Regress And Transcendence Of Folk Art—Research About Xi Dejin’s Local Painting

Xi Dejin (1923-1981) has been ceaselessly devoted to building his own brand of artistry for his whole life. With exceptional performance and unique understanding, he set his footsteps into various fields of oriental and western art, including but not limited to sketch, oil painting, watercolor, folk art, and ancient architecture.As a consequence of cultural invasion from the western world, as well as geopolitical instability in the 1950s-60s, fine art in Taiwan was forced to take in abstract drawing styles that represent spirits of modernism in western culture. In light of such trend, Xi spared no effort to mingle modern western drawing with traditional Chinese ink painting. He went on to establish a rural drawing style that is a marriage of modernism and rurality.Xi embodied the very essence of Lin Fengmian’s tradition in oriental art, and had been exposed to the late modernism from the west. Driven by his progressive pursuit in art, he quickly distinguished himself from his peers. He had been an advocate of bridging modern and traditional arts, a path paved by Lin Fengmian. Taking advantage of ample resources of rural art in Taiwan, Xi managed to bring the highbrow modern fine art down to earth.His rural style painting is a harmony of both modernism and traditionalism. Watercolor interweaved by ink painting made his paintings more vivid and appealing to the Chinese. The legacy of Xi deeply influenced rural realistic drawing in Taiwan in the 1970s.