​YEH JEN-KUN

畫情書景

 

文 / 吳介祥  ( 文化評論人、國立彰化師範大學美術系副教授 )

 

        葉仁焜擅長膠彩和水墨技法，近年創作從交錯空間的塑造，轉移到戶外生活的想像。從現代感的超現實主義走到文人書畫的超現實主義，空間更寬疏，卻也留下不少的伏筆，而給觀眾舒適的視線優游。這個階段的葉仁焜，更能巧妙地結合和翻轉傳統繪畫裡的書、畫和符號化的表意筆法，圖式化休閒體驗和日常生活，而結合出特有的傳統與當代的混成。

 

        藝術家兼具文人韻味的當代性出自於他對於表意和表象的溯源。唐代張彥遠曾在《歷代名畫記》中提出「書畫同源」的理論，認為文字的作用在於「表意」，而繪畫的作用在於「見形」，兩者相輔相成。書畫並置成為東方文藝的主流美學，強盛了好幾個世紀。同受此觀念的影響，宋元的文人畫興盛以後，文人們認為繪畫的用筆本身就具有獨立的審美趣味，一方面強調對山水自然的寄寓而輕寫實，如倪瓚所稱頌自己的「聊以寫胸中逸氣」、「逸筆草草，不求形似，聊以自娛」的藝術趣味。在另一方面，不求相似的理念下，書畫藝術也從用筆發展出模組化的元素，讓風景畫可以脫離現實而傳達理型。憑藉筆法和胸中的逸氣，文人畫不是面對景致的寫生所產生的，而是從視覺元素抽取範式來「經典化」。因此傳統的畫家養成便是在臨摹練習和抽離現實之間游移，有可能陷入僵固，但好的藝術家便能達到絕然的超塵脫俗，因此而有「匠」或「家」之分。葉仁焜卻可以在模組和飄逸之間盡情優遊，以圖式化和接近象徵符號的物件組合，呈現人們嚮往的戶外生活。在類似標本化的山石樹木的筆法中，卻因為藝術家簡約的構圖，而脫俗於日常紀實或風景寫生的類型，得以獨樹一格。

 

        西方藝術帶動的當代性將繪畫性和敘事性區分開來，「書畫同源」的路線也隨著前衛性、實驗性逐漸消失。葉仁焜邀請了作家鄧九雲合作，重塑繪畫與文字的對應關係。構圖簡化的風景，植栽和水紋、煙花火樹等題材的繪畫，相對沉靜，而作品旁印製在透著纖維紋理的紙張上的鄧九雲的一段敘事，則擺盪著思緒和情感。透過繪畫與書寫的並置，葉仁焜和鄧九雲的作品各自有了另一個再現版本，有靜有動，彼此補充、提供聯想，也互相創造出縫隙和空白。藝術家們創造了繪畫和敘事可連結也可以無關的可能性，而同時幽默地呈現範式化的文人山水和林園造景、文青浮沉曲折的情感、超現實的空間關係，以及對疏離自然的人們的輕盈嘲弄。

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Drawing emotions, writing sceneries

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by Chieh Hsiang Wu 

   (Cultural Critic, Associate Professor of Department of Arts in the National Changhua University of Education)

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    Jen-Kun Yeh is an expert in Eastern Gouache and ink painting. In recent years, his creation transformed from the crossing of spaces to the imaginary of outdoor living. From Modern Surrealism to Literati Surrealism. It is more spacious but also leaves more foreshadowing, as well as providing a smooth passage for the viewers. Jen-Kun Yeh at this stage combined and changed the symbolic painting technique of literatures, painting, and symbols in traditional painting. He paints leisure experiences and daily life with the unique combination of traditional and modern painting.

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    The modernisation with a sense of literati of the artist is derived from his discovery of ideogram (表意) and representation (表象). Yanyuan Zhang of Tang Dynasty mentioned the theory of “same root of painting and writing” in “Famous Paintings Through History.” He suggested that words are “ideograms,” and paintings are “representations”, both of them should work together. The combination of words and paintings thus became the mainstream of Eastern Art, and it lasted for centuries. With the influence of such aspect, after the prosperity of Literati Painting in Song Dynasty, literati thought that painting itself has the feature of art. On one hand, it emphasises on conveying thoughts through the painting of nature, such as the Zan Ni’s self-praise of his artworks as “painting is a way to write my own ambition,” and “a few random lines, with no requirement to make them look like anything, so that I could entertain myself.” On the other hand, under the theory of no requirement to make them look like anything, painting art has also developed a model of elements, so that the paintings of nature could escape from the reality and convey the meaning behind it. With the techniques of painting and the ambition within the heart, literati painting is not the cause of painting the scenery, it is derived from “classicising” visual elements. Hence, traditional painters became aware of the shifting between painting the scenery and pulling away from reality, however, they might fall into the rigidity. A good artist could achieve pulling themselves away from the reality, and thus there is a difference between “Jiang, artisan” and “Jia, specialist”. Jen-Kun Yeh could shift easily between models and freestyling, present the outdoor life people dream about with the combination of images and near-symbolic objects. With the technique of painting mountains, rocks, trees and woods like specimens, and with the simple composition, it stands out from the daily painting and sketching.

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    The modernisation led by Western Art divided painting and literature, the passage of “same root of painting and writing” disappeared with the avant-grand and the experiments. Jen-Kun Yeh invited writer Joanne Deng to cooperate with him to reconstruct the relation between painting and literature. Simple composition of scenery, paintings themed with plants, water patterns, and fireworks seem rather peaceful, and beside the artwork, it is accompanied by a narration written by Joanne Deng, thoughts and emotions swinging around. Via the juxtaposition of painting and literature, the artworks of Jen-Kun Yeh and Joanne Deng reborn, with the traits of both peacefulness and activeness, complementing each other, relate to each other, it also creates gaps and blank spaces. Artists created the possibility of connectable and unconnectable between painting and literature, as well as showing the space relation between literati, nature, landscaping, the emotions of literati and Surrealism with humour, mocking people being away from nature.

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