In 1953, after the promulgation of the New Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China, the People's Fine Arts Publishing House entrusted Wang Shuhui with the task of creating a comic strip of "The Tale of the West Chamber". But no one ever thought that this comic strip, which came out a year later, would become a masterpiece recorded in the history of new Chinese art. Experts evaluate the characteristics of the "West Chamber" comic strip of this set of 16 color picture books: the characters are vivid, the environment is full of poetry, the colors are elegant and beautiful, and the lines are smooth and strong. In order to paint this group of works, Wang Shuhui has invested almost all of his decades of experience in painting female paintings, and has also invested his own rich emotions. 10 years later, this work won the "First Prize of Painting" in the first National Comic Strip Creation Award.
The story of "West Chamber" first originated from the legendary novel "Yingying Biography" of Yuan Shu of the Tang Dynasty, which narrated that the scholar Zhang Jue fell in love with the late Daughter of Xiangguo, Who was also living in the Universal Salvation Temple, and with the help of the maid Red Lady, the two dated in the West Chamber, and Yingying finally agreed to each other. Later, Zhang Jue went to Beijing to take the exam and won a high-ranking official, but abandoned the warbler, resulting in a love tragedy. It is also said that Yuan Shu borrowed Zhang Sheng's autobiographical novels or stories under the guise of Zhang Sheng. This story was more widely circulated in the Song and Jin dynasties, and some literati and folk artists were adapted into raps and dramas, and Wang Shifu's many miscellaneous dramas "The Tale of the West Chamber" were processed and created on such a rich artistic accumulation.
Sometimes moved to the living room, sometimes moved into the sun room, relaxed music, burning incense and tea, talking about the world; melon and fruit with wine, rambling poetry books. In the words of a writer friend, "picking out the lamp and looking at the flowers while drunk" is an interesting thing: waiting for the shy beauty to show its beauty little by little in the midst of thousands of calls. When it is not open, the purple flower buds are like small family jasper; when it is open, it has an aura that other flowers can't reach, white petals, a little stretch outward, like a beauty stretching out, although tender like water, but its open appearance, extremely wild, closed posture is also strong and abnormal, like hanging upside down golden bell, do not reduce posture. Zong Biao and Wang Han and his wife, the text sings and harmonizes, each leading a thousand autumns. For three consecutive years, they insisted on three or five hours at a time, observing meticulously and sharing with us the good times of ephemeral opening. "Jiangnan Grass and Wood Chronicles. Ephemeral", about this pleasure. Photographer Ye Xiaoguang, a picture album for the short-lived flowers; Lu Xiake and Taiyue students, poetry singing and singing: small summer typhoon to send cool, peace of mind and contemplation gradually blossoming, Miaoman multi-colored. People go to idle places, you and me, him. Viewing ephemeral flowers can make people clear and quiet. If the earth is compared to the universe, the earth is just "a grain of sand in the Pacific Ocean." Although the ephemeral flower refers to fanghua and is vigorous, it is also a moment of beauty, an instant of eternity! As for people, in the hundred years, it is only more than 36,500 days, and in the long river of history, it is not easy to have snow claws and hongni. There is an interesting couplet that says: If you don't stick to it and eventually suffer, each can hold it and become famous. Horizontal batch: Skimming life. If you can't get out, you can't be bitter, and if you can hold it, it's a name, and a stroke is a herringbone. What is life like? I appreciate ephemerals. There is a famous sentence in the "A Brief History of Mankind": "The slogan of the new century, happiness comes from the heart." When the honey is in full bloom, every year, I invite friends to come to the house to enjoy it. Flower viewing is only for flower readers. Sometimes in the open air, sometimes in the living room, sometimes in the sun room, relaxing music, burning incense and tasting tea, talking about the world; melon and fruit with wine, long poems and books. In the words of a writer friend, "picking out the lamp and looking at the flowers while drunk" is an interesting thing: waiting for the shy beauty to show its beauty little by little in the midst of thousands of calls. When it is not open, the purple flower buds are like small family jasper; when it is open, it has an aura that other flowers can't reach, white petals, a little stretch outward, like a beauty stretching out, although tender like water, but its open appearance, extremely wild, closed posture is also strong and abnormal, like hanging upside down golden bell, do not reduce posture. Zong Biao and Wang Han and his wife, the text sings and harmonizes, each leading a thousand autumns. For three consecutive years, they insisted on three or five hours at a time, observing meticulously and sharing with us the good times of ephemeral opening. "Jiangnan Grass and Wood Chronicles. Ephemeral", about this pleasure. Photographer Ye Xiaoguang, a picture album for the short-lived flowers; Lu Xiake and Taiyue students, poetry singing and singing: small summer typhoon to send cool, peace of mind and contemplation gradually blossoming, Miaoman multi-colored. People go to idle places, you and me, him. Viewing ephemeral flowers can make people clear and quiet. If the earth is compared to the universe, the earth is just "a grain of sand in the Pacific Ocean." Although the ephemeral flower refers to fanghua and is vigorous, it is also a moment of beauty, an instant of eternity! As for people, in the hundred years, it is only more than 36,500 days, and in the long river of history, it is not easy to have snow claws and hongni. There is an interesting couplet that says: If you don't stick to it and eventually suffer, each can hold it and become famous. Horizontal batch: Skimming life. If you can't get out, you can't be bitter, and if you can hold it, it's a name, and a stroke is a herringbone. What is life like? I appreciate ephemerals. There is a famous sentence in the "A Brief History of Mankind": "The slogan of the new century, happiness comes from the heart." See that the five aggregates are empty, and overcome all suffering. The relic, the color is not different from the void, the emptiness is not different from the color, the color is the emptiness, the emptiness is the color, the desire to act, the same is true. The relics are the void phases of the dharmas, which are neither born nor destroyed, neither dirty nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing. Therefore, there is no color in the air, no thoughts and deeds, no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body, no color, sound, fragrance, touch, no vision, even the unconscious world, no ignorance, no ignorance, and even no old death, and no old death. There is no suffering and no extinction, and there is no wisdom and no gain. For the sake of nothing. Bodhidharma, according to Prajnaparamita, has no hindrance to the mind. No obstacles, no terror, no upside-down dreams, nirvana. The three Buddhas, according to Prajnaparamita, attained the three bodhisattvas of Ajanta. Therefore, it is known that Prajnaparamita is the great god mantra, the great ming mantra, the supreme mantra, the no-wait mantra, which can remove all suffering and is true. Therefore, to say the Prajnaparamita mantra is to say the mantra: revealing the truth, revealing the truth, revealing the truth, revealing the truth, bodhidharma. When contemplating oneself as a bodhisattva and practicing deep Prajnaparamita, one sees that the five aggregates are empty and overcomes all suffering. The relic, the color is not different from the void, the emptiness is not different from the color, the color is the emptiness, the emptiness is the color, the desire to act, the same is true. The relics are the void phases of the dharmas, which are neither born nor destroyed, neither dirty nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing
Historically, the good wish of "may all the lovers of the whole world become dependents" has become the theme of many literary works, and "The Tale of the West Chamber" is the most successful drama depicting this theme.
1. First encounter: During the First Year of the Tang Dynasty, after Cui Xiangguo's death, his wife Cui Shi and daughter Yingying Fu coffin returned home for burial and stayed in the Pushou Temple in Hezhong Province, and the scholar Zhang Junrui went to Chang'an Yingju, passed by the Pushou Temple, met yingying and maid Red Lady, he saw yingying beautiful, and he developed love for her.
2. Borrowing a box: After seeing yingying, Zhang Sheng decided to stay in the temple and look for opportunities to meet her. So he went to the abbot and begged the elder to rent a house in the temple for a quiet study of the scriptures, and the elder agreed to rent him a house in the West Wing.
3, trouble: Zhang gave birth to the abbot, just met the red lady, after the greeting told her: "Xiaosheng surname Zhang Mingjue, the word Junrui, twenty-three years old, has not yet married a wife, but I don't know if your lady has a matching family..." The red lady did not wait for him to finish, snatched him a few words, turned around and left.
4, and poetry: At night, the warbler, like usual, and the red lady went to the garden to burn incense, Zhang Sheng saw it, and casually chanted a poem, wanting to impress the warbler, the warbler listened to the praise of good poetry, and whispered softly: "Lan Boudoir is deep and lonely, there is no poetry to fangchun, and those who expect high bards should pity and sigh." ”
5. Bandits: Soon, the military general Sun Feihu heard that the warbler was beautiful and led five thousand people to rob it, the whole temple was terrified, Lady Cui was helpless, saying that if there was a thief who could retreat, no matter who took the warbler as his wife, Zhang Sheng wrote to the white horse general Du Qi and lifted the siege of the Pushou Pei Temple.
6. Invitation to the banquet: Mrs. Cui was overjoyed and let Zhang Sheng move to the study in the courtyard. The next day, she asked the Red Lady to invite Zhang Sheng to come to the banquet, and Zhang Sheng thought that the old lady had fixed the appointment for him and yingying, and her heart was not excited.
7, Lai marriage: at the banquet, the old lady suddenly changed her mind, asking Yingying to be commensurate with Zhang Sheng's brothers and sisters, Zhang Sheng listened to this, as if pouring a scoop of cold water head-on, surprised, Yingying was also deeply dissatisfied with her mother's decision.
8, listening to the piano: Since then, Zhang Sheng's thoughts are all gray, and every night he plays the piano in front of the window to relieve his boredom, he plays the song of "Phoenix Seeking Phoenix" that Sima Xiangru pursued Zhuo Wenjun, and said in his mouth: "Madame is ungrateful, but the lady should not bear me!" The warbler listened outside the window and couldn't help but shed tears.
9, Biography: Zhang Sheng caused illness because of this, Yingying asked the Red Lady to visit, Zhang Sheng supported her with a letterhead, Yingying replied, hinting in the poem that Zhang Sheng wanted him to go to the garden tonight to meet her.
10. Going to the appointment: The Red Lady thought to herself, the warbler pretended to be sorry in front of her, but the letter asked Zhang Sheng to meet; she deliberately did not say it, to see how the warbler would hide from her when the time came. That night, she and the warbler came to the garden to burn incense as usual, but saw Zhang Sheng jump off the wall.
11, Lai Jian: Unexpectedly, because Yingying did not separate the red lady, she temporarily changed her mind, and she rebuked Zhang Sheng: "Zhang Sheng, I burn incense here, what are you doing here for no reason, Mr. Saving Grace, self-repaying, but now that he is a brother and sister, how can he have this thought?" ”
12. Lying sick: Zhang Sheng could not withstand this torture, and from the next day he was too sick to get out of bed.
13, ask the disease: Yingying worried about Zhang Sheng's illness, and wrote a letterhead, let the red lady send it to Zhang Sheng, Zhang Sheng looked at the letterhead, and jumped up happily, saying that the lady said that the lady did not sleep, afraid that the red lady was unstable, the red lady asked what was going on, Zhang Sheng told her, yingying personally went to the study tonight to visit him.
14, good period: At night, Zhang Sheng heard the knocking on the door, busy opening the door, only to see the red lady gently pushed the warbler in, the pair of lovers experienced many twists and turns and acacia distress, and finally broke through the cage of feudal etiquette, and married a hundred years.
15. Torture Hong: After a long time, Lady Cui learned that after torturing Red Niang, Red Niang had to tell the whole truth and count the faults of Lady Cui for not believing in her words, Lady Cui was poor in words, and had to agree to them to become husband and wife, but also put forward new conditions, that is, Zhang Sheng must go to Chang'an to catch the examination, and only after obtaining an official can she come back to marry Yingying.
16. Farewell: Zhang Sheng was forced to be helpless and went to Chang'an to take the exam, yingying and Zhang Sheng were in tears, thousands of dings, ten thousand instructions. One wants him to be well protected by the autumn wind of Kurama along the way, and the other wants her to cherish it in the lonely deep boudoir. Later, Zhang Sheng won the title and finally married yingying.
In 1957, Wang Shuhui raised his pen again and created a 128-volume white-painted comic strip "The Tale of the West Chamber". If the previous painting of "The Tale of the West Chamber" required to surpass the ancients, then the requirement of this creation is to surpass oneself. However, during the Cultural Revolution, the work was judged to be a "poisonous weed", and 118 original paintings were destroyed, leaving only 10 in the collection of the National Art Museum of China.
In 1979, during the Fourth National Cultural Congress, stamp designer Liu Shuoren proposed to Wang Shuhui the idea of designing the "West Chamber" stamp on behalf of the director of the stamp design and distribution bureau. In the 30 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the stamps issued by China have not yet been based on classical literary works, although they are still painting women, but they are specially painted for stamps, and Wang Shuhui has never painted them. She considered her own schedule and promised to complete it by the end of the following year.
At the end of 1980, Wang Shuhui completed four stamp drawings of the "West Chamber".
The size of the 4 paintings is the same, about 2×1.5, respectively, named "Stunning", "Listening to the Piano", "Good Period", "Long Pavilion", these 4 scenes have appeared in the original 16 "West Chamber", considering the limitations of the stamp space, people have tried to enlarge as much as possible, occupying the main position on the screen, while discarding secondary characters and some scenes.
A music expert once pointed out to Wang Shuhui that there was a small error in the 16 paintings of "Listening to the Qin" in the "West Chamber", and Zhang Sheng used his index finger to pluck the strings with his right hand, but in fact, he should use the middle finger. This reminder, Wang Shuhui remembered in his heart for many years, and finally corrected it in this creation.
February 21, 1983. The special commemorative stamp "The Tale of the West Chamber" was issued, and in that year, Wang Shuhui was 71 years old.
Wang Shuhui (1912.8 -1985.7), zi Yufen, whose ancestral home is Shaoxing, Zhejiang, was born in Tianjin, and has loved painting since he was a child, and at the age of 15, he joined the Peking Chinese Painting Research Society through the introduction of his second brother-in-law's brother-in-law, the famous painter Wu Guangyu. In the Chinese Painting Research Association, she was evaluated and taught by Zhou Yang'an, director of the Antiquities Exhibition Institute (the predecessor of the palace museum today), Sun Shuzhao, a professor at The Beijing Women's Normal University, and Xu Yansun and Wu Guangyu, masters of Chinese painting.
Among these people, Wang Shuhui's most important teachers are Xu Yansun and Wu Guangyu. Xu Yansun is a famous gongbi figure painter and red scholar, whose influence on Wang Shuhui in the use of character modeling and brushwork is very large. Wu Guangyu has many teachings for Wang Shuhui in the layout of the picture and the treatment of colors.
Mr. Wang Shuhui is an outstanding Chinese painter of heavy painting and a well-known female general of Liantan. Although she never married in her life, she depicted romantic and poignant love stories such as "XiXiangji", "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai", "Peacock Southeast Flying", "Legend of the White Lady", "Life and Death Card" with her unique delicate feelings of women.
Wang Shuhui is also good at depicting legendary heroes, such as Mu Guiying in "The Female General of Yangmen" and Mulan in "Mulan Conscription".
As a generation of gongbi heavy color character paintings, the themes and contents of his gongbi works are mainly based on historical figures, stories and legends, ancient ladies, etc. The style is mainly a bold borrowing of Western painting techniques, which can not only paint the atmosphere of the times in traditional techniques, but also maintain the essence of traditional Chinese culture.
Throughout Wang Shuhui's works, there is always a deep sense of silence and detachment in his paintings, perhaps Mr. Wang has placed all his feelings in her pen, and she also enjoys the sweetness of love with her characters.