A Study Of Wen Zhengming's Nickname Painting

Nickname painting is a literati painting with a unique theme.It often metaphorizes the owner's self-consciousness,life ideal,and aesthetic taste by depicting a place of seclution.The nickname painting originated in the Yuan dynasty and prevailed in the Ming dynasty,among them,Wen Zhengming's works are the most representative.He was the leader of the Wu School in the Ming dynasty.This article takes Wen Zhengming's works as research objects,traces the development history of the nickname painting,analyzes the reason why the nickname paintings flourished under the special socio-economic environment and cultural background of the Ming dynasty,starts from the visual image form,try to interpret Wen Zhengming's implicit cultural connotation behind the use of symbols such as empty pavilion,vegetarian screen,waterside pavilion and figures in his creative process,and emphasizes his scholarly and elite culture.This article separates the nickname painting as a special subject from the study of traditional landscape painting,we can analyze his social network and immediate locality culture under the era by studying the contents of Wen Zhengming's works and the identity of his clients,we can also clarify the social features of the nickname paintings: not only social interactions,but also maintain the literati identity.The purpose is to reveal the cultural significance about reclusive thought and commemorative features it possesses.We also need to point out is that Wen Zhengming's nickname paintings were not only a comprehensive application of many kinds of literary paintings such as traditional landscape paintings,studio landscapes and elegant gathering pictures,but also be regarded as the portrait of mind.On the surface,the nickname paintings are mostly used to praise the noble character of the nickname owner,But in fact it more like an artist expressed his self-consciousness and materialized his own personality.