In the history of the development of figure painting in China, the theme of Buddhism once occupied an important position. Since the Han and Wei Dynasties, with the introduction of Buddhism, China's figure painting has made great progress. Every dynasty has some exquisite Buddhist paintings handed down from generation to generation, and more Buddhist murals have been passed down to this day. Today in the 2 1 century, although social life is constantly changing, Buddhist thought still affects our way of doing things and psychology. In the relatively tense and impetuous modern life, people often feel anxious. Learning Zen has become a conscious yearning for many people, even a refreshing agent and street lamp in personal life. How to express Buddha's nature in today's paintings and how to influence readers with a tolerant, open-minded and indifferent attitude towards life are really topics that many painters want to do well. Today, we see the best explanation and answer in Mr. Zhao Xiaosu's many ink paintings. He painted so many flying cloth-bag monks. He painted figures with different personalities, such as Buddhism, Dharma, Six Ancestors, Master Hongyi, and lay people. With vivid images, he projected the heavens and the earth, observed life and expressed philosophical meditation. He paints with his heart, he paints with pen and ink, and he paints with profound traditional cultural accomplishment. His Zen paintings are exquisite, unique and vivid, and interesting, which makes readers infected with the charm of Zen in a lively and pleasant atmosphere.

Twenty years ago, the Japanese Yomiuri Shimbun reported China's rising star Zhao Xiaosu in three editions, and his cartoon Untitled won the first prize among more than 30,000 works in 64 countries and regions. Twenty years later, he is unique in Lingnan with his Zen-filled Chinese paintings. His ink painting, modeling, calligraphy and articles are all exquisite, which shows his tireless study of traditional culture for decades and his rich artistic achievements with distinctive personality.

Zhao Xiaosu was born in Kaifeng, seven dynasties, where there is a profound accumulation of traditional culture. I loved painting since I was a child, and I studied under famous artists such as Guo and others. 1975 Chinese painting "Hongyan Newspaper New Year Picture" participated in Henan Art Exhibition. Graduated from Luoyang Normal University and Henan University, worked as a Art editor in a newspaper for many years. 1994 Special talents were introduced to Guangdong. As Zhao Xiaosu has worked in the media for a long time, creating news cartoons is his main business. More than 20 years' experience has made him one of the best young and middle-aged cartoonists in China. Up to now, in the second edition of Nanfang Daily, there is an ink cartoon created by Zhao Xiaosu every day, which is full of creativity in water, ink, rice paper and theme. In fact, it is another ink painting. Zhao Xiaosu, an ink and wash column, has persisted for ten years and is undoubtedly the painter who published the most ink and wash paintings in China.

Uninterrupted creation has enabled him to practice solid and vivid modeling and keen conception ability. Therefore, when Zhao Xiaosu applied these abilities to the creation of Chinese painting, he was not only familiar with it, but also unique. As soon as he made a move, he distanced himself from other painters. A successful artist should have many qualities, some of which can be acquired through study, and some of which are innate and vary from person to person. In addition to studying hard and accumulating extensively in literature and art, Zhao Xiaosu also has one of the most important qualities, that is, humor, which is precious and rare. Humor has been fully reflected in his decades of Chinese painting and cartoon creation. For example, the title of the painting "Self-Joy" says: "There are many things in the world, money and power are confusing, living in a cool place, scratching yourself." Another example is "Difficult to Start a Business", which is not only exquisite, but also hilarious. There is only a poor chicken in the lower corner of the picture. The owner feeds it and has high hopes for it. Inscription: "Chickens lay eggs, eggs lay chickens, and the wealth of the family can be expected, but it is urgent to cook! Urgent! Urgent! " It's really amazing. It vividly depicts the mentality of being eager to get rich.

Our life is constantly changing with the development of society, but some things are unchanged. We all want to have a good attitude and pursue truth, goodness and beauty. The cloth-bag monk painted by Zhao Xiaosu is indifferent, tolerant and naive. Whether he hangs in the living room or the study, it will make people feel happy. What kind of life do you want? Must be optimistic and healthy, happiness first! And happiness comes from the harmonious coexistence between people and between people and other lives. Looking at Zhao Xiaosu's "Doing Good is the Most Pleasant", we can see a monk carrying a rice bag and a few chickens pecking rice on the ground, which makes people realize the happiness of doing good without "giving alms". It's really a combination of form and spirit, and Zen interest is vividly on the paper.

In the traditional culture of China, poetry, calligraphy and painting are closely related. Those who can only draw but can't draw are mostly painters, and the lack of literary literacy will definitely become the limitation of painters' creation. Fortunately, Zhao Xiaosu is not only an accomplished painter in China, but also has a profound knowledge of calligraphy, which is fully reflected in his works. He is also a member of China Prose Society, and has published a large number of exquisite essays in newspapers. His essays such as Old Ants and Little Ants, German Boys Throwing Stones, and Australian Sketch are amazing, and the washed language and profound artistic conception complement each other. These works are published with the works of many domestic prose masters. Fang Chengzan, a cartoonist, praised him as "an expert in writing prose with brilliant literary talent". Therefore, it has always been thought that people who cross the border in art will often achieve great success. Mr Zhao Xiaosu, who has just stepped into his sixties, has accumulated a lot, and is in his prime. I hope that his continuous works will refresh us. Appreciating a Zen painting is like sitting in the forest and listening to nature. It's hard to express your inner joy in words.

Both artistic desire and aesthetic pleasure are illusory, but this "emptiness" can be materialized into "reality", which is the transformation of material and spirit. Zen paintings often transform ideas into images and realms, which are embellished on paper with paintings. It doesn't read a word, and its infinite charm determines its functional utility. Most people will have obvious physiological feelings such as heat, cold, sour and spicy when they appreciate, germinate and want to fall from the sky before the work. As the saying goes: "Taste makes me, anger makes me, intention makes me, knowledge makes me, wonderful music makes me, and all kinds of strange doors are Zen paintings." As a cartoonist with profound traditional cultural accomplishment and long-term vision, Zhao Xiaosu has been "writing a thousand tubes and grinding ten thousand ingots" for decades. For a time, he suddenly thought and reflected, and suddenly realized that "there is no teaching, no learning, no painting, and unknown wisdom; There are academics, paintings have no religion, and feelings are not deep. " Zen is the highest culture, integrating Zen with art, painting Zen and practicing, and communicating with the spirit of heaven and earth alone. "Art and Taoism are interlinked, and Taoism and art are integrated into one", and Zen painting is regarded as a new pursuit to improve one's painting skills and academics.

From the beginning, in mastering the original way of comics, Zhao Xiaosu used the artistic creation idea of wandering between ethereal and line to turn it into charm and passion, and carried out creative practice again and again. After some hardships, Xiang Mei finally smelled the fragrance. In the Sino-Tibetan cultural exchange exhibition held by Guangdong Wenbo Research Institute, the in-depth study and understanding of Buddhism caused a great sensation. The uniqueness and ingenious brushwork of Zen paintings in his works are praised as "simple, simple and unrestrained in Gu Zhuo", and his imagination and dust-free talent impressed the visitors present, which was once passed down as a story of Guangdong Zen master.

I think a high-level Zen painting must have two factors: "Zen" and "painting" in order to achieve complete success. Why? To put it simply, it is the real Zen painting, that is, "observing Zen has Zen and observing Zen has painting", and at the same time, "Zen is in painting and painting is in Zen", so as to appreciate the essence of China's traditional cultural thought. It has a deeper outlook on life. Zen is a life attitude, a philosophy and a wisdom. Take Zhao Xiaosu's picture entitled "Being the happiest for kindness" as an example. In the picture, a monk comes home, instead of picking rice, and sees a few chickens chirping with hunger on the roadside. He is born with good thoughts. They deliberately dug a small hole in the rice bag, and the millet dripped down bit by bit, reflecting the original intention of being kind and happiest. Finger of the Moon and Needle of Sina are both made to teach people how to be a man. "All evil should be done and all good should be pursued". For a simple example, the profound mystery of Zen painting is to "chew", "swallow" and "ruminate" and then reshape it, and explain it in plain words. Zhao Xiaosu's ingenious conception of the theme of this kind of works is of extraordinary universal significance. It reveals the Zen mind, conveys the Zen mind, instructs the Zen machine, shows guidance and educates in entertainment. Zhao Xiaosu's achievements can only be improved through study, cultivation and enlightenment. As long as you "stand, watch and think twice" before Zhao Xiaosu's meditation, that is the best process of meditation, like falling from nothingness and climbing a ladder. The viewer can think deeply along Zhao Xiaosu's contemplative brush strokes, touch the channel of the soul, and thus reach the holy land he pursues. Someone asked me, are Zhao Xiaosu's paintings really so charming and magical? I responded: "Looking at Zhao Xiaosu's Zen paintings, like a spring breeze, has affected our body and mind in an instant, and our hearts seem to stretch infinitely in the paintings. We feel that "the ink sea is full, the brushwork describes the charm, the scale is refined, and the chaos shines". It must be pointed out that there are few Zen paintings worthy of promotion and collection in the art market, all of which are playing with pen and ink skills and concepts, which are far from insightful Zen paintings. Only Zhao Xiaosu's Zen painting stayed in the air for a second. From the subject matter to the theme, it is with the Buddha. Zhao Xiaosu's Zen paintings and skillful ferrying have made countless people embark on the road of understanding nature, solving problems, and letting those who think that there is no way to follow the Tao and go deep into the mountains get spiritual enlightenment in Zen paintings, rethink life and be pious about life. Zhao Xiaosu's Zen painting art will gradually deepen people's understanding and love, and its artistic path will be immeasurable. I express my appreciation and admiration for Zhao Xiaosu, who has been low-key, unique and extraordinary for a long time, and the superb level of his Zen paintings.

It's a pity that I don't deliberately become superficial, and my writing is slow, and omissions are inevitable. I still pray for orthodoxy.

(The writer is the vice chairman of Guangdong Collectors Association. This article was published in the third issue of Collection and Appreciation magazine in 2009, and Sea Breeze was published in the 1 1 edition of Nanfang Daily in July 2009. I have known each other for five years, participated in painting and calligraphy exhibitions in Jiangmen and Zhongshan with him, and organized him and Fang Cheng. He is a columnist of Nanfang Daily. The second edition of Nanfang Daily has a Zhao Xiaosu news cartoon closely related to current events every day. His works have participated in many national art exhibitions and won domestic gold and silver awards. China Book Award and the "Five Ones" Project Award of the Propaganda Department of the CPC. It can be seen that he is a well-deserved contemporary influential painter and calligrapher.

Zhao Xiaosu was born into a scholarly family in Kaifeng, the ancient capital of the last century. He was nourished and edified by Central Plains culture since he was a child. He has been very clever since he was a child and often improvises poems. A little longer, he paid attention to the paintings and calligraphy of this ancient village next to the Drum Tower. The subtle influence of China's traditional painting can be said to have penetrated into his bones. Unfortunately, a "Cultural Revolution" changed the fate of millions of people. Xiao Su had to be an educated youth and a worker, and took a tortuous and hard life path. However, Xiao Su's love for traditional culture has never changed, and Xiao Su's ideal for painting has never wavered. 197 1 year 9 1 year Zhang Letian, an old Henan painter, just got out of prison, and Xiao Su collapsed at his door. At that time, Xiao Su's copy of Ming and Qing landscape paintings amazed the old painter. 1975, Zhao Xiaosu broke into 1975 Henan Art Exhibition with the traditional Chinese painting "Hongyan Chuanchun". This exhibition gave Xiao Su great encouragement and confidence. From then on, he studied hard, learned from his teachers and laid a solid sketch foundation. From 65438 to 0977, Xiao Su was admitted to the Art Department of Luoyang Teachers College, and the road began to smooth gradually. In the mid-1980s, Xiao Su, who worked in the media, turned to comics. Xiao Su, who has published dozens of novels and essays, has his own advantages in conception, not to mention his years of modeling experience. Xiao Su is at home in the field of comics. 1989 Two works were selected for the 7th National Art Exhibition, including the ink-and-wash cartoon "Eat Well". In the same year, the work "One Step Late" won the highest prize in the National Competition of Workers' Daily. In the fifth year of comic creation, he won the highest prize in the Japanese Yomiuri International Comic Contest, which is known as Comic Olympics. This is the first of 13000 works from 64 countries and regions. Xinhua News Agency sent a telegram from Tokyo, and dozens of newspapers, such as People's Daily, Reference News and Press and Publication, reported it one after another. A reporter from Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun rushed to Kaifeng, Henan Province for a live interview. Tohiko Okabe, the judge of the contest and a famous Japanese cartoonist, wrote: "The comic contest has been held many times, and the level has been greatly improved, but there are very few truly radiant works. Untitled is one. Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun praised Zhao Xiaosu as "a rising star of Ran Ran in China painting". "1994, the famous family in Zhao Xiaosu was moved to Guangzhou. 1997, his cartoon What is Socialism won the 1 1 China Book Award. The comic book How much do you know about sustainable development won the "Five One Project Award" in Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China.

In the new century, Zhao Xiaosu, who has entered the era of "knowing destiny", began to learn more and more calligraphy and ink painting. A soul full of the fragrance of ancient Kaifeng, a frequent visitor to Kaifeng today, and the feelings of China traditional painting that penetrated into his bones finally broke out. Therefore, the "harsh" requirement for Nanfang Daily to create ink cartoons every day is exactly what Zhao Xiaosu wants.

Since then, Zhao Xiaosu's calligraphy and ink painting life has become more and more ups and downs, which can be called the source of his artistic peak. Based on the two kings, I studied Song Sijia, repeatedly wrote the posts of Huang Daozhou, a calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty, and innovated from the profound and exquisite works of my ancestors, pondering the structure and using pens day and night. In the end, what I want to achieve is that books are always used for painting. I have an artistic dialogue with Kai Liang, Huang Shen, Ren Bonian and other sages through books in painting, which not only develops a set of unique techniques with rich levels and touching feelings, but also integrates nostalgia into painting. Whether it is a flower-and-bird character or a cartoon sentient beings, they all reveal their true feelings in humor, ooze aftertaste in implication, see strength in the show, turn implication into ancient rhyme, and bring humanistic cultivation to the extreme with delicate brushwork. No matter what he painted, Zhao Xiaosu showed the contribution of ink painting to the country with his unhurried skills and just right brushstrokes. From painting to writing, from writing to book, from book to heart, the details show his skill, which proves that his skill in painting and calligraphy has reached a superb level.

Zhao Xiaosu's ink figures pay attention to ingenious thinking and interest, pursue wonderful understanding and charm, and express their inner feelings with exaggerated pen and ink, which is creative. In 2009, a leader watched the Guangdong Art Exhibition and laughed in front of Xiao Su's Chicken Training Picture. He was moved by the humorous interest in the painting. He said that such a painting must be liked by some people. Xiao Su's painting title reads: "The dawn is always ringing, disturbing my dreams. From now on, I will change the time and call two hours later. " Laozi's going through customs is a common theme among Chinese painting figures, and it can be renovated in Xiao Su's hands, which means nothing. Laozi in the work is very depressed. The cow he rides has neither horns nor tails. The title is: "I rode Niu Yi Road, met ten checkpoints, cut off his horn and oxtail, and a large number of recorded bamboo slips became people's cushions. Finally, I came to Hanguguan, and suddenly I heard a big drink: The cow stayed, and the people went out! " This kind of "going through the motions" is really unprecedented, and no one will come after it.

Zhao Xiaosu also painted 50 ink and wash illustrations for Academician Zhong Nanshan's Zhong Nanshan on Health. After the cooperation, I drew a picture for Academician Zhong, in which a hole was deliberately left in the monk's cloth bag, a little fine rice was sprinkled on the ground, the chicken pecked at the rice, and the monk laughed internally. This painting is still hanging on the wall of Academician Zhong's office. In this relaxed and quiet work, Zen and ancient meaning, reality and fiction, grass-roots folk and great wisdom, ease of weight and silence are all vividly described by Zhao Xiaosu. Images and realms are not read in one word, but touched on paper. This is perhaps the most beautiful thing in Zhao Xiaosu's Zen paintings, which shows the profound Zen in a slight smile.

In 2007, we held a national exhibition of apprentices and apprentices for him and Fang Cheng at Xiaolan Art Museum in Zhongshan City, and had the opportunity to get together with Xiao Su and Fang Cheng for half a month. This exhibition is a combination of humor and ink painting, a collision between classicality and reality, a dialogue between the older generation and the new generation, and a new spring flowing into the ancient lake of painting art in China. This exhibition also made Xiao Su learn a lot of new things in his relationship with Fang Lao. Fang Lao's ideas, Fang Lao's modeling and lines all made Xiao Su watch them again and again. Fang Lao said: "To draft, the line must be stable and cannot float." Xiao Su took these words to heart. In the eyes of the older generation of cartoonists, he has always been a humble student; In the eyes of comic newcomers, he is a gentle teacher; In the eyes of cartoonists, he is a good editor who adheres to the principle of selecting manuscripts; In the eyes of professional comic magazine editors, he is a good author who has no shelf and keeps his promise.

Xiao Su is very busy and has little free time for painting, writing, writing and editing. He refused unnecessary entertainment and concentrated on his own creation. He tried hard to find a new way out in literature and painting, tradition and innovation, and tried hard to create a unique Xiao Su art with ideological and artistic features.

Finally, let's quote a poem by the poet Qi Suilin and Zhao Xiaosu as the end!

"The broad road. Drunk pens break the fog of the world. The fog on earth can't cover the edge of the inkstone. Thousands of years ago, I realized that I was fishing for cigarettes in my confinement. Fishing in the smoke house, all beings laugh, endless joy! "

(The author is the vice chairman of Guangdong Collectors Association) In Zhao Xiaosu's studio, there is a photo of his work presented to Master Xingyun on behalf of Guangdong Zen Base, and the happy picture is also printed on the cover of one of his picture books. The title in the painting: "Let go of your unhappiness, everyone is a happy Buddha." Master Xingyun studied the painting carefully and repeatedly said, "It's so precious." In recent years, Zhao Xiaosu's ink Zen paintings have flourished and held many exhibitions at home and abroad. Six Groups of Huineng was collected by the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taiwan Province Province, and Infinite Buddhism won the first prize in the Zen Painting Original Competition. As a member of China Artists Association and a librarian of Guangdong Provincial Museum of Literature and History, Zhao Xiaosu was invited to Taiwan Province Province for cultural exchange twice in a row, and made a 100-meter scroll with Taiwan Province painters in Sun Yat-sen Memorial Square.

Zhao Xiaosu's Dream Pursuit Era

Zhao Xiaosu was born in Kaifeng, an ancient cultural city, in 1950s. When he was a teenager, he showed his talent for painting. The Nezha he painted on the wooden partition will not be erased for years. Influenced by my big brother next door, I often go to the most famous Jinguzhai painting shop in Kaifeng. The only position he has ever held in school is as an art class representative. 197 1 year, Zhao Xiaosu, then an educated youth, decided to paint because her family could not return to the city. Zhang Letian, a 90-year-old painter, paints landscapes for his teacher. Soon, Zhao Xiaosu worked as a fitter in Yanshi Motorcycle Factory. It was a time when he spent his life working and painting. Fortunately, Yanshi has an amateur painting group. Everyone draws sketches and sketches together every night. Now almost all of these people are well-known painters in China. 1975, Zhao Xiaosu's Chinese painting "Hongyan Newspaper New Year Picture" participated in the Henan Art Exhibition. 1in the winter of 977, 25-year-old Zhao Xiaosu took the first college entrance examination after the Cultural Revolution, and his score was the first in Luoyang. At that time, due to changeable policies and age factors, he missed out on the Academy of Fine Arts and had to go to Luoyang Normal University. I went back to Kaifeng several times after graduation. Zhao Xiaosu was very depressed, because he couldn't find a painting career, so he chose writing. He had the opportunity to enter Kaifeng Daily because he published a large number of works. The artistic complex of childhood made him turn to painting again.

Sturm und drang's cartoon.

From 65438 to 0987, Zhao Xiaosu, who worked in the media, began to create cartoons after careful consideration. Comics not only belong to the fields of art and news, but also their ideological nature is Zhao Xiaosu's strong point with profound literary accomplishment. Soon after, the cartoon class in Jigongshan opened Zhao Xiao Su's eyes. Those excellent cartoons at home and abroad are not only superb in painting skills, but also deeply moved by their humor and philosophical thinking. In those years, Zhao Xiaosu hardly went to bed before two o'clock in the middle of the night, and drew many sketches and works every day. In just a few years, Zhao Xiaosu has published his works in almost all the important newspapers and periodicals in the cartoon industry. Even he himself said, "At that time, I won the prize too quickly. The editor-in-chief of the newspaper watched the news of the game on TV and braved the heavy snow to interview me at home. "

1989, two of Zhao Xiaosu's works were selected for the 7th National Art Exhibition, and the comic "One Step Late" won the highest prize in the Workers' Daily National Competition; 1992, Zhao Xiaosu, who has been engaged in comic creation for only five years, took part in the competition with her work Untitled, and stood out from 13000 works in more than 60 countries, winning the highest prize in the 14 Japanese Yomiuri International Comic Contest. This is equivalent to the "Oscar" in the comic book industry. At that time, the prize money given by the contest was 654.38 million RMB. Japanese Yomiuri Shimbun published an exclusive interview with Nova from China, and important domestic media such as People's Daily and Reference News published news and newsletters.

1994, in order to have a broader world of comic creation, Zhao Xiaosu came to Guangdong with his family as a talent introduction. A year later, he entered the comic edition of Southern Weekend. During this period, Zhao Xiaosu's cartoon version of Five Claws had a great influence in China. Hua, Liao and Fang Cheng all painted for this purpose. In particular, the column Happy Seasons by Wang Zengqi and Ding Cong is sought after by readers. At the end of 1998, Zhao Xiaosu transferred to Nanfang Daily to continue the comic edition. Four years later, I went to the news department to draw news cartoons. To this day, Zhao Xiaosu's daily news cartoons published in the second edition of Nanfang Daily continue. It is worth mentioning that Zhao Xiaosu, who has the accomplishment of Chinese painting, introduced ink painting into comic creation. He is undoubtedly the painter who has published the most ink paintings in China.

Chinese painting is my childhood dream.

Zhao Xiaosu first created and exhibited Chinese paintings, and ink painting was his dream for many years. After entering the age of knowing destiny, Zhao Xiaosu picked up a paintbrush and never stopped. In the history of the development of figure painting in China, the theme of Buddhism once occupied an important position. It was because of Zhao Xiaosu's love for China's traditional culture that he soon fell in love with Maitreya, a Buddhist monk with a smile bag. A cloth bag monk who expresses humor and happiness with exquisite pen and ink and various lively gestures. Some people say that people like Zhao Xiaosu's Chinese paintings. Seeing his paintings not only releases people's pressure in modern life, but also gives them artistic enjoyment. His paintings of poems, books and paintings are integrated, and one stone, one grass and one tree are quite traditional.

In order to draw Zhuangzi, he read the relevant classics several times. He likes to express unique and philosophical themes. He said: "Although I focus on painting ideas and interests, I will never relax my practice of pen and ink kung fu. Artistic standards are the pursuit of my life. "