Natural Simple

This article deeply interprets Master Shen Zhou from the aspect of his artistic achievementsas well as his personal charisma and his social relations: how the society shaped such a trulygreat man like Shen Zhou with an invisible hand; how Shen Zhou influenced people around himand descendants with his personality; how he led Wu School, an excellent school both in art andliterature, in his ordinary life.Under the system of traditional Confucianism, Shen Zhou who was influenced by Zenchose to live in seclusion throughout his life, violating scholar-official’s worldly ideal ofdistinguishing themselves. The pure aesthetic nature of literati painting seemingly can’t offset acertain kind of worry of him due to having no cause and contributions. In addition, Shen Zhouwas full of virtual poetic color, which made him look more foppish concerning appreciating art.It not only left people with such an impression of lacking social responsibility, but also madeShen Zhou stuck in such a plight that basic living conditions can’t be guaranteed, spirit can’t besettled and identity can’t be affirmed. However, Shen Zhou exactly solved all abovementionedproblems, finally defused various contradictions and facilitated a perfect virtuous circle bysagaciously choosing his identity. Shen Zhou knew well how to settle himself and pay attentionto people’s livelihood. Moreover, he was also an extremely virtuous and generous person,respecting relatives and helping friends. His paintings accurately reflect his personality. WenZhenmeng, from Wu (today’s southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang) commented Shen Zhou asso,“Although you didn’t have a splendid life, were the brush and ink more valuable than you?Or were you more valuable than them? In fact, you and brush and ink can’t be separated in yourlife. That’s what is really valuable and worth our mediation.” Wen Zhenmeng undoubtedly spokehighly of Shen Zhou’s excellence in both art and virtue through combination of people andpainting. Seeing from the temperament and personality of Shen Zhou, lofty personality, noblesense of social responsibility and healthy unnecessarily go against the artistic temperament. Thusit also falsifies the stereotyped artists’ personality, such as proud and insolent, rebelling againstthe orthodoxy, eccentric and unreasonable. For both painting and appreciating painting, thesubject should cultivate his or her character, temperament and tranquil mind. Please try toimagine: how can a person keeping pursing fame and wealth experience the beauty of theimagery of indifference to fame and wealth and maintenance of tranquility?In current society, if we can learn the positive connotation of behaving himself from ShenZhou, there’s no doubt that it will help people correct their value coordinates and moral rules andimprove people’s cultural tastes and spiritual shackles thus to avoid the tendency of unbalance ofvalue orientation, declination of moral standards and prevailing of money worship, hedonism and ultra-individualism in current society. The author of this article thinks when facing the natureand universe, people should also be dominated by realistic humanistic spirit, keeping explorationand never stopping so as to keep forging ahead on the way of art and life in virtue of the powerof wisdom, creation, knowledge and science.