is a vague concept that has not been seriously discussed. . In reality, some ancient furniture may have been used by a literati. It is indeed possible for a literati to participate in the design and production of some furniture, but a fact that must be accepted is that literati rarely discusses furniture. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine what is literati furniture and which furniture is influenced by literati in shape and style. Compared with the book and painting theories of a large number of literati in the past dynasties, the literati's description of furniture can be said to be rare. The only articles with real aesthetic significance may be the "Several Beds" in Wen Zhenheng's "Longwuzhi" in the Ming Dynasty, and "A Family's Household Appliances and Play Department" in Li Yu's "Xian Qing Ou Ji" in the Qing Dynasty. Another literati in the Ming Dynasty, Gao Lian, mentioned a lot of furniture in his "Zunsheng Bajian", such as Eryi bed, leaning bed, bamboo couch, short couch, Zen chair, fairy chair, rattan pier, backrest, rolling stool etc., but Gao Lian only described the function of the furniture and seldom commented on the specific aesthetics. It can be seen from the title "Yiyang uses tools" that he focuses on health preservation. Other literati's texts about furniture are only a few words, and they refer to furniture incidentally when recording events, usually some very simple and general descriptions and comments, such as Fan Lian, Wang Shixing and so on. So it is very difficult to discuss the so-called "literati furniture". Not to mention the furniture aesthetic literature, there is only one "Luban Classic" book on wood making furniture, and most of them are talking about civil engineering, and furniture is only a small part of its content, with more than 20 simple articles and a few hundred words. That's it. The whole book of "Lu Ban Jing" is full of feng shui heresy and many typos. It may be a record or oral book by a craftsman with low culture. It is no wonder that Cates was shocked to find that the Chinese were indifferent to furniture, and said in "China Daily Furniture": "In professional and ordinary publications, although the Chinese people care about everything, but the furniture is not the same. The concern is almost zero." He also objectively pointed out: "Since Lu Ban was enshrined as a deity and all credit was attributed to him, there has never been a single mention in the uninterrupted historical records of Chinese dynasties that we can call it today. It's the artist's outstanding carpenter." Unlike Ike and An Siyuan's eulogizing treatise on ancient Chinese furniture, Cates often pointed out some issues. More than 70 years later, many of Katz's pertinent and sharp views are still worthy of our deep consideration.

The statement of literati furniture may have been influenced by literati paintings. Chinese literati painting originated in the Tang Dynasty, and became the mainstream of Chinese painting through the Song Dynasty and the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Literati paintings are vast in terms of related writings, specific practices and surviving works, but there is no furniture made (created) by literati in China. Furniture making is a craft that artisans are engaged in, so it is not valued by literati. Literati are scholars who write articles, calligraphy (calligraphy) and paintings without labor. A well-documented handicraft practiced by literati is the making of brushes. Some documents say that Wei Dan, Zhang Zhi, and Wang Xizhi have all made brushes, but the more reliable ancient document that records the making of brushes by literati is "The History of Brushes" written by Liang Tongshu. Among them, the "Pen Craftsman" lists more than 70 named pen makers, many of them are literati, such as Jin Weichang (official to Sanqi regular attendant), and Li Linfu (the prime minister of Tang Xuanzong's time) who claimed to be self-proclaimed Students' Guan Ziwen and so on. Liang Tongshu also mentioned a pen maker named Lu Daoren: "Lu Daoren in Shezhou does not make pens for the poor, so he can work." Make money, the pen can do more perfect. However, Liang Tongshu did not mention the pen-making of Wei Dan, Zhang Zhi, Wang Xizhi, Zhiyong and others. The brush is a tool for writing and painting, therefore, making a pen may be the only craftsmanship that literati have ever engaged in. The artisans who made furniture in ancient times were craftsmen, and they belonged to two social classes with the literati. Although there were emperors who liked to make furniture in the Ming Dynasty, and examples of carpenters who were promoted to ministers and ministers, but on the whole, the social status of carpenters and other craftsmen has not been improved because of this, and they are still "people of a hundred craftsmen. A gentleman is disgusting." As a special group of ancient Chinese society, literati played a decisive role in the development of culture and art, and furniture should not be an exception according to common sense. Therefore, although it is difficult and challenging to explore the relationship between literati aesthetics and furniture, it is a topic that is extremely worthy of discussion and has current significance.

Literati furniture seems to be associated with austere Ming furniture. The popular view now is that the Ming style furniture is simple and the Qing Dynasty furniture style is complicated. In fact, this is a big misunderstanding of Ming and Qing furniture. The styles of furniture in the Ming Dynasty are varied, ranging from simple to complex, and the same is true in the Qing Dynasty. The same is true if we go back to the Ming Dynasty, such as the Song Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty. Of course, the simplicity and complexity of Ming furniture is different from Qing furniture. The simplicity of Ming Dynasty furniture is the embodiment of the simple aesthetic orientation of literati in the Ming Dynasty and before the Ming Dynasty, and it reached a peak in the Ming Dynasty. The literati in the Qing Dynasty continued the aesthetic pursuit of the literati in the Ming Dynasty, but under the leadership and influence of the court's aesthetic taste, new styles of furniture production in the Qing Dynasty gradually emerged, and finally formed their own style in the Qing Dynasty. Although the minimalist style of the Qing Dynasty continued, it has declined. Now people like the simple style of Ming and Qing furniture, or it is related to the early Western scholars who studied ancient Chinese furniture, such as Ike, Katz and later An Siyuan, etc., it is related to their love for the simple style Ming and Qing furniture, Research and promotion are inseparable. Westerners' appreciation of the minimalist styles of the Ming and Qing Dynasties is directly related to the modern art movement (in the fields of architecture and design) led by the German Bauhaus in the 1920s and 1930s. The styles such as Rococo and Victoria that were popular in the 18th and 19th centuries in the West were also complicated decorative styles. The Art Nouveau with modern significance that appeared from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century was still in the form of complicated waves and patterns. The flowing lines are the mainstream style. At the height of Art Nouveau (1908), the Austrian architect and theoretician Adolf Loos declared: "The evolution of culture and the exclusion of decoration from practical objects are synonymous." His slogan was: "Get rid of decoration Coming out is a symbol of spiritual strength." Louis' theory directly influenced the Bauhaus and the modern art movement, and was also the theoretical basis for the West to understand and appreciate Chinese simple ancient furniture.

Wassily Chair designed by Marcel

American scholar Han Hui compared a 17th-century Chinese Zen chair to a 1925 Wassily chair designed by Bauhaus professor, architecture and furniture designer Marcel Breuer. "The basic shape, the frugal use of materials and the geometric simplicity of the two chairs are consistent," she noted. "Marcel was influenced by the Dutch Mannerist movement," she added. But she argues: "European This radical concept in the 20th century originated from Japanese architecture.” Han Hui went on to say, “This concept had already appeared in China before the 4th century AD.” She immediately cited a passage from the Tao Te Ching to prove that ancient Chinese wisdom is The source of these two simple aesthetic concepts. Regarding why Westerners can appreciate Chinese furniture, Han Hui said: "In the eyes of Bauhaus, Chinese classical furniture is art... It is Bauhaus that enables us to give Chinese furniture an artistic aesthetic standard." Han Hui The Chinese classical furniture mentioned here is the wooden furniture with the simple style of Qing Dynasty. She said it very clearly: The modernist movement in the West led to the formation and development of the minimalist geometric plastic art style and its acceptance and appreciation, which in turn led to the acceptance and appreciation of Chinese (non-Western) minimalist style furniture. In other words, she did not understand and appreciate the minimalist style of Chinese Ming and Qing furniture from the context of Chinese culture (literati).

Shang Dynasty bronze owl-shaped gull (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Shang Dynasty bronze owl-shaped gull (collected by Freer Art Museum)

In Han Hui's view, there is a big difference between the Chinese Zen chair and Marcel's Wassily chair: the Wassily chair is a revolution in the history of the development of Western furniture, it is the first time ever to use a curved metal tube The furniture produced is also unprecedentedly simple and effective. Although it is also handmade, it was put into mass production with machines after its invention, and it is the ancestor of industrialized mass furniture production. And the Chinese Zen chair is made of wood, and its shape has been refined and perfected by many dynasties. It was not revolutionary at that time, but a continuation of tradition. Westerners owe their appreciation of Chinese minimalist style furniture to the Bauhaus, which is absolutely true from the history of Western art development. The various periods before the rise of Western modernism were purely elaborate styles, such as Baroque, Rococo, Victoria, the previous romanticism and neoclassical periods, and then the Renaissance, the Middle Ages, and the ancient Greek and Roman periods, the entire Western ancient times. There is little recognition and appreciation for minimalism in art history. Western art forms before modernism imitated natural objects, and skill is the standard to measure the level of art. Under the premise of superb skills, if you show a little personality, you will become a master, and the conscious pursuit of simple style is something after the 20th century. Chinese art history tells us that since ancient times, the style of Chinese art is the coexistence of simplicity and complexity. As far as making difficult handicrafts such as bronzes and porcelains is concerned, ancient Chinese craftsmen (artists) have mastered the skills of making delicate, complex and difficult patterns, but at the same time they consciously and consciously pursue simplicity. For example, the two bronze ospreys from the Shang Dynasty have the same theme, size and material, but their styles vary greatly from simple to complex. It shows that at the same time, artists will pursue diametrically opposite artistic styles. Take the bronze mirrors of the Warring States Period and the Han Dynasty as examples, the styles are also completely opposite. The decoration is complicated, with continuous persimmon pedicle patterns in the four directions, and the side with deep relief large and small light patterns is from the Western Han Dynasty, while the simple side is earlier in time. As soon as the ray pattern appeared in the late Warring States period, it was outlined with a single line, and the three-string pattern button with the heart of the glasses was the result of the craftsmen's reflection and sublation of the complicated style at that time, thus achieving a more artistic simplicity. In addition to the two bronze ospreys and the two bronze mirrors listed, there are many more works of art that confirm the coexistence and alternation of simple and traditional styles. In some periods, such as the Song Dynasty, the minimalist style of porcelain predominated. Although the simplicity of Song porcelain is in sharp contrast with the elegance and luxury of Tang Dynasty porcelain, even in the Tang Dynasty, the complex and simple styles coexisted. Therefore, the coexistence and alternation of simple and traditional Chinese art has its historical origin, and it does not appear until modern times as in the West. Chinese furniture does not have the aesthetic changes of complex and simple in Western furniture, and its ancient and modern cannot be divided by a complex and simple line. It must be noted that not only the craftsmen who created these bronze wares and porcelains have the awareness of pursuing simplicity in aesthetics, but more importantly, the aesthetic concepts of users, such as patrons, customizers, owners, etc., have reached an appreciation of simplicity. The realm of style, so that simplicity has become the common aesthetic consciousness of the society at that time. Although it is usually guided by the elite, it is a general social aesthetic consensus after all.

Bronze mirror with light pattern of Xihan Shidi (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Warring States ray pattern three-stringed bronze mirror (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Tang monochrome glazed gallbladder bottle (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Tang Sancai jars (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Song Ding kiln carved plum vase (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Song Cizhou kiln white-ground black-glazed engraved plum vase (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

The comparison between Han Hui's Eastern and Western chairs can go on. Although the two major civilizations of the East and the West sometimes reach the same goal in terms of aesthetic results, there are still essential differences. Although Marcel's Wassily chair is a revolution in the history of furniture, it is still a revolution caused by the development of materials. Western furniture was also made of wood before. Industrialization has made seamless metal pipes a possible and effective furniture material. Therefore, from the perspective of Western furniture traditions, aesthetics are not derived from internal pursuit and evolution, but from the promotion of external factors. , that is, the change of material leads to the change of structural shape and then to the change of aesthetics. Therefore, this minimalist style is passively generated in an aesthetic sense. After the Wassily chair was designed by Marcel, the aesthetic work was over, and the next step was a large number of industrial copies, and then flooded into the consumer field. The situation with the Chinese Zen chair is completely different. The Zen chair (17th century) in Han Hui’s example is a large-sized chair that Zen masters can sit cross-legged on. It was first introduced to China from the Western Regions and was called the Hu bed in the early days. The Zen chair first appeared in the Dunhuang frescoes ( Cave 285 of the Western Wei Dynasty ), and the existing object is the red lacquer Humu Hu bed used by Emperor Shomu of Japan (reigned from 724 to 749) to hold a ceremony. Zen chairs also appeared in paintings of the Tang and Song Dynasties, such as "Zhang Shengwen Paintings of Brahma" in Dali Kingdom of the Song Dynasty. The Zen chairs painted in it are very similar in shape to the Hu beds in Shoso-in, Japan. The shape of the armchair in the anonymous "Eighteen Scholars" in the Song Dynasty is also very close to the Zen chair listed by Han Hui. All of this shows that the shape of Chinese Zen chairs is in constant change in different stages of history. By the Ming Dynasty, it was basically finalized, but the specific chairs still changed. During the period, the wood used to make the Zen chair also changed, including the use of tree roots, bamboo, and hardwoods such as huanghuali in the middle and late Ming Dynasty. Although this has an impact on the shape of the Zen chair, it is not a revolutionary subversion and negation of tradition like the West.

Chiling Huan Wood Bed (Tang Dynasty) (collected by Shosoin, Japan)

Southern Song Dynasty "Zhang Shengwen's Painting of Brahma" (detail).

Southern Song Dynasty "Zhang Shengwen's Painting of Brahma" (detail).

(Song) Anonymous "Eighteen Scholars" (detail) (collected by the National Palace Museum, Taipei)

We really need to delve into the influence of ancient Chinese literati on furniture aesthetics. Chinese literati appreciate simplicity in aesthetics much earlier than Westerners. They did not undergo the baptism of Western-style modernism, but gradually formed in the long-term life and tempering of Chinese feudal society. This is not only an appreciation of minimalist style, but also the inner expression and appeal of human nature. It is the sublimation of the pursuit of purity in human nature. It is an indelible light that shines in feudal society. A sign of civilization. As the French historian Rene Grousset said after studying pottery from the Neolithic period in Gansu, China: "Simplicity leads to a simple, solid and frank form, which is the intrinsic quality of matter, which is the The eternal virtue of oriental aesthetics." The same is true for Chinese furniture. Like ceramics, wooden furniture has gone through a long history of development and evolution. There is a huge amount of ancient ceramics in the world, but because of the easy corrosion of wood, there are few objects in existence. Literati discussed ancient ceramics far more than furniture, but even so, through Wen Zhenheng's "several couch", we can understand the advocacy of Ming Dynasty literati for the furniture style of previous dynasties (Song and Yuan), and their appreciation for simple aesthetics. advocate. A French proverb says: "A literate man cannot be separated from his taste in life." This also applies to the relationship between Chinese literati and furniture. In view of the scarcity of furniture literature before the Ming Dynasty, we have almost no examples of furniture used and owned by literati before the Ming Dynasty, but we can take the residences built by the literati as the source of seeking the literati's aesthetics on furniture.

As early as the Tang Dynasty, a large number of literati wrote about their houses and houses, such as descriptions (poems) of thatched cottages, gardens, study rooms, courtyards, etc. From the descriptions of these dwellings by literati, we can infer their aesthetics for the furniture that matched the dwellings. The literati expressed their spiritual longings through reverence and praise for nature, and at the same time, put their aesthetic ideals into practice through the design and construction of houses and gardens. Although these descriptions of the literati are mostly about the natural scenery and houses, and rarely mention furniture, we can still understand the literati's judgment on beauty from them. Because the first is to choose the natural scenery (the place of residence), then the construction of the house, and then the furniture is arranged. After you have furniture, your daily life will be settled: you can lie down on a few couch, read books and enjoy paintings, you can also place antique decorations such as bronze, ceramics, jade, etc. In addition, scrolls such as calligraphy and painting are hung on the wall. The taste (aesthetics) of the literati's daily life is fully displayed. Therefore, the discussion of the literati's construction of houses can be used as the beginning of the aesthetic discussion of the literati's furniture. As an important and unique group in ancient Chinese society, literati had special requirements for beauty. They established the aesthetics of literati and elaborated on it; ranging from residences and gardens to furniture, small to pens, inkstones and All kinds of decorations, their aesthetic pursuits in various fields are consistent and connected in spirit.

As early as before the Tang Dynasty, there were literati looking for and choosing a quiet natural environment to build their residences away from the bustling city, so as to realize their own ideals. In the Tang Dynasty, it became common for literati to build houses and gardens, which can be seen from the poems and articles of the Tang Dynasty. For example, the forty poems "Wangchuan Collection" co-written by Wang Wei and Pei Di were written for Wangchuan Bieye (Wang Wei's villa). Explain that the materials for building the house are almond wood and thatch. Wang Wei's furniture is very simple: "There is nothing in the fasting, except for the tea and medicine mortar, and the rope bed for the scriptures." The rope bed is a Hu bed, a chair. Du You's "The Story of Wang Chushi in the Suburbs of Ducheng Digging the Mountains and Introducing Springs" is also a description of the natural landscape around his residence and the way of life of the literati. The eastern suburbs of Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, were a gathering place for some powerful villas and villas at that time, while the southern suburbs of Fanzhou were quiet and quiet, and many literati and bureaucrats built residences and villas there. Du You's residence in the suburbs was one of them. The eastern suburbs are near the imperial palace (Daming Palace, Xingqing Palace), close to the political center, while the southern suburbs are near Zhongnan Mountain, with rolling hills and many streams. The choice of the two locations reflects two very different starting points, two different political orientations, and two opposing aesthetics. Many places outside Chang'an also have literati choose to build residences. Du Fu built a thatched cottage in Chengdu in 762, and wrote poems such as "Jianti River Thatched Cottage" and "Tangcheng" to describe the construction process of the thatched cottage. The Tang Dynasty poet Duguji described the bamboo pavilion built by his friend in "Lu Langzhong Xunyang Bamboo Pavilion": "Frugality is the decoration, and tranquility is the teacher." The words "thrifty" and "jing" here are the aesthetics of the literati core. Although this is a text about building a bamboo pavilion, it sounds like a literati aesthetic programmatic declaration. Bai Juyi resigned from office at the age of 52 and returned to Luoyang. He purchased the Ludaofang mansion and then added it to serve as his residence in his later years. Nine years ago (815), Bai Juyi built his first thatched cottage when he was demoted to Xunyang, Jiangzhou (now Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province). Bai Juyi described his own thatched cottage very concretely: "It's just a wooden chop, but no alchemy is added; the wall is just a masonry, no white is added." That is to say, the wood for the construction of the thatched cottage is only cut with a knife and axe, and is no longer smoothed, let alone painted, and the walls are plastered and not painted white. What is valuable is that Bai Juyi also mentioned furniture, which is more than Wang Wei's, but he did not make specific comments: "There are four wooden couch in the hall, two plain screens, one lacquer qin, and three books each for Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. Two volumes." Bai Juyi did not mention the table or case, but mentioned the wooden couch, which functioned like a bed, indicating that the Tang Dynasty was in a transitional period when Chinese furniture developed from low (sitting on the floor) to high (sitting on chairs and stools); high tables , The case may not have become the dominant furniture, which is clear from the number of wooden couch. There should be four wooden couches in a room. These wooden couches are not all used for sleeping, nor is it because the room is large and there must be a few more, but the wooden couches are used for lying, sitting, lying and placing items at that time. It is even used for many functions such as writing and drawing. Therefore, a certain amount is required to operate. As for plain screens, most of the screens we see in ancient paintings have paintings, often landscapes, and plain screens are extremely rare. From the above descriptions of the literati's construction of houses and gardens, we can see that the literati's aesthetic standpoint is to be frugal and simple. There are more radical examples of how the wood was processed for building thatched cottages. During the Tang Tianbao period, Li Han, a literati, built a thatched cottage for his friend Yuchi Xu, and it is recorded in "Yuchi Changshi Caotang Ji": "In the summer of the fourth year of the Dali calendar, a thatched cottage was constructed in the south of the county town with stipends to seek his aspirations. Chopping, it is all simple; the walls are not carved, and they are simple. However, the regulations are grand and open, and the clear water contains the wind, but it can be white in the heat of the heat." The felled wood is directly used to build thatched cottages without any processing, which can be described as completely simple. Yu Chixu was the county chief of Jinling County and a considerable official in the Tang Dynasty. He used his salary to build a thatched cottage to "seek his ambition", and used "all his simplicity" and "separate his elements" to show the character of the literati , which shows that he is an honest official. Integrity and simplicity often go hand in hand. More than 900 years later, Li Yu, a literati in the Qing Dynasty, wrote in his "Idle Love Ou Ji · Bedroom Department · Wall No. 3": "In all things in the world, less is more valuable." We can understand the core of the literati's aesthetics from these words. ——Simple, it is like a long clear river trickling down.

A more detailed discussion of furniture did not appear until the Ming Dynasty. Among them, Wen Zhenheng wrote the most famous text on furniture aesthetics - "Several Couchs". It is the sixth volume of Wen Zhenheng's "Changwuzhi", which is the most comprehensive, systematic and detailed monograph on furniture and furniture aesthetics in ancient China. Before Wen Zhenheng, Wang Shixing, a literati known as a Ming Dynasty geographer, wrote a paragraph about furniture when he traveled to Suzhou: "Another example is Zhaitou Qingwan, several cases, and beds, all of which are made of red sandalwood and pear. It is high, it is still simple and not carved, that is, things have carvings, and they are all in the style of Shang, Zhou, Qin, and Han, especially in remote areas at home and abroad. The words are often quoted by scholars who study furniture, because it refers to the wood of furniture "red sandalwood, pear", and the ancient tendency of furniture in Ming Dynasty, from which we can know that simplicity was an aesthetic standard at that time. There is also Gao Lian in "Zunsheng Bajian" who wrote a "fragrant table". Although it is very short, it describes the aesthetics of furniture. In addition, there is also the famous short text about furniture and wood in Fan Lian's "According to the Eyes of the Clouds". Although it is a sociological observation and criticism, it also reflects the aesthetic tendencies at that time. Wang Shixing is 38 years older than Wen Zhenheng, Gao Lianda Wen Zhenheng is 12 years old, and Fan Lianda Wen Zhenheng is 45 years old. "Guangzhiyi", "Zunsheng Bajian" and "Yunjian Jumu Copy" were written in Wanli Dingyou (1597), Wanli Xinmao (1591) and Wanli Guisi (1593) respectively, when Wen Zhenheng was a child , adolescence. Therefore, Wen Zhenheng is likely to have read and influenced by these three books. Especially in the writing format, you can see the shadow of Gao Lian's "Zunsheng Bajian". Gao Lian's "Eight Notes on Zunsheng" mentions that furniture is slightly related to aesthetics, because his purpose is not to talk about aesthetics, but to describe furniture from the perspective of literati health preservation. For example, the incense table he mentioned is a small piece of furniture with a special purpose, not a daily furniture for ordinary life. Gao Lian mentioned the incense table by the way when talking about incense and burning incense. After a short and concise discussion of the incense table, Gao Lian discussed incense and incense in a large section; only 53 kinds of ancient incense were listed, plus 22 kinds of commonly used incense, a total of 75 kinds! Gao Lian also carefully wrote the seven essentials of incense burning, among which there are 11 kinds of incense recipes, which shows the obsession of ancient literati with incense burning. In addition, Gao Lian also discussed literati utensils and musical instruments such as inkstones, pen washers, paper cutters, pen switches, ink boxes, and guqin. One thing is certain: Gao Lian, Wang Shixing, Fan Lian, and Wen Zhenheng's texts on furniture are only a small part of their articles; Less than 1500 words. Wang Shixing's "Guang Zhi Yi" has 63,000 words, Fan Lian's "Clouds and Records" has more than 56,300 words, and the furniture is only a few hundred words together. Wang Shixing and Fan Lian's writings are records of the wood and style of furniture and fashion phenomena at that time, as well as their own opinions and criticisms on fashion. Although they involve aesthetics, they are still very sketchy. Although Gao Lian's passages about furniture are a bit more specific than those of Wang Shixing and Fan Lian, since the theme of the book is health preservation, the furniture is discussed together with tents, quilts, and pillows. The types of furniture involved are indeed different. Many, the description is also limited to the function. Wen Zhenheng's "Several Beds" is a text devoted to furniture. It is only one of the 12 volumes of "Changwuzhi", with a little over 2,000 words. However, it discusses furniture aesthetics in depth, and the amount of information is quite large. It is the most representative literati furniture aesthetic discourse in Ming Dynasty and even Chinese history. Unfortunately, the ancient literati did not pay much attention to furniture and left very few documents. Compared with the vast texts on calligraphy, painting and various works of art left by the literati of the past dynasties, it is really a piece of cake.

There are 21 types of furniture mentioned in Wen Zhenheng's "Couch", which are, in order, couch, short couch, table, Zen chair, natural table, desk, wall table, square table, table table, chair, tumbler, stool, cross table. Bed, cabinet, shelf, Buddha cabinet, Buddha table, bed, box, screen, footstool. Ji and couch are the oldest, and other furniture should be behind Ji and couch. Therefore, Wen Zhenheng titled this volume "ji couch". Although there are many types of furniture, there are actually only six types of furniture, couch, table, chair (including Zen chair, tuck, stool, and bed), cabinet and bed. Wen Zhenheng also made a short sequence for "a few couch":

Several couchs: The ancients made several couchs, although the lengths and widths are not uniform, the fasting rooms must be quaint and lovely, and they can be used to sit and lie down without any inconvenience. In Yan's spare time, he used it to display scriptures and history, read calligraphy and painting, Chen Dingyi, Luo Yaohe, and pillow mats. Today's people only use carved and painted decorations to please the common eye, but the ancient ones are gone, which makes people sigh deeply. Zhi "several couch sixth".

From this text, we can see that the functions of the ancient table and couch continued in the Ming Dynasty: you can sit or sleep, you can read books, write essays, enjoy paintings and even paint on them, and you can also display bronze ware and snacks. Here Wen Zhenheng put the table and the couch together, but they still have a division of labor: the couch can sit and lie down, and at the same time can read books and paintings; the table can not sit and lie down but can write and paint, and at the same time display antiques for the literati to appreciate. Wen Zhenheng was a little impatient. He was jealous of vulgarity. He just finished introducing it, and then he criticized: "Today, people only use carved and painted ornaments to please the common eye, but the ancient system is gone, which is really impressive." He was heartbroken, believing that the carvings and hand-painted patterns on the furniture made at that time were all to please the vulgar taste, and the elegant style of ancient times disappeared. He was amazed at this, so he wanted to "Zhi "The Sixth", which pointed out his original intention and purpose of writing this article. Wen Zhenheng clearly stated what is the furniture aesthetics of literati in "Several Couchs". The first piece of furniture he discussed was the couch:

The couch is one foot two inches high, the screen is one foot three inches high, seven feet long, three feet five inches horizontally, surrounded by wooden lattice, the middle of the Xiangzhu, the lower seat is not empty, the backrest on three sides, the back and the two sides, etc. , the fixed style of this couch. There are ancient broken lines, and there are Yuanluodian, whose system is naturally quaint. It is forbidden to have four legs, or the legs of a mantis, and the bottom is supported by a board. Nearby there are those inlaid with marble, those with bamboo trees engraved in the faded vermilion lacquer and filled with powder, and those with new luodian, which are very elegant. He is like Huanan, red sandalwood, ebony, and pear, all of which are made in the old fashion. After changing the styles of growing up, although they are beautiful, they are all out of the norm. Let’s look at the Yuan-made couch, which is one zhang and five feet long and more than two feet wide, and there is no screen on the top. In ancient times, people slept on the bed at night, with their feet touching their feet. The system is also ancient, but it is not applicable today.

Wen Zhengming's "Dwelling in a Building" (detail) (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Wen Zhengming's "House in a Building" (detail), which depicts the legendary "mantis legs" in Ming furniture (collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

There is a lot of information in this passage, the first being the size. Because one foot of the construction ruler in the Ming Dynasty is 32 cm today, Wen Zhenheng said that the couch is 38.4 cm high, 112 cm wide, and more than 2 meters long, which is more than enough for one person to sleep. Then there is the style. There are frames made of wooden lattices on three sides of the couch. The middle is arranged with bamboo to form the backrest. The backrest should be the same height as the two sides. The bottom of the couch is not empty. Wen Zhenheng said, this is the fixed style of the couch. Then he further described the details of the couch, first of all the lacquer couch, and believed that the couch with ancient broken patterns and Yuanluodian was the best (quaint). The ancient broken pattern refers to the broken pattern produced by the lacquer ware for a long time. Luodian is also a decorative technique of lacquer ware, that is, the shell is ground and carved into a pattern and embedded in the lacquer. What Wen Zhenheng said here is the "Yuanluodian" that refers to the ancient couch before the dynasties (he mentioned the Song and Yuan beds when he mentioned the bed below). There is no doubt that this style of lacquer couch is the most appreciated by him. But Wen Zhenheng immediately pointed out: "Don't have four legs, or the legs of the mantis, and the bottom is supported by a board." This means that the couch cannot have four legs, nor the legs of the mantis. Praying mantis legs are legs bent inward in the shape of mantis legs. I have never seen the actual furniture, but Wen Zhenheng's grandfather Wen Zhengming painted it. Called mantis legs. "The bottom is supported by the board" should correspond to the "bottom seat is not empty" mentioned above, that is, there are wooden boards below the couch surface, that is, the pedestal type, not empty. I have never seen such a couch enclosed by boards, but Wen Zhenheng drew one himself. According to Wen Zhenheng's description, the upper part of the couch is very similar to what we call the Luohan bed today, but the lower part is different. Today's Arhat beds have four legs, and there is no hoarding on the lower seat.

Wen Zhenheng's "Book of Poetic Intentions of Tang Dynasty" (part) (collected by the Palace Museum)

It is necessary to discuss the Arhat bed here. Ike called it "Couch" in "Chinese Rosewood Furniture", and Cates called it "Wooden Kang" in "China Daily Furniture". He said: "We should probably call it "Couch". Wooden kangs are sofas or daybeds (daybed, literally translated as 'day bed'. - Author's Note), and wooden kangs are almost universal in southern China." An Siyuan directly used Hanyu Pinyin to refer to them. Written as Chuang (bed), not Bed. He called the canopy bed a "six posts testered chuang", a step bed an alcove chuang, and a couch without a back a daybed. (Daybed). Compared with Ike and Cates, An Siyuan's classification is more detailed and relatively reasonable. Neither Ike nor Cates were right, nor was An Siyuan completely right. Mr. Wang Shixiang divided beds into three categories in "Research on Ming-style Furniture". He called the day-bed couch An Siyuan mentioned as a couch because there was no backrest. This is the first category. He called the one with the backrest the Arhat bed, the second category. The third category is the canopy bed. Regarding the couch, Mr. Wang Shixiang said: "The couch is generally narrow, except for a few wide ones, the craftsmen call it 'sleeping alone', which is suitable for only one person to sleep. Wen Zhenheng "Changwuzhi" There is a "sleeping bed", which shows the origin of this name. Most objects in the Ming Dynasty are on the ground with four legs, and there are very few people with mud. The real thing is yet to be discovered." Wen Zhenheng said that the couch was an ancient couch before the Ming Dynasty, it may be a flat-coated couch that is often seen in ancient paintings, or it may be a fully enclosed couch under the three-sided screen. He said that the reason why four-legged is taboo is that someone has already made the couch into four-legged, which can save labor and materials, so it is popular. But Wen Zhenheng did not agree with the trend. He believed that such a couch was not quaint and did not match the aesthetics of literati. This also confirms that Mr. Wang Shixiang said that there were very few actual couchs with mud in Ming Dynasty, let alone pedestal couch. Wen Zhenheng took "bed" as a separate article, that is, Article 17, in which he mentioned the single-sleeping bed: "The bed is the first one with the broken-patterned lacquer bed in Song and Yuan Dynasties, the second is the single-sleeping bed made by the Neifu, and the second is the single-sleeping bed. Next time, the master craftsmen of Xiaomu can also use it." Wen Zhenheng discussed the couch and the bed separately, and mentioned the "small lacquer bed with broken patterns in the Song and Yuan Dynasties", which proves that the bed and the couch were two separate pieces of furniture in the Song and Yuan Dynasties. . The difference between them is that there are backrests on three sides of the couch, while the bed does not, which is exactly the opposite of Mr. Wang Shixiang's classification. Sleeping alone is the "single bed" of the inner government, and it is a bed for government agencies to sleep at night for night shift personnel; one person sleeps, so it is called "single bed". It is narrow and has no backrest, so it is a bed rather than a couch. Mr. Wang Shixiang quoted Wen Zhenheng's "Changwuzhi" saying that he did not understand the relationship between the bed and the couch when he slept alone, but according to the old Beijing craftsman, he described the single-sleeping bed as a couch, so that now Everyone calls a bed without screens on three sides a couch. Carefully read Wen Zhenheng's "several couch", we can clearly know that the bed we now call "arhat bed" is a couch, not a bed. In short, Wen Zhenheng's "Several Beds" did not mention the Arhat bed, which means that the Arhat bed is a late name. What we call the Arhat bed today is actually the four-legged couch that Wen Zhenheng opposed back then. The couch mentioned in "Research on Ming-style Furniture" should be a bed, because there are no backrests on three sides. Wen Zhenheng's "bed" in "a few couch" is as follows:

The first is the small lacquer bed with broken pattern in the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the second is the single-bed sleeping bed made by the Neifu, and the second is the master craftsman of Xiaomu who can also use it. There are foldable ones in Yongjia and East Guangdong, which are easy to carry in the boat, such as bamboo beds and floating eaves, step-by-step, colorful lacquer, swastika characters, and fringe patterns, all of which are common. Nearly there are those made of cypress wood that are as fine as bamboo. They are very refined and suitable for boudoirs and small restaurants.

According to Wen Zhenheng's description, there are three types of beds at that time: one is a narrow bed without a backrest (including a single sleeper bed); the other is a foldable bed used on ships in Zhejiang, Guangdong and other places; Classes were decorated with swastikas or key grids, etc., large beds that we today call canopy beds, and step beds that looked like a small room, with hoardings on three sides and a ceiling top. Floating eaves refers to the decorations like eaves above the front of the bed. The step bed has two parts. When you go to bed, you step into the small space first, then the bed, which is extremely private. Colored lacquer is often a character story drawing or wood carving lacquer decoration, so it is common, while the swastika and the grid pattern are abstract and simple, but Wen Zhenheng still thinks it is common. This shows that literati have high requirements for frugality.

After explaining what an elegant couch style is, Wen Zhenheng immediately criticized the lacquer art style at that time. He listed the styles of lacquer couch that were popular at that time: "There are marble inlays near them, there are bamboo trees carved in the faded vermilion lacquer and filled with powder, and there are new luodian, which are very elegant." Among them, the faded vermilion lacquer or black lacquer The lacquer may be old, because the light of the new lacquer is enough to illuminate people, so it needs to be faded, that is, to make the couch look less new, it has been faded. Filling lacquer ware with green and pink after lettering or patterning is a common lacquer ware decoration technique today, but it may have been a new style in the Ming Dynasty, because such a practice was not seen in lacquer ware before the Ming Dynasty. Inlaid luotian is very ancient and very popular in the Tang Dynasty. But Wen Zhenheng recognized the ancient (before Ming Dynasty) rather than the new luotian decoration, probably because the new luotian pattern was tacky. He believes that the newly inlaid luotian, the carved bamboo tree pattern filled with pink, the old vermilion lacquer, and the marble inlaid couch are all "big non elegant ware".

We can also see from the article "Several Couch" that lacquer furniture in Ming Dynasty was very common. Among the 21 types of furniture mentioned, there are as many as 17 types of lacquer. Most of the furniture in Ming and Qing Dynasties in existence was originally painted. The original wooden furniture of Ming and Qing Dynasties that we see today without paint is often because the original paint has been cleaned up, and there are very few real original wooden furniture. The original wood furniture should be wood with beautiful wood grain. For example, Wen Zhenheng said in the "natural table": "Natural table is made of wood such as rosewood, iron pear, fragrant nan, etc." Beautiful wood, the "natural table" mentioned by Wen Zhenheng here should refer to the unpainted log table, not a style of the table. Furniture paint is a very important part of Wen Zhenheng's furniture aesthetics. His detailed discussion of paint allows us to deeply understand the literati's aesthetic tendencies. He discussed the first type of furniture, the couch, and then discussed the lacquer decoration after the size and style, and set the tone for the literati's aesthetics for lacquer furniture: those with ancient and broken patterns must be the top grades. For another example, when he mentioned the cabinet, he thought "the one with broken black lacquer is the first grade"; about the bed, he thought "the small lacquer bed with broken grain in Song and Yuan Dynasties was the first"; when he mentioned the square table, although he did not mention the broken lacquer pattern, but he still said: "The square table is best with old lacquer", etc. The cracks in the lacquer on the furniture are caused by the subtly different shrinkage of the lacquer leather and the wood under different humidity. It is an old phenomenon that must be accumulated for a long time. Therefore, the cracks of lacquerware are very in line with the aesthetics of literati. Because lacquer furniture with broken cracks is usually ancient furniture, Wen Zhenheng called it "quaint", "first" or "jiapin".

Side view of several long-turned-head desks with imitation bamboo frame (Marcola Collection, photo by Cui Peng)

However, Wen Zhenheng is not only praise for lacquer, he has made a violent criticism of many lacquer furniture. For example, when it comes to the table: "If the red lacquer is narrow and triangular, none of them can be used." When it comes to handing over the bed: "The gold lacquer is vulgar and unusable." When it comes to the desk, it is pointed out: "The lacquer is especially vulgar." A desk is a table used by literati to read and write. It is a very important piece of clean land in the life of a literati. It must be simple and unpainted. Regarding the shelf, Wen Zhenheng said that the shelf is a bookshelf, which is an important piece of furniture used by literati. He said: "Bamboo shelves and vermilion lacquer are both unusable." Furniture related to literati activities also includes the old lacquer mentioned above. Square table. As furniture, the square table is very special because it has two extremely different functions, one of which is related to literati activities, and the other is a common dining table. Wen Zhenheng put it this way: (a large square table) "A dozen people can sit in a row for the exhibition of calligraphy and painting. If the Equation of the Eight Immortals is recently made, it can only be used for banquets, not elegant utensils." It can be used to display calligraphy and painting, so it is no problem. The slightly smaller Baxian table (square table) in Wen Zhenheng's eyes became "only for banquets, not elegant." However, literati also have to eat, so what is the elegant tool for literati to eat? Wen Zhenheng went on to say: "Yanji doesn't have a spectrum." "Yan" is the same as "banquet", and Yanji should be the table used by literati to eat. Although Wen Zhenheng said that there is still a map of Yanji, but there is no appendix in "Ji couch", so we don't know the style of Yanji. Slightly earlier than Wen Zhenheng, Wang Qi and Wang Siyi mentioned a kind of table in "Sancai Tuhui", which is very ancient and used for feasting palms, also known as Yanji. Wen Zhenheng clearly distinguishes the secular life from the literati life. It can be seen from this that the relationship between the function of furniture and the activities of the literati directly affects its aesthetics. It can be seen from the above analysis that Wen Zhenheng did not simply base his judgment on whether the furniture was painted or not, but made aesthetic judgments based on the relationship between furniture and literati life, as well as the historical continuity of furniture styles and paint.

Vermillion lacquer sword leg drawing. Pine wood, 116.5 cm long, 81.5 cm wide, 85 cm high (Photo by Liu Shanzang, Zhang Zhao)

Wen Zhenheng not only has very specific and almost harsh requirements on the style and decoration of the furniture, but also on the size. He disapproved of some people who changed the size of the couch at that time: "If the size of the couch is changed, although it is beautiful, it is all out of the way." Because the "ancient system" doesn't exist, everyone is doing it in the long and big, and it falls into the cliché. However, Wen Zhenheng is not blindly observant of the ancients, he also criticized the ancient system: "More see the Yuan Dynasty couch, which is one zhang and five feet long and more than two feet wide, and there is no screen on the top. The system is also ancient, but it is not applicable today.” The Yuan Dynasty couch he saw was very long, and there was no screen on it, which was very strange. Although there is no doubt that it is an ancient system, Wen Zhenheng feels that it is not applicable. Why is it not applicable to the Ming Dynasty? There is also an aesthetic issue involved here. This long couch has no screens on three sides, so it does not conform to the "ancient system" in the usual sense. Wen Zhenheng believes that the furniture that is not ancient is in line with the ancient system. This Yuan couch is practical and can sleep two people, but it is very unsightly for two people to sleep on the same couch foot-to-foot. Therefore, although it is a Yuan couch, it is not an elegant utensil. This passage of Wen Zhenheng also tells us that although the literati's furniture aesthetics is based on the "ancient system" as the core framework, they cannot just look at the literal "ancient system", "ancient style" and "quaintness", because "ancient" is an afterthought. The precipitation of history contains the choices of generations of literati, who choose elegance over vulgarity, not all furniture made in ancient times are quaint furniture. Wen Zhenheng's aesthetics and attitude are of great significance to our current furniture aesthetics. Today, when we see some ancient furniture with exquisite materials and fine workmanship, we are full of praise and flock to them. Many ancient furniture with exquisite materials and fine workmanship are vulgar and unbearable. From an aesthetic point of view, the taste is low. furniture. Wen Zhenheng gave us a clear aesthetic standard for furniture 400 years ago, that is, the size, style, craftsmanship, wood and many other factors of furniture must conform to the beauty in the minds of literati, and must be all-round and indispensable. This is very worthy of our reference.

Rattan-faced high-back carved chair (lamp hanging chair). (Photo by Jiang Qiguzang and Chai Aimin)

After talking about the size and style of the couch, and criticizing the lacquer decoration, Wen Zhenheng began to talk about wood: "He is like Huanan, red sandalwood, ebony, and pear, all of which are made in the old style and can be used." The "he" here refers to other than the lacquer couch. of the original wooden couch. Before Wen Zhenheng's "several couch", Fan Lian and Wang Shixing had already mentioned a variety of woods used for furniture at that time: Fan Lian mentioned beech, rosewood, gall, ebony, acacia, boxwood, Wang Shixing mentioned Sexual observation of red sandalwood and pear, which were admired in the South at that time. However, the information on the choice of wood for furniture in "Ji couch" is more detailed and discussed eight times in total. Regarding the wood used for making the couch, it is listed as follows: Huanan, red sandalwood, ebony, and rosewood. In Wen Zhenheng's opinion, the first choice of wood for the couch should be Huanan, followed by red sandalwood, then ebony, and Huali at the end. Wen Zhenheng does not look down on rosewood and red sandalwood, but believes that the choice of wood should be determined according to the time of the furniture review. He prefers Huanan because the density of Nanmu is not as high as that of red sandalwood, ebony and pear, and it feels warmer in winter. In his choice of natural wood, he put rose pear and iron pear in the front, and nanmu in the back. This is because rose pears and iron pears are harder and more wear-resistant than nanmu, and there are fewer opportunities for direct contact with the human body than couchs. Hard objects, such as porcelain, bronze and other ornaments are often placed on the top of the table, so rose pears and iron pears are in the front, and Nanmu is in the back. . After listing the wood for the couch, Wen Zhenheng emphasized once again that the style of the couch should be "made as usual", that is, it must conform to the core of the literati's aesthetics.

Wen Zhenheng's most specific choice of wood for furniture is the cabinet: "The big ones are made of fir, which can prevent beetles. The small ones are made of Xiangfei bamboo, Douban Nan, Chishui, and eucalyptus. Wood is also available, but the price is too expensive." This time Wen Zhenheng did not mention red sandalwood, jacquard pear, or iron pear or ebony, but put Chinese fir in the first place. He believed that fir must be used to make a large cabinet. The large cabinet can hold a lot of books, which are often infrequently read, so the use of fir can prevent moths. The small cabinet should be a book for ordinary reading, so Wen Zhenheng listed Xiangfei Bamboo, Douban Nan, Chishui, and eucalyptus as materials for the small cabinet, and said that "Xiangfei Bamboo and Douban Nan, Chishui, and eucalyptus are ancient." This shows that before the Ming Dynasty, the small cabinets should be mostly made of bamboo and wood such as Xiangfei bamboo, Doubannan, Chishui, and eucalyptus. In Chishuimu's "Gegu Yao Lun", it is called "red in color, fine in texture, slightly firm and brittle in nature, extremely smooth and clean". We can't be sure which kind of wood Chishui wood is today, but it may be red cedar based on its "slightly firm and brittle" wood characteristics. It is also described in the "Ge Gu Yao Lun": "The color is white, the texture is yellow, and the pattern is thick and cute. It is called a scorpion. There are many people who don't have flowers. There is a class that is slightly firm and straight and thin, which is called leather scorpion." It can be seen that at that time, there were Japanese linden and leather mulberry, and its wood was "slightly firm, straight and thin", and it should be a wood similar to Chishui wood. Wen Zhenheng also specifically mentioned the miscellaneous wood. There are two references to miscellaneous wood in the "several couch", and the other time it is said that the stool "otherwise use miscellaneous wood black lacquer, it can also be used". This is important ancient wood information. Of course, we would like to know which woods belonged to the miscellaneous woods in the Ming Dynasty. Unfortunately, Wen Zhenheng did not specify. But one thing is certain, that is, the nanmu, Chishui, and eucalyptus he mentioned are not miscellaneous wood, and cypress is not miscellaneous wood, because when he talked about the material of the bed, he said: "Recently, there are cypress woods that are as fine as wood. Bamboo is very fine, suitable for boudoirs and small houses.” Unfortunately, these woods are often classified as miscellaneous woods today. Wen Zhenheng undoubtedly knew the value of red sandalwood and pears, but he didn't mind using miscellaneous wood as a cabinet. This shows that he lives so realistically and only pays attention to making the best use of everything without any prejudice to wood. Cabinets are used to store books and are important furniture in the life of literati. There is no need to use precious woods such as red sandalwood and huanghuali. If you use it, it will be a bit like showing off, which is not in line with the reserved and simple character of the literati. Wen Zhenheng said that the cabinets with black lacquer and broken grain are ancient cabinets, and he also said that miscellaneous wood can also be used as cabinets. An ancient black lacquer cabinet and a cabinet made of miscellaneous wood are very different, but they are the same in function, that is, they are used for books. Why can't we live as real as the ancients did? For miscellaneous wood cabinets, there is another important thing besides function, that is, aesthetics. Specifically, it is the style, so after Wen Zhenheng said "all kinds of wood can be used", he immediately said: "But the style is more expensive than the vulgar." Regarding the style, whether it is a large cabinet or a small cabinet, Wen Zhenheng has extremely Detailed description:

The bookcase must be able to hold 10,000 volumes, and the wider it is, the more ancient it is, but the depth can only hold one volume, that is, it is more than ten feet wide, and two doors must be used instead of four and six. A small cabinet is elegant if it has a seat, and a four-legged one is not customary. Even if you use the feet, it must be more than a foot tall. The lower cabinet should only be two feet tall, otherwise the two cabinets will be stacked. The cupboard is elegant if it is as empty as a shelf. If the small cupboard is more than two feet square, it is appropriate to put small bronze and jade objects... The black lacquer with broken grain is the first grade, and miscellaneous wood can also be used, but the style is expensive Ear. The hinge nails should not be made of white copper. The red copper is the same as the old style. The two ends are sharp like a shuttle, and the nails are not used. Bamboo cabinets and small wooden stumps, one in the store, and one in the medicine room, are not available.

How many bookcases does it take to hold 10,000 volumes of books! The bookcase is "broader and more ancient", and the "ancient" here is reflected in the size, reflecting the erudition (more books) of ancient literati. In the Ming Dynasty, one foot (32 cm) is about three meters, and the depth can only accommodate one book, so it is convenient to find books in such a cabinet. A bookcase of this size can't have four or six doors but only two! It's hard to imagine such a cabinet today. Later, Li Yu also followed Wen Zhenheng's cabinet making principle. Wen Zhenheng is even more harsh on the small cabinet: there is a quaint one, and the four-legged one is vulgar (a bit like the couch he said). For example, the four-legged must have a cupboard. The size of the cabinet hall is two feet, the cabinet is a little more than one foot, and the ratio is close to two to one. That is to say, the cabinet hall should be higher than the cabinet body, otherwise, the size of the two is too average (overlapping), which will give people a feeling that the cabinet is heavy and the hall is light and unstable. Before it was over, he said, "It is elegant to have an empty cupboard", that is, a quaint cupboard is a shelf. He believes that this is more elegant than a cupboard with four walls (which is exactly the same as what he said about the couch). On the contrary, but this is the second choice for the closet, the first is "the one who has the seat is elegant"). There is also a two-foot square style for the small cupboard. Since it is two feet, there should be two floors. Books can be placed on both floors, books can be placed on one floor, and antiques such as bronzes and jades can be placed on the other floor. In the surviving Ming Dynasty furniture, we seldom find such a small cupboard mentioned by Wen Zhenheng. In An Siyuan's "Chinese Furniture - Examples of Hardwood Furniture in the Early Ming and Qing Dynasties", there is a small elm bookcase with four short legs, thin wooden strips (probably imitated Xiangfei bamboo) on the front and left and right sides, and wooden boards on the back (An Siyuan thinks that there may be thin wooden strips on all sides). This cabinet is close to the style of the small cabinet described by Wen Zhenheng. This kind of small cabinet may later develop into a bright lattice cabinet. From a functional point of view, antiques can be placed on the top, and books can be placed on the bottom. The size ratio is also similar to the small cabinet in the Jiakudian that Wen Zhenheng said.

Regarding the copper parts of the cabinet, Wen Zhenheng also had extremely detailed requirements: the hinges of the cabinet doors should not be made of cupronickel but of red copper, because the cupronickel is dazzling (when new). Even if it was copper, the style had to be old-fashioned: the top and bottom had to be pointed like a shuttle, and the best hinge was the one that didn't nail it. We have to admire Wen Zhenheng, he didn't even neglect the style of a copper hinge on the furniture, which fully shows the literati's ultimate aesthetics. Mr. Wang Shixiang said that "the vast majority of copper leaves used in furniture in the early Ming and Qing Dynasties were white copper", indicating that very little copper was used at that time, which further proved that Wen Zhenheng's aesthetics were against the trend. Copper hinges are used for small cabinets, while large cabinets mostly use top column and vertical rails. Regarding mortise and tenon, Mr. Wang Shixiang's "Research on Ming-style Furniture" describes in great detail from the joining of various boards to the joining of various parts of the furniture, but does not mention the mortise and tenon of the top column and vertical rails of the cabinet door. This mortise-and-mortise structure enables the door to be disassembled, and is a unique mortise-and-mortise for cabinet doors invented by wise ancient carpenters. In his "Chinese Furniture - Examples of Hardwood Furniture in the Early Ming and Qing Dynasties", An Siyuan described the sliding rail joints in detail with pictures in large paragraphs. It can lock the door securely and remove large items. After understanding the ingenious workmanship of Chinese furniture tenon and tenon, An Siyuan couldn't help feeling that these tenon and tenon joints are the most complex and delicate structures in human history. 2 After talking about the style that the cabinet should have, Wen Zhenheng did not forget to point out the "bamboo cabinets and small wooden straight walls" that literati should not use. On the other hand, it is a small wooden cabinet with straight edges and corners on all sides. It is a cabinet for storing medicines in a pharmacy, and the literati "cannot use it". Here Wen Zhenheng once again shows that the furniture of the literati must be closely connected with the life of the literati.

"Ancient" and "Old" are two important concepts in the literati aesthetic system. Wen Zhenheng repeatedly mentioned the ancient and the old in the short article "Several Beds". Such as "ancient style", "ancient system", "old style", "its system since ancient times", "its system is also ancient", "its system is the oldest", "it must be done according to the ancient style", "as old as it is", "if it is not old, it must be imitated" , and so on, a total of more than twenty places. "Ancient system" and "ancient style" are the styles of ancient furniture. The old style may not be as old as the ancient style in time, but it must be influenced by the ancient style, and there may be some changes on the basis of inheriting the ancient style. Therefore, the ancient and the old styles can be regarded as one, and both are the furniture styles advocated by Wen Zhenheng. After analyzing the "several couch", we can clearly see that the specific "ancient style" includes four parts: size, style, paint and wood. Size is very important, although Wen Zhenheng did not explain the size of all furniture, but he listed the sizes of several different pieces of furniture are very specific and unambiguous. The dimensions of the couch and the cabinet have already been mentioned before, and there is also a natural table that "is no more than eight feet long and five inches thick", such as "the center of the desk is wide and wide, with borders around it, and it is only half an inch wide", such as a footstool. "Two feet long and six inches wide". The footstool is a small stool used to massage the soles of the feet. "The two ends are left to rotate, kick the shaft with the feet, and roll to and fro. The essence of the Yongquan acupoint is covered, and the movement is the best." Wen Zhenheng even mentioned the size and purpose of the footstool so carefully. He also talked about the step stool. A step stool is different from a footstool. The step stool is a small stool used to rest your feet: "The bamboo step stool is square and large, and it can also be used. Guqin bricks are narrow and small, and the summer moon is used as a step stool, which is very cold." It can be seen that the literati He is very open-minded, and does not stick to the conventions of different materials and uses. The bricks on which the guqin is placed can be used as a step stool in summer. However, Wen Zhenheng is so rigorous and serious about style. Such as the couch: "The wooden lattice is set around the middle, and the Xiangzhu is in the middle. The lower seat is not empty, with backrests on three sides, the back and the two sides, etc." Such as the bookcase (large): "The door must have two doors, not four and six." Such as a natural table : "The flying angle should not be too sharp, it must be flat and round." Such as a desk: "The feet are slightly short and thin." Painted lacquer including luotian is a process for the decoration of furniture exterior. Wen Zhenheng has a clear position on this, that is, in the Yuan Dynasty, the broken pattern of ancient lacquer is still the most important. It is worth noting that the "ancient" aesthetic orientation of literati furniture also extends to wood. Although red sandalwood and pear had become fashionable woods at that time, literati did not follow the trend. The most valuable thing is that Wen Zhenheng has no prejudice against miscellaneous wood. He mentioned that miscellaneous wood can be used twice, because he believes that not only the size and style of furniture should conform to the aesthetics of literati, but also the choice of wood. Wen Zhenheng's judgment on wood is based on actual needs and literati's aesthetics, rather than noble or fashionable. He described several major elements of style and wood to constitute the aesthetic content of "ancient style" and "ancient system", which was a very specific aesthetic standard for furniture by literati in the Ming Dynasty. Except for Wen Zhenheng, no one has made such detailed and specific aesthetic specifications for furniture. Gao Lian has written about the incense table, although it is very specific, but he does not talk about the ancient style of the incense table. After reading Gao Lian's "Zunsheng Bajian", we can find that he actually highly respects "ancient style". He said the ink cartridges: "The boxes are made of red sandalwood, ebony, and doubannan, and are often inlaid with ancient jade belts and flowers." When discussing the guqin, he said: "The qin is an elegant music in the study room, and it is impossible to talk about ancient times without a voiceless layman. " Speaking of wax buckets: "The ancients used to burn wax to seal the opening, copper, and the best ones were all Song and Yuan objects." Therefore, advocating "ancient system" and "ancient style" is a common feature of literati's aesthetics.

Once the furniture has or reaches the ancient and ancient form, it will enter the quaint and simple literati aesthetic realm. As a complete aesthetic system, Wen Zhenheng also proposed two concepts of "modern" and "near" which are opposite to "ancient" and "old", as well as the aesthetic opposites of "quaint" and "quaint", "vulgar" and " Unequal". "Today" is the present, and "near" is the not-too-distant past; the present appears embarrassed and ashamed in contrast to the past, and the past appears more valuable in the contrast of the present, which is a kind of sublimation. Wen Zhenheng mentioned the present, near and vulgar times more than a dozen times in "Several Beds". What he said about today and recently refers to some furniture styles that were popular in the late Ming Dynasty. Wen Zhenheng said in the preface of "Several Beds": "Today people only use carved and painted ornaments to please the common eye, but the ancient ones are gone, which makes people sigh deeply." When talking about the Zen chair, he criticized. : "I recently saw that there are people with five-color chili sticks on it, which is quite supplementary." Speaking of the square table: "If the equation of the Eight Immortals was made recently, it can only be used for banquets, not elegant utensils." Speaking of the lengthening of the couch: "I changed the styles of growing up, although they are beautiful, they are all out of the way." Speaking of desks: "All kinds of common styles that are narrow, long and mixed are not usable, especially those with lacquer." vulgar." Among the natural items, Wen Zhenheng said the most distressingly: "Recently made, narrow and elderly, the most disgusting." He can't tolerate aesthetic flaws just like he can't tolerate the sand in his eyes. But Wen Zhenheng did not draw an equal sign between the present and the vulgar, the near and the unrefined. For example, in Taiwan: "Recently imitating the old style, there are also good ones." That is to say, the current style should continue the ancient tradition, Instead of cutting, not the anti-tradition we are talking about now. There are two types of vulgar and vulgar. Judging from Wen Zhenheng's "several couch", the things he hates, such as "carved and painted text ornaments", "those with five-colored chili sticks on them", and "the custom of folding gold lacquer" are all gaudy. There is a connection between vulgarity and luxury, and it is the result of the desperate pursuit of the so-called "beauty" that can show off wealth after economic prosperity. When the speed of enrichment exceeds the speed of cultural construction, gaudy cannot be avoided. There is a tradition in Chinese history for the yearning and pursuit of luxury and vulgarity. Up to the court giants, wealthy businessmen and tycoons, down to the common people and other social strata, all are like this, but the power and economic capacity are different. But the literati were against extravagance and gaudy. An example that predates the Ming Dynasty is Wang Xizhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He wrote in the "Bi Jing": "In the past, people used glazed and ivory as the pen tube, and beautiful ornaments. However, the pen must be light and heavy, and it will be flimsy. " , but Wang Xizhi insisted on the writing function of the pen as the first - the pen must be light. He believed that the glass and ivory were too heavy and hindered writing. Wang Xizhi went on to say: "There are people who have seen the remains of green lacquer tubes and hollow tubes. After many years of recording, they are also cute and playful. They must be carved with gold coins, and then they are expensive." Stone green and dark green, it looks like being immersed in water, so it is called "green sink". A hollow tube is a hollow pen tube. From this sentence, we can see Wang Xizhi's literati temperament and aesthetics: what he thinks is expensive (beautiful) is not "golden carving", but a brush with "green lacquer tube and hollow tube" that is easy to write and can be played with .

More than 1,200 years later, Wen Zhenheng still inherits this literati tradition based on practical functions in furniture aesthetics. On the relationship between furniture style, decorative craftsmanship and practical life, between luxury and simplicity, Wen Zhenheng and other Ming Dynasty literati took a clear stand and were jealous of vulgarity. Many books on furniture now cite Wang Shixing's records that the furniture at that time was made of red sandalwood and pear, and that the carvings advocated the styles of Shang, Zhou, Qin and Han, but did not mention his criticism of the social atmosphere at that time. After talking about the wood and the style, Wang Shixing said: "As for an inch of bamboo, a piece of stone, and a piece of stone, it is often a thousand words and a hundred pieces, such as the jade horse of Lu Yukuang, the fan of a small official, the forging of Zhao Liangbi, and the winners compete. , No matter the money, it is also a vulgar beetle." Wang Shixing named and surnamed, and angrily denounced some handicrafts worth thousands of dollars at that time as "object monsters" and "vulgar worms". Now due to economic affluence, people are buying uncreative furniture and handicrafts in extreme luxury, so Wang Shixing's criticism is also applicable to the current luxury society.

Earlier in this chapter, I mentioned the simple aesthetic standpoint of “frugality as decoration and tranquility as teacher” in the construction of thatched cottages and mansions by literati in the Tang Dynasty, as well as the construction method of “without cutting the materials, keeping them simple; It shows the architectural aesthetics of the literati. But the situation with Tang Dynasty furniture is different. The Tang Dynasty was in the transition period of furniture from low (sit on the floor) to high (chair), so the furniture of the Tang Dynasty had not yet been finalized. Compared with the Ming Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty already belongs to a distant ancient times. If the style of the furniture in the Tang Dynasty is placed in the Ming Dynasty, it is completely ancient. There is no discussion on furniture in the Tang Dynasty, but the Tang Dynasty has a very in-depth discussion on the paintings before the Tang Dynasty, which we can refer to. Zhang Yanyuan, a painter and painting theorist in the Tang Dynasty, described the ancient paintings before the Tang Dynasty with a touch of attention: "Ancient paintings, the traces are simple and elegant," which means that the brush is used very little, and the artistic conception is elegant. In this regard, the aesthetic concept of painting in the Tang Dynasty is exactly the same as that of Wen Zhenheng's furniture. Let's take a look at Zhao Meng 's brilliant discussion on "Ancient": "Painting is precious with ancient meaning, if there is no ancient meaning, although work is useless." If you use a slender pen and apply a strong color, you call yourself an expert, but you don’t know that the ancient meaning is deficient, and there are many diseases, which is not impressive.” What is the “ancient meaning” that Zhao Meng said? He took his own paintings as an example: "My paintings seem to be simple and straightforward, but those who know them know that they are ancient, so they think it is good." Although Zhao Meng is a little boastful, we can know that "simplicity" is a painting with an ancient meaning. A key point, thus becoming a watershed between elegance and vulgarity. From thatched cottages to paintings to furniture, we can see the "ancient" and "modern" aesthetics of the literati in the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming Dynasties, so as to understand that they advocate simplicity, simplicity, and lightness, and oppose rich, colorful, and vulgar. And the aesthetic attitude of "just take carved and painted ornaments".

We can now summarize the furniture aesthetics of literati: it is centered on "ancient". Why "Ancient"? "Ancient" is not a time concept that the older the better, but the innocence and simplicity of the ancients, which is the core of the literati's aesthetics. Antique is first about size, then style, then wood and trim, with size first. The size, style and decorative craftsmanship should be based on the principle of simplicity and simplicity. Wood should be selected according to the function of different furniture, not according to grade. The aesthetics of literati furniture is also closely related to their lives. This is not life in the ordinary sense, such as eating, sleeping, etc., but cultural and spiritual life, such as reading, writing, and painting. These Wen Zhenheng explained very clearly in "Several Couchs": desks and bookshelves cannot be lacquered, cabinets can be made of miscellaneous wood (fir is not miscellaneous wood), and stools can be made of not only miscellaneous wood, but also black lacquer. Regarding the decorative techniques such as carving and drawing on some furniture at that time, Wen Zhenheng clearly criticized it as "taking carvings and paintings to please the common eye", but it is worth noting that he did not deny carvings in general, but thought that To master a degree. Wen Zhenheng said in the article on nature, "slightly carve cloud heads, ruyi, etc.", but then he said: "Don't carve dragon and phoenix flowers and plants." Dragon and phoenix flowers and plants are popular secular aesthetics. Literati aesthetics are quite different. Wen Zhenheng served as a servant in the Wuying Hall of Zhongshusheren during the Chongzhen period. He must have seen a lot of court furniture, and maybe he has seen the famous court furniture-the three-drawer confession case with red lacquer carved with full workmanship (Xuande ). What would he say? The answer is likely to be: "Just use carved and painted decorations to please the common eye." There are also the famous huanghuali canopy bed and swastika pattern bed in Ike's collection. Wen Zhenheng has already concluded: "If the bamboo bed and the floating eaves , step-by-step, colorful paint, swastika, fringe, etc. are all customary.” These are the styles of beds that are hotly sought after in the market today, especially the large beds decorated with swastikas and fringe patterns, but in Wen Zhen Heng's eyes are all vulgar. This makes one wonder, is our furniture aesthetic today a step forward or a step backward compared to the Ming Dynasty?

Book Shadow of "White Wood Furniture in Ming and Qing Dynasties"

The introduction of sixteen items and eight diseases in "Ming-style Furniture Research" deepens our aesthetic understanding of Ming-style furniture. Product is the norm of beauty, and disease is the opposite of beauty. Mr. Wang Shixiang put "conciseness" in the first sixteen items, which shows that he understands the literati's furniture aesthetics very well, but many of the items listed are contrary to the literati's aesthetics. For example, the fifth grade "majestic". How did literati take majesty as their furniture aesthetic? There is also the eighth grade "Nonghua" and the ninth grade "Wenqi". Nong means gorgeous, rich and lush, and "Nonghua" is a prosperous and gorgeous flower, which is used to describe the youthful beauty of women. And "Wen Qi" is a gorgeous silk, and it was also a metaphor for gorgeous poems in ancient times. "Qi Ru and Wan Qian" refers to the children of wealthy families in gorgeous clothes. Yuan Hui, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, wrote the poem "Have hatred from the piano and selves, and love Qiluo ruthlessly". Fan Lian has severely criticized the dandy who spent thousands of dollars on buying fine wood furniture, so how can "Wen Qi" be regarded as a product of Ming style furniture? And what is the specific difference between the third grade "thick and clumsy" and the sixth grade "round and round"? Mr. Wang Shixiang's views may have been influenced by the old Beijing craftsmen, and are mostly a reflection of the Qing Dynasty's concept of aristocratic hierarchies. The styles of ancient furniture are diverse, and the aesthetic origins are also intricate. If we want to establish the norms of furniture aesthetics, we must also study the literati discourses left by history. The most important thing in the aesthetics of literati furniture is to reflect the literati spirit, and to reflect the literati's position and attitude towards life. This stance and attitude can be summed up in the word "simplicity", which is simple and plain, which is the opposite of complicated and pretentious. Today, everyone says that they admire the literati spirit and love literati furniture, but after they really understand what the literati furniture aesthetics are, they can sincerely accept a piece of furniture that looks simple and ordinary, but contains the literati spirit. easy. Because it takes courage, you need to say goodbye to some precious wood furniture aesthetically, you need to re-examine fashion trends, and you even need to change your way of life and thinking.

(The author of this article is a professor of the Department of Painting and History of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the director of the Asian Art Institute of Chicago. The original title is "The Aesthetics of Literati's Furniture", and the full text was originally published in the book "White Wood Furniture in the Ming and Qing Dynasties" by Jiang Qigu published by Sanlian Publishing Co., Ltd. , When The Paper was published with the author's authorization, the annotations were not included.)