Original Source. Original Sound.*

Jiang Wei (Shanghai)

Qin Feng is fierce.

Dozens of large sheets of rice paper were lined up and hung from atop, with ink painted powerfully in the center of each sheet. Through the hole that runs through this ink on paper installation, I saw Qin Feng, at the other end of the hole. January 2002, Shanghai, at the Paragold International Art Center, I saw Qin Feng, fiery eyed.

If ruptures generate new beginnings, then let us begin with ink. Open a hole in the ink painting. Color and emptiness. Emptiness and color. Being and nothingness. Nothingness and being. Let everything regenerate itself from chaos.

I have an “ink complex.” A love-hate relationship with ink you might say. Ink on paper is too solemn. In most contexts, the art of ink painting has long fallen out of the domain of the modern art.

Modern art should not be tied only to its temporality. It is also an art condition that is inseparably linked to the historical period in which it finds itself. It would be too narrow a focus to emphasize only the contemporariness of modern art. Thus, no matter how one defines modern art, there are some common characteristics: a clear sense of time, a sincere desire for expression, and a strong style and personality. Other characteristics include free spiritedness, social criticism, humanist concern, historical consciousness, and innovative language and medium.

If one studies Chinese art history carefully, one would find that, prior to the Song and Yuan dynasties, Chinese classical aesthetics’ focus on nature, life, and the universe had great influence on art developments. Be it the objective and realist approach that transcends the “I,” or the metaphysical and subjective orientation that emphasizes the “I,” be it unpretentious or nostalgic, they all expressed life potency and creative sincerity. All reflected a deep understanding of nature and culture. To serve this goal, various methods were maturing, reaching the state in which creativity and spirituality were one.

It is true that, regardless of the time period, human behavior is always restricted by internal and external rules and measures. The creative energy of art provides the best outlet through which those bound up feelings and emotions can be channeled. And this explains the existence of art. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the rational approach to the study of the classics reached its peak while authoritarian rule was increasingly practiced. In this draconian environment, artists found themselves having to focus on the perfecting of techniques and paying more attention to details. Ink painting became a suffocating form of art. It is understandable that the ruling class would approve of such a form of language. Thus, from the early stage of thought control, to the reluctant acceptance by the artists of such a style of ink art tradition, to the complete loss of individuality in creativity is a tragedy that affects even today’s ink art creation. Means becomes the end while techniques occupy the center. In the context in which there is no criticism of this mainstream school of ink painting tradition, it becomes an excuse for many to not go forward. When we are satisfied only with what we know, does it not mean that we have no interest in moving beyond the already known? And who knows if what we know is simply an illusion or a habit that is hard to break.

Art history is not unlike a history of our souls. The past hundred plus years witnessed unprecedented changes. Such changes stimulated numerous artists to rethink and reflect on these fast-evolving situations, producing new and multidimensional ways of thinking. Viewed in this context, the evolution of modern art in the 20^th century becomes natural and apparent. In the field of the ink painting, conversely, the number of masterfully painted traditional ink on paper pieces one can reproduce will not hide the fact that the mainstream school is of a dying breed. No wonder Adorno lamented that poetry had ceased to exist. His view reflected a humanist concern and a broad historical perspective. It is my belief, however, that poetry and painting are still alive, albeit in a different way. True, the old form of the realist painting of nature and landscape is something of the past, just as our conscience and cognition have been damaged and challenged. If traditional ink art still remains in the old form, and if one insists on using the technique to disguise the spiritual deadness and numbness, it would not be hard to understand why traditional Chinese ink art would fall outside of the realm of modern art. To revisit this topic is to expose a historical myth, so that we may see the real picture. On the spiritual level, a correct behavioral definition of the ink art should be framed within a sense of “returning,” thus awakening the oppressed, consciously or unconsciously. This way ink art can enter into a form of humanist creation, as it deserves to be a proud member of contemporary Chinese art.

Qin Feng’s fierceness lies in his determination to deal with these formal, aesthetic, and ideological wounds head on. He deconstructs the form and rethinks the content. He uses ink and paper to express his inner energy. He re-tills and re-ploughs so as to cultivate a better land and reap a better harvest. It is also to rejuvenate a body that has long suffered from anemia. In so doing he is reproducing in his heart rich and boundless echoes from the ancient past.

Qin Feng was born in China. This is his root and source (yuan). His sojourning in Europe and the United States is another cause (yin). With both in mind, no wonder he is drawn to the original sound.

*Translator’s note: In Chinese, the title plays on the same pronunciation of these two terms: “Yuan Yin. Yuan Yin.” The second Yuan Yin, Original Sound, is the title of a series of Qin Feng’s paintings. The first Yuan Yin can mean source, root, or a sense of predestination or fate. In the end of his review, Jiang Wei uses Yuan to mean a sense of root and fate and Yin as a second cause that helped shape the form and content of Qin Feng’s art.