Introduction to Li Keran’s life

An overview of Li Keran

Li Keran (1907.3-1989.12), a famous teacher Niutang, was born in Xuzhou, Jiangsu. His original name was Li Yongshun, and he used the nickname Sanqi. He is good at Chinese painting and art education and is a master of Chinese landscape painting. After liberation, he served as professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, vice chairman of the Chinese Artists Association, and director of the Chinese Painting Research Institute.

Famous modern masters of traditional Chinese painting in China

Li Keran studied painting since childhood and was deeply influenced by Pan Tianshou and Lin Fengmian. He also studied painting under Qi Baishi and Huang Binhong and taught in many art schools. . He is good at landscape painting, re-drawing from life, and introduced the light and dark processing methods in Western painting into Chinese painting. He harmoniously blended Western painting techniques into the profound traditional brushwork and modeling imagery, and achieved outstanding achievements.

A brief introduction to the life of Mr. Li Keran

Li Keran was born in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province on March 26, 1907. He studied traditional landscape painting from his hometown teacher Xian Qian Shizhi at the age of 13, and entered the normal school of Shanghai Private Art College at the age of 16. . In 1929, he entered the Hangzhou West Lake National Art Academy with excellent results and was admitted as a graduate student. He studied Western painting under the tutelage of two professors, Lin Fengmian and the famous French painter Crodot. In 1943, he was employed as a lecturer at the Chongqing National Art College, where he engaged in Chinese painting teaching and creation. In 1946, he was appointed by Xu Beihong as a professor of Chinese painting at the National Peking Art College. At the same time, he studied under Qi Baishi and Huang Binhong, and devoted himself to the research and creation of traditional national paintings.

After the founding of New China, he further devoted himself to the innovation of Chinese painting art. The mottos of "Boldness is valuable, soul is sought after" and "Use the greatest skill to punch in, use the greatest courage to punch out" as mottos, giving new life to the ancient art of landscape painting. Mr. Keran's landscapes are profound, dignified, broad and majestic. With his distinctive spirit of the times and artistic personality, he has promoted the evolution and sublimation of traditional national paintings. Mr. Keran's self-contained educational thoughts gave rise to the "Li Keran School" active in the painting world. He is not only a master who has worked hard in the painting world for more than 70 years, but also made important contributions to the development of artistic concepts. Its influence has already transcended the art world and has been highly praised by all parties.

Died in his residence in Beijing on December 5, 1989, at the age of 82. .

A brief collection of Mr. Li Keran's past events

Li Keran was born in a commoner's family in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province in 1907, and was named Yongshun. His father was a poor farmer who fled famine to Xuzhou. He first made a living by fishing and later became a chef. My mother is an urban poor person. Both parents are illiterate. Li Keran's artistic world is filled with the sounds of nature, and this world of sounds has already penetrated into his susceptible mind during his childhood.

The first sound that attracted him deeply when he was a child was the sad sound of a blind luthier who performed on the street and begged for help. From then on, whenever he heard the long and heart-wrenching melody, his heart skipped a beat and he almost shed tears. Often, he would secretly follow the piano player, listen to him playing the piano, memorize the string notes, and return home late at night. The 11-year-old Keran has since become familiar with many folk tunes. He also made a homemade Xiaohuqin and plays it well.

When he was 42 years old, Li Keran painted a realistic figure painting "Singing Picture". This painting is particularly special among his series of classical figure paintings. "The moon crescents over Jiuzhou, some are happy and some are sad." The trembling fingers of the blind luthier accompanying the girl touched the strings, seeming to be emitting a continual, weeping, and extremely sad sound. That kind of true feeling seems to be the artist's incorporation of the inner voice that has been hidden for a long time in his childhood. When he was 13 years old, during the summer vacation from elementary school, Ke Ran was playing on the city wall. There is a garden building near the city wall called "Kuaizai Pavilion". There are several literati and elders painting in the back room. He slid down the gap in the city wall and leaned out of the window to watch. From then on, for several days, I would wait outside the window before dawn, reluctant to leave. Seeing that he was so fascinated by painting, an elder sighed: "The younger generation is terrible!" The painters invited him in to look at the paintings, and from then on Keran became the "ink-study boy" of the old painters. Early in the morning, he carried a small bucket to the well to draw water, grind the ink, and wait to watch the elder paint. When he returned home, he was able to memorize the entire landscape he saw. This greatly surprised the painters, who urged his children to become their disciples to the landscape painter Qian Shizhi. It turned out that this was the venue for the activities of the "Jiyi Painting and Calligraphy Club".

After Li Keran officially became an apprentice, Qian Shizhi painted a large landscape painting for the young apprentice and wrote dozens of lines of postscript. The attached poem says: "You can make ink in your childhood, and your agility is rare in this world. When you are caught by a peng, I am ashamed that the owl retreats."

"Qian Shizhi had a premonition that this young boy who was doing ink would spread his wings like a roc. In comparison, he would fly upside down like a hawk. 1929 was a year of great significance for the 22-year-old Li Keran. That year, he surpassed his seven-year academic qualification and applied for the first oil painting graduate class at the West Lake National Academy of Art. Because of his bold and bold painting style, he was admitted by the discerning principal Lin Fengmian. The first time he held an oil pen was taught to him by Zhang Tiao, a young man from Shandong who came to apply for the exam at the same time.

However, when he arrived in class, he was a little dumbfounded when he picked up the charcoal he had never held before. Tiao was about to draw a sketch, but he didn't know where to start. He was ashamed of his drawing skills and kept putting away his drawing board until the professor came to class for guidance. He then turned it over and saw the word "王" written on the corner of the drawing board. The code of the characters suggests that you would rather die if you couldn’t draw well. Photographed in 1929 in front of the Shanfu Temple in West Lake, Hangzhou. On the left is his close friend Zhang Tiao, and on the right is Li Keran. , in the middle is Chen Weicen.

Li Keran’s brother in need was Zhang Tiao, the young man who taught him oil painting on the spot. Zhang Tiao was five years older than Keran and was admitted to the research department of the West Lake National Academy of Art at the same time. They are both tall, wear long gowns, and have long hair; because they are both poor students, living together in a dilapidated and dilapidated building with the lowest monthly rent; also because they come from the same place, they are inseparable, as close as brothers; and because they are both progressing The earliest members of the art group "Yiba Art Society", people call them "the two brothers on the edge of the West Lake".

The two brothers not only work hard at painting, but also study hard in the dangerous building where they live. Above the temple "Shanfu Temple", there lives an old nun in her 70s. She gets up before dawn to chant sutras. Whenever the sound of wooden fish and the smoke of incense are heard, the two brothers get up and hold a lamp to read. Schedule two hours of morning class, eat breakfast, and then go to school.

Zhang Tiao loves to read Western philosophy and literary theory, and Ke Ran loves to read Chinese ancient books and painting history. Under Zhang Tiao's influence, Ke Ran. I also read many world literary classics. At that time, both Keran and Zhang Tiao were studying oil painting. The dominant trend of thought at the West Lake National Academy of Art was Post-Impressionism. They once accepted the influence of Cézanne and Gauguin in their painting style, but I always feel that there are still some shortcomings. Zhang Tiao has a keen mind and can comment on the past and the present. Keran learned from his training in traditional Chinese painting when he was young. From being unable to draw sketches and oil paintings, he became famous throughout the school. In this way, the two brothers have their own characteristics. Their nicknames: one is called "Zhang Theory" and the other is called "Li Art"

As students of Principal Lin Fengmian, Li Keran received help from Zhang Tiaozhi to tutor him in oil painting before taking the exam. Suddenly, Zhang Tiao was admitted despite repeated appeals. They encouraged each other and made rapid progress in their studies.

In the early 1930s, they both participated in the "18th Art School". The progressive art activities of the Society attracted the attention and precautions of the authorities. One day, Keran returned to his room from the library. The door was open, books, periodicals, and picture pages were scattered all over the floor. The bed, quilt, and mattress were all turned over. Li Keran took a look. , even his own notebook was taken away. Zhang Tiao has been imprisoned in the army prison.

Ke Ran visited the prison many times. For the first time, we gave away daily necessities such as toothbrushes, towels, and soap, and later we gave away clothes. When Keran visited the prison for the last time, he saw that Zhang Tiaoren had lost weight. But Zhang Tiao was very optimistic and whispered through the bars of the window: "Don't worry, I squeeze and bump shoulders with the inmates every day to exercise, and I also learn Russian from an inmate..."

Keran asked Mr. Lin Fengmian for help, and Mr. Lin came forward as guarantee. Zhang Tiao was finally released from prison, but he did not show up at school and went to Shanghai. Later, he and Tian Han became leaders of the left-wing literary and artistic movement. He went to the Soviet area again and served as the Soviet Minister of Education, but unfortunately he was unjustly killed under the left-leaning line. When Keran learned of this, it was a tragic event that happened half a century ago.

In the 1980s, Keran still deeply missed Zhang Tiao, his "brother by the West Lake". He said: "Under the influence of Comrade Zhang Tiao's education, I initially understood Chinese society and its "In 1938, at the beginning of the Anti-Japanese War, Li Keran holding a palette in Hangzhou in the autumn of 1932 played a great role in my life." The progressive art activities of the Eight Arts Club were banned. Under the care of Principal Lin Fengmian, Keran quietly left West Lake and returned to his hometown.

The September 18th Incident aroused the passion of patriotic young people. At this time, the Xuzhou People's Education Center where Keran worked, and the Xuzhou Private Art School where he taught part-time, became the center of anti-war propaganda activities.

Li Keran founded the Anti-Japanese War Propaganda Room in the Folk Education Hall; he also created the Anti-Japanese War Pictorial with black and green lithographs, evolving the activities of the Anti-Japanese War Propaganda Room into a more lively and popular form. Spread it to the vast audience and sow the fire in people's hearts to save the nation from peril.

The Anti-Japanese War propaganda posters featuring Li Keran began after September 18th and before the July 7th Incident. In 1938, his participation in the cultural army gathering in Wuhan was a turning point. That year, he moved from fighting alone to the wave of led and organized anti-war propaganda activities. It was not until around 1942 that he resumed the creation and research of Chinese painting. This contemporary landscape painting master, who later became famous both at home and abroad, devoted himself so passionately to the creation of Anti-Japanese War propaganda posters in his youth, painting on a large scale and selflessly for 10 years. He has completed wall murals, canvas posters, and various forms of propaganda posters. It is difficult to accurately count, and there are at least more than 200 pieces. This can be regarded as a rare and special cultural phenomenon in the history of world art. From this we can see that as a patriotic artist, he has a passionate Chinese heart in his heart.

In the early years, the propaganda posters displayed in the Xuzhou Folk Education Center included oil paintings, watercolors, ink paintings, charcoal paintings... various tools, forms, themes and categories. Among them, the most eye-catching one is "The Sino-Japanese War of Sino-Japanese War - September 18th, the History of Japan's Invasion of China", which uses historical photos and pictures as a throughline, coupled with cartoons and propaganda posters, to reveal the long-planned ambition of Japanese militarists to invade China. and crimes.

After the "August 13th Incident", the Xuzhou Folk Education Center took its fixed Anti-Japanese War Propaganda Room as the activity center and evolved into new branches: the "Anti-Japanese War Literary and Art Propaganda Team" and the "Anti-Japanese War Propaganda Poster Touring Exhibition" Two forms of flow. Li Keran initiated, organized, and led the students from the Xuzhou Private Art College, and invited friends from the art, drama, and music circles to jointly take to the streets. At that time, the whole country was boiling with the torrent of anti-Japanese and national salvation.

The Anti-Japanese War propaganda posters inspired the creative vitality of young Li Keran. He was keen in conception and bold and quick in writing. He started the draft by himself, while seven students followed closely to color and write the title in artistic calligraphy. Hundreds of propaganda posters painted in this way on large-format white bamboo cloth were completed and paraded by young students, in collaboration with the Anti-Japanese War literary and art propaganda team, touring urban and rural areas. Two teams: one sang and danced, performing a street drama, and the other held an anti-war propaganda poster exhibition at a nearby venue. Wherever the literary and art propaganda team performed, the touring art exhibition appeared. They cooperated with each other and complemented each other. They caused a sensation in the towns and attracted a large number of viewers. They received excellent publicity effects and became a resounding clarion call to arouse the hearts of the people and unite to fight the war.

This spontaneous and self-organized propaganda activity lasted until the July 7th Incident in 1937. At that time, Xuzhou, a strategic location for military strategists, was already filled with cannon fire, gunpowder smoke, and the north-south roads were cut off. In order to seek opportunities, Keran engaged in anti-war propaganda for a long time and took a detour to Xi'an and moved to Wuhan.

On the way from Wuhan to Changsha, Guilin and Chongqing, art often led the way and the brush took the lead. Keran was one of the most skilled painters. Propaganda posters appeared on urban and rural walls, and drama troupes and singing troupes later appeared on the streets. Accusing the Japanese aggressors of destroying peaceful homes, calling for cotton-padded clothes to be sent to the front line, calling for assistance to hungry and freezing refugee compatriots, opposing compromise, opposing surrender, opposing being a docile citizen and being a traitor, praising the anti-war heroes, became the main theme of the propaganda posters. One of them, "The enemy was beaten to a pulp!" "" was written by Li Keran. The miserable appearance of the Japanese soldiers in his works became a typical image of the defeated Japanese army. Many street theater troupes and Japanese soldiers in disguise invariably used the image in this painting as a model. It is conceivable that the characteristics of its shape are distinctive and its influence is great.

In 1950, Li Keran took a group photo with his mentor Qi Baishi at Qi Zhai in Beijing

In 1947, after being introduced by Mr. Xu Beihong, Li Keran finally had the honor to become Qi Baishi as his teacher

Qi Baishi was A master of freehand flowers and birds in modern times, he was also a master of stone and stone seal cutting. However, at that time, his innovative ideas were repeatedly opposed by conservative forces, and he followed his "lonely path." When he first saw Ke Ran's freehand paintings, he admired and admired them very much. Later, he wrote postscripts on Ke Ran's paintings many times and spoke highly of Ke Ran's creative spirit.

The old man Baishi once wrote the postscript for Li Zuo's "Raking Grass and Resting Cows". The old man wrote: "The work is done with care and attention, and it is worthy of the masters who succeeded it during the Qianjia period." In one sentence, the biggest characteristic of Keran art is that it is not only good at diligence, but also Deeper than thought.

Li Keran stayed with Master Qi for 10 years. He polished ink and paper for the old man every day and watched Master Qi paint. Old Man Baishi didn't paint a single stroke of his flowers, but he carefully studied Master Qi's painting attitude, the method of using brush and ink, the majesty of his conception, and his bold and original spirit.

Qi Baishi once gave Ke Ran a wonderfully conceived seal "boy under the tree", which means a person under the tree. When the old man Baishi presented the seal to Keran, he told Keran two old sayings: "If the plum blossoms don't have their crowns trimmed, the melon fields won't accept their shoes." The seal was chosen to mean "no crown trimming is required" and that keeping one's body clean and self-sufficient is one's true nature.

In 1957, during Keran's visit to Germany, the 97-year-old Shiraishi passed away suddenly. Keran was unable to return in time for the funeral and failed to fulfill his friendship as a disciple, which became his lifelong regret.

Li Keran worshiped Qi Baishi as his teacher, and also sought advice from Huang Binhong.

The first time he asked Huang Binhong for advice, he brought about 20 of his works. When Master Huang saw the heavy-tempered and muddy ink painting of Zhong Kui painted by Keran, he admired it greatly and was so excited that he immediately wanted to give Keran his collection of Yuan Dynasty treasures "Zhong Kui Fighting Ghosts". But because the courtesy was too heavy, Keran didn't accept the words of respect. Teachers and students become close friends and feel like old friends at first sight.

Huang Binhong is good at painting history and appreciation. When he evaluates the quality of art, his important artistic criterion is "pure inner beauty", which is contrary to the frivolous and flashy atmosphere. After Huang Binhong reached the age of 70, he achieved great success in landscape art, and finally formed his incomparable rich painting style. This has contributed to the rapid formation of Keren's aesthetics with "thickness" as its core.

In 1954, Li Keran went to Jiangnan to sketch. That time, he went to Master Huang's house and stayed there for six or seven days. Master Huang used a small pulley mounted on the wall to hang up his collection of paintings one by one for Keran to see and evaluate them one by one. He watched them for two days. Ke Ran saw that Master Huang suffered from cataracts and wore sunglasses, but he still fumbled with painting, drawing landscape sketches and piling them up in piles every day. One day, at night, Master Huang drew seven or eight landscape paintings under the lamp in one breath. This made Keran very emotional and sighed, "The hard work of the senior teachers is really beyond the reach of the younger generations like me."

Master Huang’s diligence in painting is as good as that of Master Qi, and Master Huang’s love for Ke Ran is also equal to that of Master Qi. This time when I was with Master Huang, Master Huang chose a painting of the day and gave it to him every day. Ke Ran said goodbye before leaving, and Master Huang personally sent Ke Ran on his way. After walking a long way, he also gave him a couplet written by himself as a souvenir. Who would have known that this would be the last lesson of listening to Master Huang's teachings. The following year, Master Huang passed away.

The dangerous Shu Road, the morning fog in Jiangcheng, the Leshan Giant Buddha in Jiading, the Chongqing mountain city in the sunset, and the Wanxian Handu Bridge were the key landscapes of Li Keran's most critical long-distance sketching in 1956. This sketching lasted for eight months, starting from Beijing in the spring and returning in the winter.

Keran once lived in a mountain city for a long time and has many art friends in Chongqing. As long as he says hello, there will be people who will warmly welcome him along the way in Sichuan Province. But since I am sincerely sketching, the most important thing is to concentrate on not distracting my time with social activities, and try not to disturb my friends so as not to interfere with their respective work plans. During this trip, together with graduate student Huang Runhua, we walked instead of driving and painted along the way. When traveling on the river, they sleep on the deck of a wooden boat; when traveling on the mountain road, they squeeze into horse shops and small inns. The meals and accommodation are simple, and the journey is very difficult. Although it is impossible to "hit every shot" when sketching and painting, and there are also cases where you run on empty and have no scene to draw, but you can focus on one thing every day, and the overall gain is great.

One day, after sketching, Li Keran, who was nearly fifty years old, and Huang Runhua, who was in his twenties, were exhausted and sleepy, so they had to stay in a roadside tent inn. My husband suffers from insomnia, and he had just fallen asleep. A sound of gongs and drums got louder and louder, driving away his sleepiness. The gongs and drums were beating so close that the young Huang Runhua couldn't hold back his energy. Thinking that the rest of the night would be difficult and he had to get up before dawn and rush to paint, my husband agreed to call the Sichuan Artists Association. The famous printmaker Wu Fan picked up the teachers and students in the middle of the night. What an extraordinary reception! I think back then, Mr. Keran taught at Chongqing National Art College, and young Wu Fan was still a student. He was well aware of Master Keran's character and gently scolded the teacher. He should have informed him of his trip to Sichuan earlier to avoid the pain of gongs and drums. From then on, every time the dyer saw Wu Fan, he would always mention the power of Sichuan gongs and drums and laugh at himself.

However, the pain of such hard work did not affect Li Keran's persistent pursuit of art.

In the second half of his life, nearly half a century of innovative exploration of Chinese painting, he went to various parts of the motherland to sketch 10 times, practicing his creative creed of "going to life and to the magnificent mountains and rivers of the motherland". Wherever he went, he would observe and explore the wonders of natural scenery changing day and night, and completed hundreds of landscape sketches. Taking this as a symbol, his landscape paintings are unique with their rich flavor of life and fresh artistic conception of pen and ink, and have had a significant impact at home and abroad.

In 1984, Keran wrote the four words "Cheng Huai Guan Tao" as a summary and pursuit of his aesthetic thoughts. "Cheng Huai Guan Tao" borrowed the words of Zong Bing, a landscape painter from the Six Dynasties, and gave it a new meaning. Zong Bing "lived on hills and drank in ravines for more than thirty years" throughout his life. He loved landscapes and traveled far and wide. When he returned, he painted the scenery he saw on the wall and lay down to swim around, which he called "contemplating Taoism with clear mind". He praised the beauty and happiness of it and said: "Playing the piano and playing the piano will make all the mountains ring."

In these four words, Li Keran summarized the true meaning of his 70 years of pursuit of art and Taoism. From a modern perspective, he analyzed the origin of Eastern culture, demonstrated the cross-century prospects of Chinese painting, and sublimated his aesthetic thinking on the relationship between landscape painting, the sounds of nature, and modern people's lives.

Li Keran’s re-understanding and re-evaluation of the value of modern landscape art led to the birth of a series of his new landscape works: "Song of Mountains and Forests", "Drip Green on Summer Mountains", "Thousands of Mountains Ringing Cuckoos", " "Birds Racing Back in the Forest", "The Noise of the Waterfall After the Rain", "Home in the Mist of the Mountain and the Forest", "Man in the Thousands of Thousands of Green Trees", these vivid and colorful landscape paintings not only open up the majestic spirit realm, and formed a new artistic language system and new expression techniques.

In his later years, he created his own "dense forest smoke tree method", which transformed the landscapes with blocks of ink and strong backlight into a crazy way. Thick forests, sunsets, waterfalls, flying birds, returning crows, all natural phenomena... leisurely amidst the lush smoke and clouds, forming a world of endless green sound.

Viewing the Tao with a clear mind, the avenue is round and smooth, the movement is integrated, and thousands of sounds are playing. This is the true realm that Master Li Keran has been pursuing throughout his life.

Painting Story

"Ten Thousand Mountains Are Red": Hong Kong Christie's Auction House auctioned Chinese modern paintings on May 28, 2007, Li Keran's "Ten Thousand Mountains Are Red" 》After intense bidding, it was sold at a high price of HK$35,040,000, breaking the world record for the highest price paid for a painter's work.

Between 1962 and 1964, Li Keran created seven paintings based on the famous line from Mao Zedong's "Qinyuan Spring in Changsha", "Thousands of mountains are red, and the forests are dyed". The size of each work , composition and scenery are different, but the basic pattern is the same. Among them, "Ten Thousand Mountains Are Red" is 131 centimeters high and 84 centimeters wide. It is the largest frame in the series and is highly collectible. This painting is unique and exciting, fully embodying the essence of Li Keran's landscape painting art. It is truly a rare work.

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the whole country rejoiced and the people were full of expectations for a new life. In the 1950s and 1960s, Mao Zedong’s poems became the subject matter of many artists’ creations. Therefore, the works titled Mao Zedong’s poems There are countless paintings, and "Ten thousand mountains are red" was one of the most popular famous sayings at that time. At that time, many painters painted autumn mountains and red leaves, which were called "red landscapes" by art historians. "Red" was also given the political meaning and characteristics of the times when the red regime ruled China.

This painting has a monumental and plump composition, using a large amount of cinnabar obtained from the Forbidden City. It is bright red and contains infinite joy in the tranquility. In order to highlight the word "red", the author used a large number of dense cinnabar dots to make the picture particularly strong and visually charming. He used thick ink as the base to form a contrast between cold and warm, with rich layers; the white walls in the forest, the waterfalls on the mountains and The flowing springs at the foot of the mountain set off each other and are very powerful, becoming the bright color of the picture, while the stream in the foreground adds dynamics to the solemn and spectacular picture.

Seal Seal

"The Brave of the Valuable" - this seal was used when he went out to sketch in 1954. In 1986, Bingyin wrote to Shiniu Hall. Those who are "bold" are those who dare to break through the stereotypes of tradition.

"The Soul of the One Who Desires" - I engraved this seal before going on a sketch trip in 1954. April Bingyin, 1986, can be dyed in Shiniu Hall. "The courage of those who are valuable" and the soul of those who want it are the two seals I engraved before typing it out. Those who are "bold" are those who dare to break through the obsolete framework of tradition, and those who are "soul" create artistic conceptions that are in line with the spirit of the times.

"Biography of the Mountains and Rivers of the Motherland" - The mountains and rivers of the motherland are magnificent and should be described with care. In 1986, in the fourth month of Bingyin's year, I wrote a book about my landscape that could be dyed with words.

"Three Thousand Waste Paintings" - Self-improvement Inscriptions 1986 Year-old Bingyin Keran Yu Shiniu Tang was afraid that his paintings would be useless if they were damaged. As long as you draw carefully, it doesn't matter if your drawing is broken. I have a stamp called "Three Thousand Waste Paintings" to encourage myself not to be afraid of damaging my paintings. Because I am afraid that my paintings will be bad, I stick to the rules, dare not break through, and always stay in my own old circle. This is a sign of laziness and it is difficult to make progress. (Li Keran's self-explanation)

"Ru Ziniu" - Mr. Lu Xun's couplet says: "I bow my head and am willing to be a Ru Ziniu". This sentence inspired us and educated me, so I started painting cows and named my studio the Normal Cow Hall. Today is Mr. Lu Xun's birthday. In commemoration of the centenary, I write this to admire and remember the year 1981.

"Knowing Yourself and Ignorance at the Seventies" - In the 1950s, I went out to sketch several times, carrying my students' painting tools on my back, and trekking through mountains and rivers every day. Tens of thousands of miles; striving to create new landscape paintings that have the flavor of real life and reflect the spirit of the socialist era. Now I am already seventy years old without realizing it. I summed it up and carved a seal saying "I only know oneself and one is ignorant when I am seventy years old", which means that the world is huge, everything is vast, the truth is profound, and what I have learned and known is insignificant. To sum up, in my seventy years of life, I feel deeply ignorant and have to learn from "zero". (Li Keran's self-explanation)

"There is no smooth road" (gift to Zhou Encong) - This is my seventy-year summary of the Indian language book given to Encong's classmate *** Mian Keran in 1978

Other works include: "The Bold of the Precious" 2, 3, "The Soul of the Desired" 2, "Words Are Not Amazing", etc.

Painting discourse and main works

"One Leaf Knows Autumn" - vertical scroll, color book, 67×37cm

In the 1940s, when Li Keran turned to Chinese painting creation , his figure painting creation shows a more mature personal style, fully reflecting the free and unrestrained temperament of his artistic personality. This style characteristic was maintained until his later years, and became an important complementary factor in his artistic aesthetic expression that unified the opposites of the vigorous and profound aesthetic taste of landscape painting.

Inscription: "Asking for news about autumn, a leaf fell in the atrium."

Guo Moruo inscribed: "Wutong is the spirit of autumn, which can be summed up by the word refreshing."

< p> "Ten Thousand Mountains Are Red" - 1962, framed, color on paper, 69×45cm

The poem "Thousands of Mountains Are Red" is painted with cinnabar. This is the opening work, painted in 1962 . In the next two years, he created more works. Currently, there are only five known "Cinnabar Landscape" works, which are collected in private individuals and art institutions. Artistically speaking, this kind of special landscape creation is Li Keran's innovation that leapt from "writing the environment" to "creating the environment". It is brilliant and extremely touching.

Title: "Thousands of mountains are red, and the forests are dyed."

"Qingli Scenic Spot" - 1977, 152×128cm

Jiangshan It is as bright and clear as a mirror, and the two rock scenery and the rivers, mountains and boats are all reflected in the shadows. The scattered houses, lush forests, and strangely shaped and ever-changing mountain peaks seem to be deliberately arranged on both sides of the river for everyone to watch. The painter used a grand layout to spread out the most stunning scenery of the Lijiang River on the screen. In terms of pen and ink, the painter avoided the virtual and focused on the real, depicting concrete details to increase the visibility of the distant view and emphasize the clearness of the air here. The lines are dignified and composed, and the ink color is full and full, making the beautiful Lijiang River stable and not floating, making it very attractive.

"Ru Ziniu Picture" (1983, ink and color lens seal on paper: Shi Niu Tang, sending love, white-haired schoolboy, Pengcheng Li family, dyeable letter 68×111cm)

"An ox is extremely powerful. It bows its head to a child but does not try to be strong. It works hard all its life, and does not take credit for others. It is pure and gentle, but also strong at times. It moves forward steadily without stepping on empty feet. It has no fancy description and a majestic spirit. I admire it. I love its nature and shape, so I never tire of writing about it.

"

"Panasonic Waterfall" (1943, ink and color on paper, seal with lens: Li, Keran, never stop learning, 79.9×47cm)

"Washing Tong" (1944 ink and color lens seal on paper: three pieces, dyeable, spotless 65.5×37.2cm)

"The Old Man Under Brown" (1945, 94.4×43.5cm)

"Picture of Sleepiness in the Afternoon" (1948, ink and color on paper, lens seal: dyeable, inexplicable, Youjuntang 71.3×34.3cm)

"Man in Plum Blossoms" (1961, mirror center, Color on paper, 70×45cm)

"Shaoxing City, the Hometown of Lu Xun" (1962, ink and color on paper, seal with lens: Li Keran, 62.3×44.6cm)

"Wanshan" "Red" (2) (1964, 136×84cm)

"Kunlun Mountain Color" (1965, ink and color on paper, vertical scroll seal: dyeable, expressing feelings, picturesque rivers and mountains 67×45cm)< /p>

"Yangshuo" (1972, ink and color lens seal on paper: dyeable 69×95cm)

"Mountaintop Terraces" (1974, ink and color lens seal on paper: Ke Dian, Li 51.3×38.7cm)

"Jinggangshan" (1976, ink and color lens seal on paper: Li, Ke Dian 129×81cm)

"Lijiang River in the Rain" (1977 ink and color lens seal on paper: Li, Ke dye, picturesque rivers and mountains 71.2×48.7cm)

"Shadows of Sails in Qingli" (1979 vertical scroll, color on paper, 60× 96cm)

"Shepherd Boy Piccolo" (1980, vertical scroll, color book, 69×45cm)

"Splash-ink Landscape" (1981, ink and color on paper, seal with lens: Ke Dian, Ri Xin, Li 68.7×45.9cm)

"The Shepherd Boy Returns to Sunset Red" (1984, ink and color on paper, lens seal: Li, Ke Ran, Ruziniu, Li Xia is not wearing a straight crown, Chen Yanwu (69×58.5cm)

"Sunset over the Smoke River" (1987, 68.5×103cm)

"Hundred Springs" (1987, 109.6×60.2cm)

"Smoky Trees in the Jungle" (1988, ink and color on paper, seal with lens: Li, Keran, Chen Yanwu, 76.5×50cm)

"Grazing on the Grassland" (1988, 77.5×102.5 cm)

"The Rain Suddenly Clears" (1988, ink and color on paper, vertical scroll seal: white-haired schoolboy, Li Keran, Shi Niutang, 82.7×52.2cm) etc.

Art Essays of Mr. Li Keran

Compared with art, life is the foundation. If you want to do anything well, you must lay the foundation first. Why do some people's landscape paintings form formulas? The main thing is that I am separated from life, separated from reality, and have no feelings. If you draw based on your own assumptions, you will inevitably form a fixed formula after drawing again and again.

As for what makes a painting good, let me tell you a "five-character formula" that is easy to remember: "qi", "cold (containing)", "north (writing)", "wind (feng)" "big".

"Qi" refers to the charm. The charm of a painting is the most important, it is the commander and the soul. The first and most important of the "Six Laws" is to emphasize the vividness of the charm.

"Han" means implicit, and the implicitness of the picture is very important. A good painting can give people deep thoughts and endless aftertaste. Like the sound of a bell, it should have a lingering sound and leave room for the audience's imagination. Good articles cannot be tense, and the same is true for good paintings. They must have depth, not a simple appearance, but an implicit and endless feeling.

"Bi" refers to pen and ink, which is the means and method of creation. Any good work, good idea, and good artistic conception need to be expressed with good pen and ink. This is part of the basic skills.

"Feng" means rich. Some people draw hastily, which is not good. The painter must be responsible to the audience as well as himself. To provide people with spiritual enjoyment, education, thought-provoking, and make people forget to return after watching for a long time, the pictures must be rich and "enduring". Huang Binhong's "Ink Accumulation Method" has this feeling.

Richness does not necessarily mean complicated brushwork. Simple drawings can also achieve rich effects, but it is more difficult. Art must pursue richness, and one-sided emphasis on refinement to the point of simplicity and sloppiness will not work. This is especially true for beginners. Thousands of strokes are not too complicated.

"Big" means "big", and some people paint to give people a "big" feeling. Some people's paintings give people a feeling of being rigid and "stingy". This is determined by factors such as the artist's accomplishments and personality. It is not easy to be "atmosphere". Works like Fan Kuan's are rare in history. They are grand and are a good tradition of Chinese painting. It is easy to remember these five words, but it is not easy to actually do it. The "five-character formula" requires a foundation in life, multi-faceted cultivation, and long-term hard study and practice before it is possible.