陈孟昕先生主要作品的后面，渗透着他长时间对艺术孜孜以求，勤奋探索的巨大劳动。从他年少时期踏入艺术之门到人至中年的今天，他的理想是能够借助艺术的表达抒发他诗人般的情怀，但他又多年来担任着高等美术学府的教学任务和教学管理的任务，后者尤其耗去他大量的时间和精力，因此，他能够把教学、管理和创作三者的关系处理好，特别是能够在面对繁杂的事务同时坚持沉潜丹青，画出一批批好画，在不同的阶段都形成一次次学术的进展，这种精神和成果都实属不易，甚至让人惊讶与钦佩。熟悉他的同仁都知道，他为人朴实而热情。朴实体现在他做什么事都务求认真上，他的作品就展现了他在艺术研究上追求不断深入的这种品格。热情更是他的个性，他的许多作品与其说是艺术劳动的结果，不如说是艺术热情的产物。我们所处的改革时代培育和造就了一代艺术家的工作能力和艺术能力，陈孟昕就是兼有这两种能力的艺术家中很有代表性的一位。今年适逢改革开放30周年，作为在改革时代发展起自己艺术的陈孟昕，他的作品集在这个年头出版，对于认识他在中国画领域的创造和思考中国画的当代发展都有重要的学术意义。

　　我之所以强调改革开放与陈孟昕艺术之间的关系，是因为在这代人的艺术成长和艺术面貌确立的过程中，始终贯穿着这个时代的中国艺术所面临的一些基本课题。凡是能认识并解决好这些基本课题的画家，其作品的思想内涵与形式风格就能反映出时代的文化特征，个人的艺术探索也能够在中国艺术的时代发展坐标中留下有价值的印记。我所指的基本课题包括三个方面的关系：一是继承传统与当代创新的关系；二是多样化的艺术格局与自我艺术取向的关系；三是艺术的表达中文化关怀与审美方式的关系。这些基本课题在不同的艺术家那里有着不同的解决方式，陈孟昕便是在这些基本课题面前交出了自我答案的思考者与实践者。

　　陈孟昕是接受过高等美术教育的画家，而且先后在南北两地著名的高等美术学院学习与研修，通过转艺多师，形成了通常称为“学院派”的造型能力。他长期勤奋的笔耕，练就了极为熟练的笔下功夫，例如他的速写就取材十分广阔，并且造型精到。但是他的造型能力不仅局限于人物形象的塑造，而是具有整体的综合造型能力，也就是驾驭和控制大型画面多种因素的能力。在他的“造型”中，包括了画面结构、形象塑造和色彩处理等多方面同时把握并有机处理的特点，这为他从事工笔画创作提供了重要的基础。可以说，从1980年代中期开始，他的工笔画作品在中国工笔画坛就体现了新一代画家锐意探索的新颖面貌。中国工笔画拥有自己深厚的传统，陈孟昕首先尊重这个传统，他不断地从近代的工笔画向历史的纵深追溯，走进工笔画传统的历史空间之中，在那里作沉潜的研究，尤其用心于工笔画的经典格式与造型特点。但是他深知，作为当代画家，重要的是在传统的基础上做现代乃至当代的发展。这里的“现代”，就是要打开工笔画传统接通现代造型观念的通道，使古与今联系起来。因此，他的研究又不仅仅停留在中国工笔画的传统体系里，而是凭借着学院教育给予的综合知识，对包括西方现代以来绘画艺术的表现与表达方式作有选择的吸收。在我看来，他的理想是要在保留传统工笔画含蓄典雅特征的基础上，建立宽阔丰富和具有现代气息的现代工笔画格式，这种目标是整个中国工笔画在新的时代条件下面临的重要课题。与此同时，他还追求工笔画的当代品质，这里的“当代”也就是体现自己对于时代文化主题的关注，使工笔画不仅仅停留在形式的现代感上，而且具有当代的内涵，体现工笔画这种传统艺术样式的当代性。基于自己很强的造型能力，他的创作的主要目标是主题性大型作品。他是当代中年画家中一开始就以“大画”为学术目标的一位重要代表。为了实现这样一种理想，许多年来他坚持深入生活，感怀生活中丰富的现实，由此从现实的感受中提取反映生活本质与特征的主题，形成他“大画”作品丰富的内容。同样，在“大画”的创作中，他的综合造型能力使他总是超越陈规，敢于作技法与语言的大胆创新，形成了他的作品气势纵横、语意丰富的大工笔画格局。这是他对工笔画发展所做出的难能可贵的贡献。

　　陈孟昕的作品在主题立意上重在表达历史、劳动、家园与生命的交融。他的许多作品取材于他深入生活的观察与感受，既有对少数民族生活的了解与体验，也有对当代生活的发现与认知，他的观察与感受方式是独特的，既细微地体察人物的生活情状，也更加把目光放在生活的空间之中，因此他的作品总是具有一种大视野的景象。在宽阔的结构中，自然景观与人文气象融合在一起，人物生活在家园的空间之中，人的生命与大自然的生命共同显示出生机。可以说，他的作品兼有写实性与象征性，兼有理性的塑造与浪漫的想象。在某种程度上，他的作品与他长期工作与生活的荆楚文化空间有关系，楚文化中的浪漫主义传统培育了他的浪漫主义情怀，对生活与生命的热爱使得他的作品充满丰富绚丽的色彩。因此，他所描绘的历史主题总是有强烈的现代气息，而他反映的现代生活又具有悠远的历史意境。打通历史与现实、传统与今天，是陈孟昕艺术的重要学术特色。

　　中国工笔画的发展像所有的艺术类型一样，也面临着笔墨的当代创造这个基本课题。由于他有着写意画的功力和修养，假道工笔，可谓借写意之石攻工笔，将写意画的流畅、气韵、神思之妙融于工笔画之中，尤其是将随意性用于工笔画的制作更显得十分难得；那满张纸的泼彩如泼墨之势，那形的隐显和凹凸是根据色水相撞出现的肌理寻找出来的，这正符合意笔画中的“控制之中，意料之外”的效果，这种表达途径的开拓与新技法的实验，使他的工笔画已具备绘画现代形态，并且向着更真实的生存体验拓展，形成了淳和流畅，逸韵飘然的特点，为当代工笔画增添了亮光新景，也或多或少地改变了工笔画的甜俗之风。在使用工具方面，陈孟昕不再仅限于毛笔画线，而是采用直管水笔灌以浓淡不同的墨汁，结合钢笔运行具有的笔势遒劲、转折变化自然的特点，使线的形态更加丰富多变并具现代性。当时代加快步伐向前迈进之时，每一种艺术形式都不可能在封闭的状态下保持它的独立形态，不同艺术形态间的交流和融合也必然会成为一种趋势。陈孟昕的艺术正是从工笔画的角度参与到艺术的时代新形态的创造之中。

　　作为工笔画的补充，也欲与工细一体的创作形成心理的调节，陈孟昕同时画了许多水墨写意小品。在这类作品中，既有中国意味的诗情画意蕴含期间，却又处处体现了现代人忆古追思的情怀与兴味。他的写意作品之笔墨看似恣意，但是细品之下却感受到作品的每处用笔用墨又各有精妙，作品也正是在这种有心无意的安排之中透露笔墨酣畅、天真灵秀的趣味，让人感受到艺术家旷达而本真的心怀。他的许多作品构图开合自然、笔墨飘逸而具有格局，以一种高妙的艺术语言书写心性与意绪，在“物”与“我”之间营造着心灵的境界，删繁就简，以空白示人，错落有致，以重墨定节奏，实现向“我”与“心”的过渡，在“有意无意”与“若即若离”的笔墨运动中，定立了自己的精神意向，反映出他直通精神层面和对艺术深度的不懈追求。

　　可以相信，陈孟昕的艺术因其在学理与语言上的通融兼善，具备了更为宽广的发展前景。

　　Mr. Chen Mengxin’s major works over a period of 10 year plus constitutes a fairly solid album. I am pleased for that publication! I know that behind these major works are his years of art pursuit and tremendous hard work. From a young boy stepping into the door of arts to the middle-aged man today, his vision has been to use art as an expression of his poetic sentiments. But he has over the years been loaded with teaching and administrating tasks of higher institution of art. The latter in particular takes up a lot of his time and energy and therefore it is not easy for him to manage himself among teaching, administrating and art making properly. And, especially in the face of complex matters of administration, to uphold his painting bush and keep on producing good Paintings, advancing in different academic stages. It is a hard-to-have achievement, even a surprising and admirable one. Familiar with his simple and warm ways, his colleagues all know his plain trait which is embodied in his doing everything seriously. His art works display this pursuit of in-depth study of his subject. His warm personality; many of his works of art are not so much the result of labor rather than the product of an artistic passion. The reform era in which we live has nurtured and brought up a generation of artists with bilateral abilities to work as an administrator and an artist. Chen Mengxin is a very representative of these artists possessing these abilities. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Reform and Opening up and Chen Mengxin’s art grows with the reform and development of the times simultaneously. His works setting in this year for publication means much academic significance for our understanding of his creativity in the field of Chinese painting and the contemporary Chinese painting development.

　　I have stressed the relationship between Reform and Opening up and Chen Mengxin because the establishing process of the artistic growth and outlook of this artist generation has always imbued with a basic issue facing the Chinese art of this era. Those who can understand and solve these basic issues, their art forms and ideological contents will reflect the cultural characteristics of the time and their individual art explorations will leave valuable marks in the development of Chinese art. The basic issues I am referring to include three following relationships: First, carrying forward the tradition and contemporary innovation; Second, the diversity of art forms and the art orientation of the individual artist; and Third, cultural concern and aesthetic outlook in art expression. These basic issues have different solutions in different artists and Chen Mengxin gives his own answer to these basic issues from his thinking and practice.

　　Chen Mengxin is a painter with higher art education background. He studied in well-known art institutes in both north and south under various masters and formed what was commonly referred to as "academic" modeling abilities. He plowed with his brush over the years, acquired a very skillful brush work. For example, his sketches are very broad in subjects with fine modeling techniques. His modeling ability is not only confined to the figurative, but also the overall comprehensive modeling abilities which means controlling the large screen and dealing with a variety of visual factors. In his "modeling", the formal composition, image modeling, shape and color rendering, and the various aspects are dealt with at the same time systematically. These provide an important basis as he engages in fine brushworks. It can be said that from the mid-1980s, his works were a new force representing a new generation of artists keen on exploration in the Chinese fine brushwork circle. Fine brushworks in China has its own deep tradition, Chen Mengxin respects this tradition, he constantly traces from the modern history of Fine Brushworks back to the depth in the past, and walks into the historical spaces of Fine Brushwork tradition where he studies, in particular, the classic format and formal characteristics of past fine brushworks. But he is fully aware that as a contemporary artist, it is important to develop on the basis of tradition the development of the modern and the contemporary. Here the "modern" is to open the channel connecting traditional fine brushworks to the modern formal concept, so that the ancient links today. Therefore, his study does not stop at Chinese fine brushwork traditional system, but, by virtue of a comprehensive knowledge given by higher art education, selectively absorb the nutrients including modern Western paintings. It seems to me that his ideal is to retain the traditional characteristics of the subtle elegance of fine brushworks while establishing a broad and rich contemporary fine brushwork format. This is the important target facing the whole Chinese fine brushwork in the new era. At the same time, he also pursues after the fine brushwork contemporary quality. Here the "Contemporary" is to show their own concerns for the cultural theme of the era, making fine brushworks not only a contemporary form, but also the contemporary meaning. Based on his strong modeling abilities, the main goal of his art making is the themetic large-scale works. He is a key representative of the middle-aged artist today in that their academic goal in the beginning is to paint "large paintings". In order to achieve such a goal, for many years he insisted on going deep into social lives, grasping life rich in reality and extracting from a realistic feel the nature and characteristics of life which give his "large painting" works rich content. Similarly, in making those "large paintings", his integrated modeling ability transcends stereotypes, he always has the courage to make bold language breakthroughs and innovations, and thus forms a momentum in his works and a grand format for fine brushworks. This is his valuable contributions to the development of fine brushwork painting.

　　Chen Mengxin's works focus on the subjects ranging from history, labor, to home and life. Many of his works draw inspirations from his in-depth observations and feelings of ethnic minorities living, many also on contemporary life and the discovery of knowledge. His observations and feelings are unique in that he not only portray subtle and sensitive figures in life-like situations, but also put much colors on the living spaces in between the figures, so his work always has a big vision of the scene. In the broad structure of natural landscape, humans and their surroundings mingle together, people thrives with the lives of the nature. It can be said that his works are both realistic and symbolic, both rationally modeled and romantically imagined. To some extent, his works have something to do with his long-term life in Hubei, the Romantic tradition of the Chu Culture has nurtured his romantic feelings, and love of life makes his works full of rich, brilliant colors. Therefore, the historical themes always have a strong contemporary scent, and the modern life the remote historical conception. Bridging the history and reality, tradition and today, is Chen Mengxin’s important academic characteristics.

　　The development of Chinese fine brushwork like all other types of arts, is also faced with the basic issue of its contemporary innovation. As he has freehand brushwork cultivation and talent, switching to fine brushwork can add freehand brushwork elements of fluency, airy tone and magic wonder to the fine brushwork paintings, in particular, the use of arbitrariness in making fine brushworks. It is extremely rare. The splash of color such as the splash of ink on a full piece of paper and the implicit forms churned out by the clashes of color and water are in line with the "controlled strokes, unexpected effects" expectations of fine brushworks. These expression developments and new technique experiments give his paintings a modern form, characterized by its thick, smooth and elegant style. Contemporary fine brushworks look anew because he has, more or less, changed the fine brushworks’ usual sweet vulgar look. In the use of tools, Chen Mengxin is no longer limited to brushes. Gel pens refilled with different shades of inks operate with twists and turns sharper and richer than brushes, so that the lines have more extensive changes and modern looks. With our time’s accelerating pace of moving forward, no art form can remain isolated in its independent form, exchanges between different art forms and integration will certainly become a trend and Chen Mengxin is participating in the creation of new fine brushwork art forms in our times.

　　As a supplement to the fine brushwork making and as a psychological regulation, Chen Mengxin at the same time did a lot of freehand brushwork Pieces. In such works, there are Chinese poetic feelings and modern reflections of ancient memories. His freehand ink brushworks seem care-free, but under careful eyes, they are fine with each stroke and ink applications are sophisticated. Many of his works are composed in composition with elegant brush and ink applications. Creating a spiritual realm between "objects" and "I", avoiding complication and adopting brevity, and the alluding void spaces and seemingly disordered deployment, all meant for a transition from the "I" to the "mind", from the intentional to the unintentional, and from there to not being there. He sets herein his own spiritual intent through the tireless pursuit of the artistic depth.

　　I believe that Chen Mengxin’s art, because of the academic and artistic language accommodation, has a broad prospect for development.

作者：范迪安