坚持风景画的架上高度：对高峡新人本主义艺术的一次解读——邱正伦

四川文化网 2019-11-28 09:53 1120人围观学术评论

我想从架上绘画的高度来探讨高峡的绘画艺术，绝对不只是因为阐释本身的需要，而是因为高峡对架上绘画本土文化性的承诺和坚持，给我们当下绘画艺术普遍的精神失落提供了一种令人振奋的创作迹象。也就是说，高峡 ...

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　　我想从架上绘画的高度来探讨高峡的绘画艺术，绝对不只是因为阐释本身的需要，而是因为高峡对架上绘画本土文化性的承诺和坚持，给我们当下绘画艺术普遍的精神失落提供了一种令人振奋的创作迹象。也就是说，高峡在架上绘画上表现出来的执着和顽强，为中国绘画艺术在非常深刻的意义上保存了绘画的艺术品质和由此而来的精神火焰。同时，也在很大程度上，高峡的架上绘画给正在显露端倪的新人本主义艺术提供了有效的艺术创作先导。

　　也许就中国绘画艺术的当下现状而言，高峡的坚持多少有些给人一种不够识时务不够聪明的印象，因而他的坚持肯定不会讨好。事实上，有太多的艺术家将艺术的先锋性和前卫性，非常简单地也是非常自鸣得意地远离了架上绘画的绝对高度。或者说，越来越多的艺术家已经不习惯架上绘画的形而上因素。也正是在这个意义上，高峡的绘画艺术也才由此而越来越显示出其独特的精神价值和创作风貌。当我突然再一次面对高峡的绘画艺术时，他给我的这种印象就越显突出。实际上，高峡的绘画艺术总是以十分稳健和从容的姿态出现在我们面前的。

　　就高峡最近创作的系列写生性风景画而言，更进一步显示出高峡油画创作的独特风格，由于他立足于中国画意象审美的创作立场，同时又大胆吸取当代抽象表现主义绘画的表现手法，所以使得他的油画创作审美呈现出多重效应。难怪油画界对高峡的绘画有着两种截然不同的看法，一种认为高峡是一位当代性极强的艺术家，另一种则认为高峡是一位极端怀旧的艺术家。

　　严格地说，高峡确实是一个在艺术上极具怀旧情结的油画家。这种怀旧情结不仅表现在绘画题材上，而且更加表现在绘画风格上。而《环球行》进一步将这种怀旧情结推动到了极致。这组作品以旅行者视角对各个国家、各个地区的风景名胜为题材，画面上的景象不断变化，风土人情形同电影中的蒙太奇，不断剪辑与组接，表现不断消失又不断出现的自然人文风光。这种画面的不断流失又不断出现的写生场景始终弥漫着一种旅行者的抒情意味，一种不断寻觅新的世界和不断产生还乡意识的双重变奏。不少作品看上去没有任何现代氛围，甚至画家有意识回避现代工业、后工业因素对画面的嵌入，这可能正是高峡所要表达的意图所在：为当代社会提供精神上最为纯净的视觉见证，让过去的时光不经受任何污染地得以重现，尽可能让画面保持画家旧时家园的温暖记忆。

　　从这个角度上说，高峡依然是一位非常纯粹的风景画家，尽管高峡不愿意承认自己就是纯粹的风景画家，因为他同时画人物肖像画。事实上，高峡的风景画在他所有的绘画风格中是最为触动人心的作品，画面中蕴藏着某种十分温暖的因素。这里所说的风景画，并不仅仅局限在惯常意义上的自然风光，同时也包括现代城市化进程中人文风景的精神命运。概括起来说，消失、正在消失、彻底消失似乎已经构成了当今时代不可逆转的现实场景。似乎一切都在消失，消失本身成为了不可抗拒的命运。任何一座城市、乡间，或者说只要是人居住的场所，都在发生一种在我们今天看来是十分平常的事情：拆迁、移民、钉子户等等，每当这种现象成为我们生活中的必然遭遇时，一种空前的、持续性的消失就将成为一种必然；那种海德格尔所表达的人的诗意存在状态事实上正在被无情的丢失与遗弃。每当我们的家园符号在某种社会的客观压力中不得不做出改变时，人们表现出来的无奈、感伤、挽回的心理指向就会不由自主地凸现出来。艺术家作为他所属时代社会最敏感的神经和精神触觉，其做出的反应和表现出来的方式也就往往成为这个时代最值得关注的信号。

　　高峡架上绘画的创作触角无疑是深入的，而且这种触角总是在诠释艺术家那种自由主义、理想主义守望者的精神情怀。正如高峡自己所言：“我一直在天地之间行走于世界各地，有点游吟诗人或者行万里路的骚客情景。”在言及创作这一系列的写生风景作品的感受时，高峡毫不掩饰自己的创作动因。他说“就主观而言，我一直在追踪形而上的写生历程，无论是风景还是人物、静物等，都是根源于自己形而上的诗性冲动。我反感过多依赖高科技手段从事模仿性活动，既然是作品，创作永远是第一性的。我主张依据大自然之伟岸、深邃、高远、神奇、悠然、清澈、愤怒、忧伤、喜悦、古老、灵性、萌呆、荒凉、浪漫、欲望等等，总之依据自己对这一切的深挚的爱。”高峡是这样说的，他也是这样做的。就高峡的生活经历而言，他不仅是一位通常意义上的旅行者，也不仅仅是写生画家，更确切地说，高峡是一位具有新人本主义创作情怀的文化使者，他不断地组织各种形式的文化艺术国际展事。但有一点必须坚守，那就是任何艺术形式必须保持形而上的精神高度。这种形而上的精神高度反映在高峡自身的创作中，总是以架上绘画的精神指向为判准。在高峡看来，绘画艺术如果一旦从架上的高度回落到地面，绘画艺术所蕴藏的思想和精神火光就会熄灭。那么，架上绘画的高度究竟有多高，我们说那就要看我们人类的精神指向有多高，人类的精神期待有多高。有一点是完全可以肯定的，通过架上绘画不断积聚的艺术火光照亮的人类精神高度，绝不可能总是容忍艺术一直像蛇一样在心灵和精神的荒原上匍匐爬行。十分可喜的是，我们从高峡的架上绘画创作中，又一次强烈地感受到了绘画艺术的精神气象。不仅如此，高峡对捍卫绘画艺术的架上高度还有着十分严厉的标准，以至于任何一种世俗的想法都不会在他的绘画空间中找到可以保留的位置。按照高峡自己的说法：“有人认为架上绘画作为一种文化表述方式越来越成为中国前卫艺术的边缘。”高峡不信邪，任凭别人说什么，任凭别人追赶什么潮流，但他依然固执地坚持在自己的精神岗位上，而且是不折不扣，像身负严重使命的哨兵。当有人学着洋话：“架上绘画死亡了”，高峡便通过自己的方式果断地做出回答： “如果架上绘画死亡了，那么我就充当架上绘画的守灵人。”

　　事实上，高峡坚定不移的架上姿态，正在中国艺术界获得越来越广泛的回应，一种越来越明显的新人本主义的艺术思潮正在形成，而且这正是人们期待已久的精神旨归和真正意义上的艺术方向。

　　（作者简介：邱正伦，西南大学美术学院教授，博士生导师）

　　Insisting on a new level of landscape easel painting --- on new humanism art of Gao Xia

　　I want to discuss the works of Gao Xia from the angle of easel painting, it’s not because I want to talk about it, because his persistence and dedication to the Chinese tradition of easel painting and the inspiration to maintain the tradition among the loss of spirits in current art scene. In other words, his persistence and determination maintain the artistic integrity and spirits of fine art in China. At the same time, his work provides guidance for the new emerging humanism art movement.

　　In the current situation, many people may think that his persistence is not practical or smart. In fact, too many artists departed from the essence of easel painting with the excuse of being avant garde. More and more artists are not used to the “beyond form” idea of easel painting. Therefore, the works of Gao Xiao are even more important due to their unique spiritual value and style. When I look at his works again, I feel this way more and more. His works show tremendous consistency and confidence.

　　Gao Xia’s recent nature & landscape painting series shows his unique oil painting style. Based on the metaphysical aesthetics, he also combines contemporary expressionism, therefore his oil paintings deliver multiple impacts. It’s not surprising that the art world has two totally different views of him: one group thinks he’s a modern artist; the other group thinks he’s a retro-artist.

　　In a way, Gao Xia is a very nostalgic oil painting artist, this is expressed not only by his choice of themes, but also by his style. His “Travels around the World” is the ultimate expression of his nostalgia. In this series, Gao Xia painted landscapes of different countries and areas through the eyes of a traveler; different scenes and different people compose a fascinating world of nature and human life. The natural style of the series reveals the conflicted viewpoint of a traveler; it expresses contradictory sentiments - longing to explore the new world and also longing to return to an earlier time. Many paintings are void of any modern atmosphere, it seems Gao Xia is trying to avoid showing any modern industry or post-industrial elements, this is perhaps because he is trying to to provide spiritual suture using visual evidence for our modern society; so our past will be revisited without being altered; in the end, he wants to memorialize the true and pure memories of the past.

　　In a way, Gao Xia is a sheer landscape painter even though he is not willing to admit that since he also paints portraits. In fact, the landscape paintings of Gao Xiao are the most touching among all of his works: they exude a unique warmth. The landscape paintings I’m referring to here are not just paintings about nature, they also reflect the people and their life in the process of changing. In the end, the things which will disappear, which are disappearing and which have disappeared had constituted our reality. It seems everything is disappearing; disappearing itself became a fact that nobody can deny. Every city and village is going through what we regard as common: houses being pulled down and constant migration of people. When this has become a norm in life, the pastoral state of life as expressed by Heidegger has been deserted or forgotten. When people have to make changes under pressure in life, their feelings of helplessness, sadness and desire to hold on to the past are easily revealed. While artists are the most sensitive and observant, their expressions highlighted through their works are the signs we need to pay attention to.

　　The essence of Gao Xia’s Easel Paintings are profound; they reflect his liberalism and idealism. Just as he stated: “I’ve been traveling all over the world, like a bard or a poet”. When speaking about his motives in creating the series of landscape paintings, he said: “I have been pursuing the “beyond form” way of creative process: no matter landscape, portrait or still life, I’ve always created paintings with my “beyond form” impulse. I loath relying on high tech to imitate others style. Since it’s art, creating is always at the forefront of my efforts . My inspiration comes from nature: its grandeur, profoundness, mystique, peaceful, anger, sadness, happiness, ancientness,brilliance, loveliness, bleakness, romanticism, desire. I paint based on my affection to all of these. ” That’s how he conducted his creative career. In life, Gao Xiao is notjust a common traveller or painter, he’s is also a cultural ambassador of new humanism. He often organizes various domestic and international art exhibitions and events. He insists on keeping his principle of “beyond form”, which is reflected in all of his paintings. For Gao Xiao, if art is only about form, then art will lose its soul. What’s inspirational for us is that we see the soul of art. He maintains a high standard for his art, with no derivative opportunism in his painting. Gao Xiao says: “People think that easel painting is becoming more and more obsolete for China’s avant garde art scene”, but he doesn’t bend. No matter how many people follow a trend, he still sticks to his own principle. When people are saying: “easel painting is dead”; Gao Xia responded: “If easel painting is dead, let me be its conservator.”

　　In fact, Gao Xiao’s attitude towards easel painting is resonating with more and more artists in China today. A new humanism movement is forming, which stresses that the essence of art is our spirit, this is the real direction of art which people have been waiting for a long time.

　　（By Qiu Zhenglun, professor at Fine Art Academy of Southwest University, PHD supervisor.）