Tang Yin (1470-1523), one of the "Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty," painted by imitating the ancients and drawing inspiration from contemporary styles. Landscape painting was his mainstream style, and he was also skilled at painting "withered trees, bamboo, and rocks."
Recently, "Yueyi," an art publishing sub-brand under Phoenix Publishing House, launched "A Life of Calligraphy and Painting: Tang Yin's Life with a Single Brush," which takes academic foundation and popularization as its purpose, leading readers into the legendary life of this famous Ming Dynasty artist. A significant portion of the book analyzes his painting of withered trees and bamboo.
Tang Yin (1470-1523)
Tang Yin's life was nothing short of legendary. Contrary to the portrayal in films and television, his life was marked by dramatic ups and downs: from achieving early success in the imperial examinations to falling into despair after being embroiled in a cheating scandal; from making a living through painting to dedicating himself to his art in his Peach Blossom Pavilion. As one of the "Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty," he excelled in landscapes, figures, and flowers and birds, creating works with a rich and varied style. However, due to his illustrious reputation, forgeries and imitations proliferated. This book, based on 86 genuine works of Tang Yin's calligraphy and painting, distinguishes the genuine from the fake, presenting a complete picture of his art.
Book cover of "A Life of Calligraphy and Painting: Tang Yin's Life in the World of Art and Literature"
Written by young scholar Che Xudong, this book blends solid academic research with accessible expression, combining professional depth with engaging content. The author skillfully utilizes authentic works of Tang Yin's calligraphy and painting, along with classic masterpieces from various dynasties, to connect Tang Bohu's dramatic and legendary life and his poetic spiritual world, decoding the artistic thoughts and inner world of this talented scholar. Che Xudong's book is rich in research, not only tracing the origins and development of Tang Yin's calligraphy and painting but also redefining many works: for example, Tang Yin's earliest extant calligraphic work is his postscript to Zhou Chen's (attributed) "Listening to Autumn" at age 21, and he provides detailed analyses of several "one draft, multiple versions" of withered trees and bamboo paintings held in the Suzhou Museum, Boston Museum, and the Palace Museum.
In analyzing the "one draft, multiple versions" of the withered tree, bamboo, and rock paintings, he believed that while Tang Yin's collected works contain many poems on ink bamboo, few of his ink bamboo paintings have survived, with only a few pieces such as "Bamboo in the Wind" (collection of the Palace Museum) and "Ink Bamboo" fan painting (collection of the Shanghai Museum). Furthermore, he was also skilled at painting "withered tree, bamboo, and rock paintings" to cater to market demands.
"Ancient Trees and Secluded Bamboo Groves" (Collection of Nanjing Museum)
The "Ancient Trees and Bamboo Groves" painting in the Nanjing Museum is a representative work of Tang Yin's surviving paintings of withered trees, bamboo, and rocks. The painting primarily features withered trees, bamboo, and rocks, but the withered trees are not dead; rather, they teem with life. As Confucius said, "Only when the year grows cold do we know that the pine and cypress are the last to wither." The withered trees symbolize a resilient and upright character, standing tall and proud in difficult circumstances. The bamboo, upright and graceful, represents noble character, resilience, and elegance. The rocks symbolize integrity, steadfastness, and unyielding spirit. These images embody the noble spiritual pursuits of literati, which is why painters throughout history have frequently incorporated them into their paintings and celebrated them in their works.
Tang Yin also painted several other works depicting withered trees, bamboo, and rocks, such as "Bush and Bamboo Grove" in the Yantai Museum collection, but several others seem to be part of the composition of "Bush and Bamboo Grove." Some of these works, though unsigned, are attributed to Tang Yin.
Tang Yin's paintings of withered trees, bamboo, and rocks were not merely for expressing his feelings and seeking solace. Some of the accompanying poems expressed both indignation and a melancholic, withdrawn mentality seeking to protect himself from the world. Within them lies a contradiction: a reverence for resilience and integrity juxtaposed with a passive escapism and even a tendency to drift along with the tide. His later poems truly reveal the complexity and contradictions of his thoughts and mindset. The harsh reality constantly forced him to reflect on his way of life. His thought was a fusion of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, but it also expressed a strong element of resistance against tradition. The contradiction between adhering to and deviating from Confucian morality further demoralized him, ultimately leading to the sigh, "The world is like a drifting river." The meaning of Tang Yin's withered trees, bamboo, and rocks reflects both an inheritance of the tradition dominated by literati like Wen Tong and a "rupture" triggered by his own real-world contradictions.
As for the first poem expressing my feelings:
The beams and pillars stand tall and majestic, the jade ornaments are elegant and refined. In the desolate mountains at the end of the year, ice and snow fall as if arriving in force.
Decay and decay are nothing to speak of; what is magnificent is the spirit of the wind and clouds! The scholar, his head white with age, sighs three times, tears streaming down his face.
Similarly, the poem uses ancient trees as a metaphor for the poet himself, expressing the sadness of unfulfilled ambitions and the fleeting nature of time. Moreover, it is very likely, like the previous poem, to be an inscription on a painting of withered trees, bamboo, and rocks.
