On Shouping "ease" The Aesthetic Ideal

As an important category in Chinese classical painterly aesthetic history,"Yi" had been being expounded endlessly by numerous scholars all throughthe ages. YunShouping, an important painter at the beginning of Qingdynasty, was an important character that discoursed upon "Yi". It weighsheavily in comprehending the classical aesthetic category "Yi" to investigateand analyze YunShouping's theories of "Yi", and to separate out a relativelycomplete meaning of "Yi" from his theories. This thesis analyzes detailedlythe text of YunShouping's main painterly aesthetic writings, NanTianPainting Postscripts, and OuXiang House Collection, and summarizes thecomplicated meaning of "Yi", which YunShouping advocate painterlilyaesthetically. The meaning calls for paintings that can express profound andfar-reaching meaning, and make a high-hearted, aloof, proud, simple andunsophisticated artistic conception, through exceeding the fixed rules,methods and popular ways, and painting in a simple and thin way. What'smore, through the research into a great deal of relative literature andinformation, based on the background of YunShouping's life and age, thisthesis concludes the reasons why YunShouping advocated "Yi", and therelevant influence and effect. YunShouping's theories of "Yi" not onlygathered the past theories about "Yi", but also with pointed and poeticsentences, expounded dialectically some illogicalities which had been vexedbefore, such as rule and reform, simple and intricate, direct and implicit,freehand brushwork and elaboration, etc. Therefore, his theories of "Yi" aremuch worth studying. However, there seems to have been not enoughspecialized researches into YunShouping's s viewpoints of "Yi" so that thisthesis has got a helpful try.