Artistic Styles And Developing Process Of The Long Scroll Zen Ink Painting In The Southern Song Dynasty

In the Southern Song Dynasty,Zen painting was a painting system that gradually flourished and matured under the historical background of Zen culture and ink painting style.At that time,most of the Zen Painters lived near Lin’an(Hangzhou City,Zhejiang Province nowadays),the Southern Song’s capital.Most of those good at painting and calligraphy were Zen monks among Yangqi group of the Linji School,and there were also some Tiantai monks and Zen laymen.All the painters mentioned above promoted the development of Zen Painting.As the form of calligraphy and painting gradually became a convenient carrier of Zen methodology,Zen painting begun to depict a wide range of subjects,presenting a more diversified art form and a more mature style.Long scrolls were one of the main forms of Zen paintings.They depicted three main themes:Yingzhen Arhats,Xiaoxiang landscape,as well as flowers,birds,vegetables and fruits.Chapter 1 analyzes and demonstrates the historical origin of these three themes,and systematically sorts out the handed-down works,including circulation of paintings,forms of preservation,collection and other aspects.Chapter 2 discusses the stylistic implication of the long scroll Zen ink painting in the Southern Song Dynasty,which is high in elegance,clear in simplicity and ancient in purity and distance.First of all,the thesis sorts out the development of the expressive form of the Zen long scrolls in the Southern Song Dynasty,in order to explore their painting style and implication.At the early stage of the Southern Song Dynasty,the long scroll Zen ink painting was mainly composed of fine and delicate strokes.During Southern Song’s middle period,the scrolls focused on the use of simple and broad strokes and splash-ink.Second,the thesis analyzes the form and connotation of the praise and preface in Zen paintings.Very consistent with Zen long scroll styles of splash-ink and abbreviated drawing during the Southern Song Dynasty,the praise and preface were mainly in running script.Their contents were combined with the paintings,and the formats and positions were exquisite.Third,combined with the layout of the works,the thesis further explores the formal characteristics of the long scroll Zen ink painting.The composition of such paintings is long and open,and the background is empty and simple.The blank in the paintings leaves all appreciators a wonderful feeling.Chapter 3 analyzes the painting styles of Zen long scrolls in different periods of the Southern Song Dynasty,and on this basis the internal causes of the transformation of painting styles are explored.