苏童：关于周一清
2021-11-24
Exhibition：
周一清油画展
Zhou Yiqing: Oil Paintings Exhibition
Opening：
2021.11.26 (FRI.) 3:30PM
Date：
2021.11.26 (FRI.) - 2021.12.15 (WED.)
Venue：
南京艺术学院美术馆四号展厅
Hall No.4 (B1), Art Museum of Nanjing University of Arts
南京市鼓楼区虎踞北路15号
No.15, Huju North Road, Gulou District, Nanjing
Art Director
李小山 Li Xiaoshan
Curator
陈瑞 Chen Rui
关于周一清
About Zhou Yiqing
苏童
Su Tong
周一清在他的朋友圈中是一个公认的好人，人们谈起周一清，会不约而同地赞美他的人品。所有的好人都给别人以安全感和信赖感，但是一个隐藏的事实是，作为一个艺术家，好人的头衔从来都是暧昧的，甚至是危险的，它基本上不会给你带来什么福音，相反，会让你处于一个扭曲的有失公允的处境中——某种偏见植根于人们的心中，尽管三缄其口，但人们紊乱的世界观和机械的艺术观很容易发生化学反应，产生一种异香扑鼻的毒气，我们身边经常弥漫着这种毒气，在集体化的理性晕眩中，谬误以深刻而独特的姿态大行其道，很多人以哲学家的声调自信地宣称，艺术，从来都是坏孩子的游戏。
Zhou Yiqing is widely recognized as a good man among his friends, and his personality is always admired whenever his name is mentioned. All good men evoke a sense of security and trust in others, but an unspoken truth is that for an artist, the title of a good man is ambiguous and even dangerous – instead of bringing any benefits, it puts the title bearer in a distorted and unfair position – despite the non-utterance of the entrenched bias in people’s heart, their disoriented views about the world and mechanical understanding of art can easily set off a “chemical” reaction, producing extraordinarily fragrant yet toxic gas. We are often surrounded by such toxic gas and amidst the collective blackout of rationality, fallacies start to thrive in some seemingly profound and unique way. Many even claim in the tone of a wistful philosopher that art has always been a game for the mischievous.
《秋收后的山村》 32×40cm 木板油画 2016
After Autumn Harvest, 32×40cm, oil on board, 2016
幸运的是，凡是偏见终将被颠覆，无论这偏见以什么样的面目出现，无论这偏见能够盛行多久。是什么可以颠覆偏见？不是任何观念，一种观念不能有效地颠覆另一种观念，颠覆偏见，最终要依靠活生生的艺术范例，活生生的个人和作品。多年以后，当周一清的作品以缓慢而厚重的力量打动人们时，相信很多人会若有所思，随之会发现另一个被遮蔽的真理，“好孩子”不会吃亏，他们必然会拥有自己的“天堂”。这“天堂”就在阳光之下，原野之上，这天堂近在咫尺，却是“坏孩子们”进不去的，因为有一道奇妙而神秘的门禁，验证进入者的心灵和气质，洁净，本真，朴素，我们可以设想，这是门禁的密码。
Fortunately, biases will eventually be disrupted no matter what forms they assume or how long they last. Then what can disrupt biases? It is not a notion because one notion just can’t disrupt another. Eventually, it requires lively artistic examples, individuals and works to disrupt biases. Many years later, when Zhou Yiqing’s works start to resonate with people with its slow and profound power, many will supposedly prompt people to think and subsequently find another obscured truth: “good kids” will not end up suffering, and they will eventually find their own “paradise”. Such a “paradise” is under the sun, in the wild and close at hand. However, it is inaccessible for “bad kids” because it is barred by a magic gate which will only allow the entrance of a person with a pure and innocent heart. We can assume these qualities as the password of the gate.
《阳光天》 31×41cm 布面油画 2019
Sunshine Day, 31×41cm, oil on canvas, 2021
我们也可以设想，周一清知道这个密码，他侧身进入的，最初是一道窄门，窄门令人不安，但是一个好艺术家天生是要选择窄门的，因为天堂隐藏在窄门之后，周一清发现了这个真理，他让自己消失在一扇窄门之后。如此，周一清成为了周一清，如此，我们今天看到了周一清那么多的风景画，那么多关于阳光与原野的记录。
We can also assume that Zhou Yiqing knows the password, and what he slides through is an unnervingly narrow gate. However, a good artist is born to choose a narrow gate because a paradise is hidden behind it. Discovering the truth, Zhou Yiqing lets himself disappear behind that narrow gate. As such, Zhou Yiqing becomes what we know of him, and so we can see today so many landscape paintings about sunlight and the wilderness created by him.
当然，这是我的猜想，善意的猜想也很可能是一种新的偏见。
These undoubtedly are my speculations, and speculations, even with good intentions, can be the source of new biases.
《枯萎的竹林》 41×31.5cm 布面油画 2021
The Withered Bamboo Forest, 41×31.5cm, oil on canvas, 2021
不知为什么，周一清的艺术气质让我想起了梭罗，周一清沉浸其中的世界让我想起了梭罗的瓦尔登湖，他们都是容易被晨雾暮霭树林草叶打动的人，也许，周一清就是一个绘画的梭罗？只不过，与梭罗相比，他一直处于旅行之中，他的“瓦尔登湖”遍布南方与北方。一个人如果迷恋土地，土地必然会以最崇高的方式爱抚他回报他，旁观者可以从两者之间中发现一种爱的关系，这关系来之不易，会在某些瞬间激发最美好的艺术之光。周一清是沐浴了艺术之光的。我从他的作品中总是读出一种低沉而清晰的语言，这语言深藏于土地的母腹，以景物作喉舌，从色彩与线条中幽幽地渗透出来，细细辨别，那语言有微风的音色，阳光的质地，有树林或者草垛的气味。
I don’t know why his temperaments remind me of Henry Thoreau, and the world where he is immersed reminds me of the Walden Pond. They are both human beings easily touched by all the natural things like the morning fog, evening mist, groves and grass leaves. Perhaps, Zhou Yiqing is a painter-version Thoreau? Nonetheless, compared with Thoreau who settled himself in a fixed place, Zhou has constantly been on the move, and his “Walden Pond” stretches from north to south. If a person is obsessed with the land, then the land will inevitably show tender care for him and reward him in the noblest way possible. Observers may find a relationship of love between them, a relationship that is hard-earned and may inspire the most beautiful light of art on some occasions. Zhou Yiqing is lucky enough to be bathed in the light of art. From his works, I always perceive a kind of low yet clear voice that is hidden deep in the heart of the land and crooned through the colors and lines of landscapes. One could carefully discern that the voice has the tone of the breeze, texture of the sunlight and fragrance of trees or haystacks.
《松林边的沙滩》 45×60cm 布面油画 2018
Beach by the Pine Forest, 45×60cm, oil on canvas, 2018
很少有人像周一清这样，多年如一日，固执而坚定地描绘着风景，从南方到北方。但是，他的风景一直在微妙地变化着，寻求更完美更宏阔的气象。即使是一个外行，你也能够从他的作品中发现一种孜孜求变的艺术流程，这流程的节奏被理性地控制着，忽快忽慢，允许旁枝逸出，事后精心修剪打理，从光线，色彩到构图的运筹帷幄，不难看出周一清的一片苦心。
There have been few artists like Zhou Yiqing, who spent years depicting landscapes from south to north in a stubbornly persistent way. Nonetheless, his landscapes have been subtly changing amidst his pursuit of a more beautiful and spectacular presentation. Even if you are a layman, you will still perceive an artistic route that seeks change. The rhythm of such a route has been controlled by his rationality and moves forward at different paces while allowing divergences, which are carefully trimmed and corrected at a later date. It is not difficult to notice the great efforts that Zhou Yiqing has put in planning everything from colors to composition in his works.
《十月乡村》 32×40cm 木板油画 2016
Country In October, 32×40cm, oil on board, 2016
早在2000年的《天目湖写生》，周一清就曾经有一个大胆的试探，忽略光线，用单一的黄褐色调子铺陈山坡与树林，因为是试探，并不需要坚持，在其后几年的创作中这样的手段又被有意放弃了。《陆郎写生》是2004年的作品，房屋突然以异常清晰的面目出现，乡间充满了绿色与金黄色，还有节制的用心良苦的红色，舒缓宁静中透出一股隐隐的热烈。
As early as 2000 when he was working on the Collection of Sketch Works of Tianmu Lake, Zhou made a bold experiment to neglect the light and use a monotonous yellowish-brown tone that is laid down across the mountain slopes and groves. The experimental nature of the approach means he did not have to stick to it, and it was intentionally given up in the creation of subsequent years. The Sketch Works of Lulang was created in 2004, where the houses suddenly showed up in an exceptionally clear way, and the countryside is filled with green and golden yellow, as well as abstemiously applied but well-intentioned red that brims with a subtle trace of enthusiasm in relaxing peace.
《南屏写生》和《《武夷写生》应该是周一清2005年至2006年福建之旅的收获，这一年的作品似乎是周一清的一个高峰。《南屏写生》捕捉着最美的光线，乡村景色充满了隐隐的金黄色的暮霭，而在《武夷写生》中，周一清忽然转身，果断地放弃了光的运用，山与树已经充满大胆的水墨感，色彩构图令人意外而欣喜，这一年，周一清有点变了。
Sketch Works of Nanping and Sketch Works of Wuyi should have been outcomes of his trips to Fujian in 2005 and 2006, a peak period for his creation. In the Sketch Works of Nanping, the most beautiful light is captured, and the rural landscapes are teeming with faint golden yellow dusk haze; while in the Sketch Works of Wuyi, Zhou made a U-turn to decisively reject the employment of light and, instead, fill the mountains and trees with a bold sense of water and ink, giving rise to surprisingly pleasant colors and compositions. This year represented a shift of style for Zhou.
《杀虎口城墙》 30×41cm 木板油画 2017
Shahukou’s City Wall, 30×41cm, oil on board, 2017
《山西碛口写生》完成于2008年，由于对黄土高坡天然的敬意，色彩与线条统统模仿自然，貌似粗粝，其实细腻地讲述着黄土高坡上的逝水流年。山西过后，还是山西。《杀虎口写生》系列是2009年的作品。杀虎口这个地名令人印象深刻，而周一清在此则显示了他创作中最澎湃的艺术冲动，以及开拓自我的决心。《山村》《西门》《干河》《杀虎口外》《塞外早春》舍弃了暖色，一股难言的萧瑟荒凉，不同凡响，令人震撼，由于那萧瑟荒凉是被画家一双温暖的眼睛爱抚过的，所以，料峭寒风中吹拂着点点暖意，又几乎令人感动。
The Sketch Works of Qikou Shanxi was completed in 2008. With natural respect to the Loess Plateau, he applied colors and lines invariably resembling nature itself, which are seemingly coarse but actually depict the elapse of time on the Plateau in a delicate way. Sketch Works of Shahukou was another collection created in Shanxi in 2009. Given the impressive name of the place, Shahukou, Zhou exhibited the most soaring artistic impulse and his determination to transcend himself in this series. In Mountain Village, West Gate, Dried River, Beyond Shahukou and Early Spring Outside the Fortress, he discarded warm colors and created images of unspeakable barrenness which feels exceptionally stunning. However, the bleak barrenness was caressed by the warming eyes of the artist, a breath of gentle and almost touching warmth can be felt in the chilling wind.
《南国山野》 60×43cm 布面油画 2019
Wild South, 60×43cm, oil on canvas, 2019
周一清真的变了，变得越来越好。当然，这只是我的观点，可能无足轻重，只是我又一个美好的偏见。
我读周一清的自传性文字读得津津有味，缅怀过去通常会泄露缅怀者现时的信息。周一清最初的艺术生涯甚至让我联想到著名的《天堂电影院》里的那个西西里少年，有的人注定要被艺术与美所启蒙，然后被俘获一生。所有艺术家都有他的纯真年代，只不过，并不是所有艺术家对于这份纯真抱有一颗感恩之心，善于遗忘也许是一种气度，无法遗忘则是一种道德。我不知道这样的判断是否过于主观，我始终觉得周一清的内心，是一颗感恩的心，对于自己一生与艺术捆绑，他充满了感恩之心。
Zhou Yiqing has indeed changed, for the better. Indeed, this is only my opinion, which is insignificant as it may be another well-intentioned bias of mine.
I have read with great interest in Zhou Yiqing’s autographic article, text that is aimed at remembering the past unintentionally discloses the current state of the remembered. Zhou’s initial artistic career even reminds me of the Sicanian boy in the prestigious film Cinema Paradiso—some people are destined to be enlightened by art and beauty and then captivated by them for their lifetime. All artists had their innocent years, but not all hold a grateful heart towards such innocence. Forgetting may be a demeanor, but refusing to forget is a kind of morality. I don’t know whether such a judgment is too subjective, but to my mind, Zhou Yiqing has always harbored a piece of gratitude in his heart for his life bounded to art.
《清晨的海》 48×60cm 布面油画 2020
Early Morning Sea, 48×60cm, oil on canvas, 2020
艺术需要艺术家拥有一颗什么样的灵魂？需要一颗感恩的心吗？
我认为需要。因为这个世界需要有人描述单纯之美，对于世人，它会转化为一种巨大的温暖，只有一颗感恩的心，才会对温暖感兴趣。我们当然需要温暖。温暖是一种伟大的主题，作为整个世界最美好也最舒适的体温，它很多时候被欲望横流的世界所惊吓，会从喧嚣的人群中逃逸，向着大自然逃亡，但我们终究是幸运的，有些艺术家因此追随而去，像周一清这样的人，他们深入荒野，穿越风景，逆行的身影引领我们的目光，我们注视着原野上那些孤独的写生者，看那片温暖如何被最深入地挖掘，被最精确地放大，这无疑是我们唯一高尚的业余爱好了。
What kind of soul does art require artists to have? Does it require a grateful heart?
I think it does. This world needs people to describe the beauty of innocence, because it will transform itself into immense warmth for people. Only with a grateful heart can we be interested in warmth. We, as human beings, of course, need warmth. It is a universal theme—the warmth of human body, as the most beautiful and comfortable thing in the world, has been startled on many occasions by this materialistic society, forcing it to flee from the bustling crowd and hide in nature. However, at the end of the day, we are lucky enough to have artists like Zhou Yiqing who decided to chase it after traveling across the wilderness and all the landscapes. The shadow he casts while traveling towards the backward direction leads our eyesight. When we gaze at the lone sketcher in the wilderness, we witness how the warmth is explored in-depth and how it is accurately magnified. This, undoubtedly, is the only noble hobby for us.