SHEN FAMILY LEGACY
沈氏家族
沈承书的仿溪山红树图介绍
The Fall Colors Painting
沈承书15岁那年，由其父沈仰放带领，拜中国山水画家吴镜汀先生为师，学工笔山水。吴先生学画从仿王翚（石谷）起步。石谷是清代继承宋，元，明名家大成的画家，其风格技法主要是继承五代以来国画名家关仝，范宽，李成，王蒙，在画史上有重要地位。当时有“不必千金买范宽”之誉。吴先生后来又仿清代四画僧之一的石涛（大涤子）。承书拜吴镜汀先生为师后，从临摹老师作品开始，进而到故宫临摹宫藏古画，尤以王石谷，石涛的作品为主，同时在琉璃厂有正书局买珂罗版印刷的古画册临摹。
When Shen, Chengshu was 15 years old, his father Shen, Yangfang led him to study Chinese landscape painting under the guidance of Mr. Wu Jingting, a Chinese landscape painter. Mr. Wu started learning painting by imitating Wang Hui, who was a painter who inherited the great achievements of famous artists from the Song, Yuan and Ming dynasties and lived in the Qing Dynasty. His style and techniques were mainly inherited from the famous Chinese painters Guan Tong, and Wang Meng since the Five Dynasties era. Mr. Wu later imitated Shi Tao, one of the four painting monks in the Qing Dynasty. After Chengshu became Mr. Wu's apprentice, he began by copying his teacher's works, and then went to the Forbidden City to replicate the ancient paintings in the palace collection, especially the works of Wang Shigu and Shitao.
沈承书认为，临摹不是为求形似乱真，甚至去制造赝品，而是为了总结前人在笔墨运用的经验心得，画法技艺。以及对历史遗产的的整理研究，在继承的基础上发展，走出自己的路子。他不为潮流所动，坚持“求新先着寻根笔，且将水墨继荆关”（“荆关”指五代山水国画奠基人，荆浩，关仝。国画史并称为“荆关”），始终不放弃传统笔法，扎实修炼基本功。为自己总结出“以传统功力为基础，从写实到创新”的国画发展之路。他特别强调：“山水画与其他艺术甚至科学技术一样，不是无源之水，无根之树，不可能横空出世，冒出无底座的尖端，无核心的外延。”
Shen, Chengshu believes that imitation is not to seek a resemblance to the original work, but to relive the experience and painting skills of the predecessors in the use of pen and ink, as well as the collation and research of historical heritage. He developed on the basis of inheritance and had his own way. He was not swayed by the trend, and insists on "seeking innovation by first finding the root of the pen, and continuing the ink and strokes of Jingguan" ("Jingguan" refers to the founders of Chinese landscape painting in the Five Dynasties) never giving up traditional brushwork, and diligently practicing basic skills. He summarized for himself the development path of Chinese painting "based on traditional skills, from realism to innovation". He particularly emphasized: "Landscape painting, like other arts and science, is not water without a source, a tree without roots, and it is impossible to emerge out of nowhere without a base and an extension without a core."
他六十六岁退休后重拾画笔，再继丹青。依靠少年时期练就的坚实深厚的技法功底，不过五，六年，年逾古稀之后，笔墨渐入“从心所欲”的境界，皴擦点染，笔法颇得历代名家真传，着墨浓淡晕散恰到好处。他特意请人刻了一枚“七十后作“的闲章。七十四岁那年，他临摹了王石谷1670年的传世名作，现藏台北故宫博物院的“溪山红树图”
After he retired at the age of 66, he picked up his brush again and continued to paint. Relying on the solid and profound technical skills as foundation he had acquired in his youth. After he was over 70, his brushwork gradually returned and became masterful. His brushwork, rubbing, dotting and dyeing, was quite authentic from the masters of all ages, and the thickness and lightness of the ink were just right. He specially asked someone to carve a seal with the words "works after 70". At the age of 74, he copied Qing Dynasty painter Wang Shigu's masterpiece "River and Mountain Red Trees" from the year 1670, which is now in the collection of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan.
王石谷，清代“四王画派”中极负盛名的画家，为集历代山水画名家之大成者。他上承五代的荆关，董巨的笔意。兼收宋，元，明诸画派笔意。他称自己是“以元人笔墨，运宋人丘壑，而泽以唐人气韵，乃为大成。” 其笔墨功底深厚，长于摹古，取前人之法，然而并不拘一家之体，不为古人笔法所束缚。而是融会贯通，发展变化，借古开今，合众长于己手，形成个人独特风格。其画在清代极负盛名。
Wang Shigu, a famous painter among the "Four King" of the Qing Dynasty, is a master of landscape painting. He inherited the style of Jing Guan and Dong Ju of the Five Dynasties. He also absorbed the style of the Song, Yuan, and Ming Dynasty painting schools. He has a deep foundation in brushwork and is good at imitating the ancients and taking the methods of his predecessors. However, he is not bound by the style of one school and is not bound by the brushwork of the ancients. Instead, he integrates, develops and changes from the past to open up the present, and combines the strengths of many in his own hands to form a unique personal style. His paintings were very famous in the Qing Dynasty.
“四王画派”又称文人画，作品并非真山水写生，而表现作者心目中理想的抽象山水，以山水表现自己的意境，情操，心态，以及传统笔墨功夫，讲究的是“意在笔先”。文人写意山水画多以峰峦峻岭，茂林修竹，清溪高瀑，寺庙道观，木桥草舍为题。因为自荆关以后的传世名家，元的黄公望，宋的范宽，明的沈石田，清的四画僧，不是幽居深山，就是隐姓田园，甚至本人就是远离尘世的高僧道士。他们的身居山水之间，心在名利以外，潜心观察揣摩山水的神韵灵秀。正如石涛所言：“搜尽奇峰打草稿”，他们的画源于真景色，取各景之精华，经过优化，组合，升华，汇集于一幅，寄情于山水。其中山川树木都寄托了画家个人的情感心境，品德气节。
Their sketches are not paintings from actual locations, but an expression of the ideal abstract landscapes in the author's mind. They used landscapes to express their artistic conception, sentiment, mentality, and traditional brush and ink styles. What they pay attention to is "the intention in the brushwork." First", Literati's freehand landscape paintings mostly feature lofty peaks and mountains, lush forests and tall bamboos, clear streams and high waterfalls, temples and Taoist temples, wooden bridges and thatched cottages. The ancient painters either lived in seclusion in the mountains, or were anonymous in the countryside, or even themselves were eminent Taoist monks who were far away from the world. They lived among the mountains and rivers, and their hearts were not after fame or wealth, but they concentrated on observing the charm and beauty of the mountains and rivers. Their paintings are derived from real scenery, taking the essence of each scene, optimizing, combining, and gathering them into one art piece, expressing their affection for the mountains and rivers. Among them, the mountains, rivers and trees all express the painter's personal emotional state and moral integrity.
由于“四王”是康熙驾前御封的正统宫廷画家，而宫廷画又推崇师承传统，强调技法功底，因此自民国以来，特别是新文化运动开始后，齐白石，徐悲鸿等无须掌握传统笔法的写生派走红。大陆沦陷后又提倡艺术为工农兵服务，画祖国大好河山。从此国画界历史虚无主义占了上风，新画家不肯练基本功，妄图走捷径一举成名，独领国画坛风骚，为此刻意贬低老画家继承传统笔法为“复古”。清代传统山水画鼎盛时期的 “四王画派” 被贴上“守旧复古的封建地主阶级腐朽没落艺术”的标签，一直受到当权者和画坛新贵的贬低，“四王画派”甚至被称为“死亡画派”。清初就曾出现过的：“画道衰，古法渐湮，人多自出新意，谬种流传，遂至邪诡不可救挽。”（王时敏语）的局面，三百年后又再次重演。
Since the Republic of China Era, after the start of the New Culture Movement, Qi Baishi, Xu Beihong and other sketching schools that did not need to master traditional brushwork became popular. After the Communists took over China, it was advocated that art should represent the workers, peasants and soldiers occupying this land. Since then, historical nihilism has prevailed in the Chinese painting world. New painters were unwilling to practice basic skills, and wanted to take shortcuts to become famous in one fell swoop. For this reason, they deliberately belittled the old painters' inheritance of traditional brushwork as "Old and Imperialistic". The "Four King School" during the heyday of traditional landscape painting in the Qing Dynasty was labeled as "Too Conservative and Old", and had been belittled by those in power and the new elites in the painting world. The "Four King School" was even called the "Death School". Same situation that had occurred once in the early Qing Dynasty. The art of painting declined, the ancient methods were gradually lost, and fallacies were spread, leading to destructions that were beyond redemption. And yet, history repeated itself again under Communist China, three hundred years later.
受先师的影响，沈承书对石涛，王石谷的风格独有钟情，一生都在为继承两位山水国画前辈大师技法风格上不懈努力，有多幅仿石涛，王石谷的作品。“溪山红树图”为王翚仿黄鹤山樵王蒙的一件极具特色的代表作，描绘的是遍生红树的一片秋日山林景色。画中以圆转重叠、突兀高耸的山峰为主体，山溪逶迤前行，涟漪阵起，秋波荡漾，两岸林木，红翠相间，整个画中意境深幽，秋气袭人。画家拟王蒙笔意与布局，构景繁密，山势云动，境界深奇。山石画法以墨笔牛毛皴和解索皴为主，干笔皴擦，浓墨点苔，既显浓密厚重，又鲜艳夺目，光彩熠熠。沈承书仿其笔意，就是为了检验自己所继承掌握的传统国画功底和技艺。
沈承书的“仿石谷秋山红树图笔意”（下图）之所以强调“笔意”，就是说这不是一幅仿原画的临摹之作。“笔意”就不是照搬原画景物轮廓，不求山石树木型似，传神似古而不拘泥于原作，力求在笔墨神韵上再现石谷画风技法，重在表现“四王画派”的传统和功底。同时以苍松红树，清秋溪水，显示自己的文人气节。
Shen Chengshu's Imitation of Fall Colors in the Mountains (picture below) emphasized "brushwork" to indicate that this is not the original painting. The "intention of brushstrokes" does not mean copying the outline of the original painting, nor does it seek to resemble the shapes of mountains, rocks and trees, or to convey the spirit of ancient times without being rigidly bound to the original work. It strived to produce painting style techniques in the charm of pen and ink, focusing on expressing the tradition and foundation of the "Four Kings Painting School". At the same time, the green pines and mangroves and the clear autumn streams show his integrity.
从整幅画的布局结构来看，远景峰峦障叠，云岚起伏，茂林幽谷，巨崖险峻。中景山顶上楼台殿宇，庙塔高耸，清溪高瀑，山脚下农舍人家，曲径通幽。山麓之后，有三三两两的篱笆草舍横列于这派山水之侧。近景树木古干苍枝，虬根抱岩，霜染红叶。拱桥溪水掩映于林木山岩之下，秋波荡漾，松柏挺秀。有一老者，端坐古树桥畔，眉目胡须清晰可辨，神态怡然。作品既有石谷原作名山大川的气势，同时树木枝叶勾画致微，山岩纹理清晰细腻，层次分明，丝毫不敢怠慢。此画充分运用了王石谷集古五代至清各画派大成的传统国画的技法，“点笔能生深树烟”，皴擦点染运用得当，墨色浓淡晕散滋润。溪山红树的主题表现的淋漓尽致。
From the perspective of the layout and structure of the whole painting, the distant view is full of overlapping peaks and mountains, undulating clouds and mist, lush forests and deep valleys, and steep cliffs. In the middle, there are towering buildings and temples on the top of the mountain, clear streams and waterfalls, and farmhouses and winding paths at the foot of the mountain. Behind the foothills, there are fences and houses in groups of three or two on the side. In the near view, the trees have ancient trunks and branches, twisted roots hugging the rocks; it has frost-stained red leaves. The arch bridge and the stream are hidden under the forests and rocks. There is an old man sitting by the ancient tree bridge, with clear eyebrows and beard, with a pleasant expression. This work has the characters of the famous mountains and rivers of Shigu's original work. While the branches and leaves of the trees are outlined in details, the texture of the rocks is clear and delicate, and the layers are distinctive, without any negligence. This painting fully utilizes the traditional Chinese painting techniques of Wang Shigu, which are the culmination of various painting schools from the Five Dynasties to the Qing Dynasty. The use of rubbing, dotting and dyeing must be perfectly measured. Mastering the brush stoke controls can help the painter to vividly expressed the nature.
中国传统山水画基本是二维空间，以高低分远近，底处为近景，上部为远景。但无论景色远近，都描画得精致细密，彰显细节。石谷原作的远山岩石表面皴擦的十分细致，山头树木轮廓勾画清晰，表现了传统国画的特色。沈承书在抗战爆发后，弃艺学工，走工业强国的道路，1940年从内迁的浙江大学机械系毕业。大陆沦陷后，成为中国机械工业的著名工程师。他把机械制图的画法几何透视原理用于国画，变二维空间为三维空间，增加了传统山水画的立体感。
Traditional Chinese landscape paintings are two-dimensional, they use positions on the painting to indicate distance, with the bottom being the close view and the upper part being the distant view. But no matter how far or near the scenery is, they are all painted with exquisite details. The surface of the distant mountain rocks in Shigu’s original work is very delicately textured, and the outlines of the trees on the mountain tops are clearly outlined, showing the characteristics of traditional Chinese painting. After the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, Shen, Chengshu abandoned art and studied engineering and followed the path to industrializing China. In 1940, he graduated from the Mechanical Department of Zhejiang University. After the Communist took over China, he became a famous engineer in China's machinery industry. He applied the geometric perspective principle of mechanical drawing to traditional Chinese painting, changing two-dimensional space into three-dimensional space and adding a three-dimensional sense to traditional landscape paintings.
在“仿石谷秋山红树图笔意”中，远山以淡墨晕染，见墨不见笔，氲霭迷离，若隐若现，使观者增加了视觉距离感。近岩则先笔后墨，反复皴擦，多次晕染，层次鲜明。近树则用墨点笔勾，枝叶轮廓清晰。远树以淡墨氲散，有影无形，浑然一片。山间则以留白显示峰峦之间云雾缥缈的效果。正如某题画诗所写：“烟云出没有无间，半是空虚半在山”。这些与原作的不同之处，正是沈承书在继承和发展传统国画的尝试。
In Imitating the Painting of Fall Colors in the Mountains, the distant mountains are smudged with light ink, and the ink is visible but the pen strokes are not visible. The mist is blurred and looming, which increases the viewer's sense of visual distance. To create such concept, one must add multiple layers with paint, in order to give people the sense. Nearby trees are outlined with ink dots, and the branches and leaves are clearly outlined. The distant trees are scattered with light ink, shadowy and invisible, and they are one piece. The mountains are left blank to show the mist-like effect between the peaks. Just as a poem on the painting said: "The smoke and clouds are endless, half empty and half in the mountains." These differences from the original works are Shen Chengshu's attempt to inherit and develop traditional Chinese painting.
画中题跋曰：“此幅系承书临摹王石谷山水又一种重山叠峰，幽明透剔，山穷水复，奇景丛出，艳紫苍红，一片秋色，气势浩茫，变化万千。总览全幅，布局严谨，繁而不絮，意境深邃，引人入胜。寻密探微，细处着眼。虽一草一木，一石一苔，各具匠心，曲尽起妙。足见石谷在咫尺之间能集名山胜景于一图，真神手也。无怪王时敏观此原作而手不忍释。承书临此画其精心致意。力传其神，亦非易事也。特书此以题之。”题跋作者霍泛，是他在三十年代在北平中国书画研究院的师兄，国画界元老周怀民的朋友，时任山西副省长。可以说，此题跋高度概括了承书“仿石谷秋山红树图笔意”的境界和成就。
The inscription on the painting says: "This painting is a copy of Wang Shigu's landscape painting by Chengshu. It is another kind of landscape with overlapping mountains and peaks, with clear and distinct colors, mountains and rivers, bright purple and red, and autumn colors. The overall layout is complicated but not tedious, and the artistic conception is profound and fascinating. Look for the details and focus on the details. Although every blade of grass, every stone and every moss has its own ingenuity. It shows that Shigu can gather famous mountains and scenery in one picture within a short distance. No wonder Wang couldn't let go of this original work. Chengshu Shen copied this painting with great care. It is not easy to convey its spirit.