无论从哪个角度看，中国文人画的笔墨技术都不是一个绝对值，而是一个相对概念或者说相对技巧。中国古代笔墨最好的大师们，尽管煞费苦心的把笔墨技术进行标准化梳理（当然，自己才是唯一标准），但实际上，他们之间的技术差异相当大，甚至南辕北辙。这一点在文人画的趣味和经营画面的能力中尤为明显。齐白石的梅花和黄宾虹的梅花在内容、形式一样的情况下，其笔墨的运用天差地别，我们辨认他们的作品也从来不会看内容和形式，只看到他们对笔墨领悟的特有魅力。所以，中国文人画的特点并不在笔墨标准化处理上，而在笔墨处理的非标准化之上。这种非标准是文人绘画的最大保证，也是笔墨脱离绘画独立自成体系的“始作俑者”。笔墨的独立意味着最先进的绘画技术产生，欧洲绘画中“笔墨（笔触、色彩）”作为独立的元素成为审美的条件时，已经是近代的事情了。

　　笔墨的独立不是自性的，它是以人为界域的生发和存在，是人身体的节奏、脉搏和呼吸联奏在一起——是动的本源的存在。笔墨真谛的起点，就是从这些是实实在在现实状态里生发出来的。中国绘画的意义就是这样被建构起来的。

　　纯粹的笔墨技术是支撑不了一件艺术品的存在的。技术存在如果失去技术伦理的支撑，笔墨本身将毫无意义。所以说，文化作为一种不断发展的动势形态弥合了千百年来个体对历史的回应以及历史对个体的涵盖。这就是中国笔墨技术伦理的支撑的点。

　　如前所述，绘画是一种意义的建构。这种意义需要在两个层面上才能获得的支撑：对外部，就是要在文化上给自己寻找一个可以指正自己艺术言说的位置；对内部，就是追问自己生命的本质。艺术家只有对这两者给于完满的答复才能完成自身作品意义的建构。

　　从专业的角度欣赏叶向礼的作品，当然不会只看外在的形状，例如荷叶上的相似，山水的质感之类的东西，而是欣赏千百年来的笔墨文化对个体的渗透与衍化“现场”——是怎么发生的，这种发生是即时的存在，它越过时间与空间的限制，一下子把抽象的文化概念具体的落实成一个个色彩和墨渍，存留在纸底上面，变成具体的诉说——艺术家变成了一个文化的导体。更确切的说，叶向礼用对笔墨的具体追问来完成这种时空转换，这种转换是一种领悟自身本质存在的含义，并附着在文化意义上的追问。叶向礼就是通过自身对笔墨的特有追问，将自身最源初的本质设置在笔墨文化的巨大洪流里。我们欣赏的正是这种个体与历史，局部与整体之间宏大关系。这就是他的作品意义所诞生的节点。

　　就个体来说，作品也是人格的显现。只有在个体完满的将自己显露以后，才能接收到中国文化和历史所发出的“频率”。叶向礼创造作品时是毫无顾忌的，他可以在具象和抽象，现代和古典甚至东方和西方之间出入如常，过一段时间就有一批新的感悟和新的样式出现，让人啧啧称叹。创作的方向丰富而宽广，很多差异很大审美理念都能在他的笔下和谐共处。事实上，叶向礼既不是一个传统意义上的画家，也不是一个当代意义上的艺术家，甚至没有进行过科班的训练，没有限制也就没有通常的界限，所以，他在创作上常常横跨几个领域而不知界限，作品透漏出完全的个体化的痕迹。即能瞬间的在无形五彩之中挥洒，也马上可以点点勾勾的用传统的方式来编织关于荷花的记忆。看似没有门道的手法却透露出他本人对技术的特有理解。色彩斑斓，形式表现而含蓄，这和他的人很相像，亦庄亦谐，亦古亦今。开放而坚定，严谨而洒脱，常会绕过具体枝叶直达问题核心。传统和现代的金科玉律在他面前常常失效，叶向礼在创造时顾虑很少——这和他的人、作品的独立性完全是契合的，这种独立性暗示了他的作品“核心动力”——来源于内心的诚率而不是技术的支撑。

　　无论如何，绘画绝不是一个视觉的生理现象。在中国历史上，它一直以来就是一个“或重若崩云，或轻如蝉翼；纤纤乎似初月之出天涯，落落乎犹众星之列河汉；同自然之妙，有非力运之能成。”的纤细毫发的精微学问，这个学问的细腻只有与个体的心、性形成共振以后才能被把握到。所以用心、性来把握世界并完成艺术的追问其实是中国绘画的核心所在。

　　但人人都有心性，而心性又不都是“当下即显、生来既有”的，还需要心性全职“在场”的修炼——所谓天真烂漫，当下即显的生命，才能成就古人所说的“画如其人”的说法。这就是说中国艺术要求人和作品、灵魂与行为完整的完全的契合，这种契合，就是《中庸》所谓：率性之道。只有这样生命才能换化为笔墨、形式以及内容，从而完成一个人的生命的救赎。艺术家到这个境界时，又有什么可以喋喋不休的呢？

　　在我看来，叶向礼的人与作品正是这一种完整地契合形式，在这个意义上他的作品和他的人才能被我们理解和观赏。当下即显的率性之道成就了个体——绘画的意义从这里显现、作品的价值在这里被建构。

　　所以，在某种意义上他的作品其实就是在安妥一个世界，这个世界的孕育与生成，就是他自己灵魂的载体。

　　毫无疑问，绘画是一种精神产物。它也只有对精神负责才有价值。对于画家来说，精神不是逻辑推导出来的存在，而是个体存在的必然结果。它不是表面看到的一切，而是表面之外的一切。所以，观看绘画的意义在于提醒我们：我们在了悟一种外在于我们的存在。在当代，无论信息终端如何的变化莫测、人们如何相信将来的技术革命，但是，关于人本身的问题依旧是老问题。

　　我想说，理解是瞬时发生的，它不是任何东西的外延和显现，并重构甚至开敞了人自身的时空领域，它从异域里“捡回”或者说领悟到自身的某种本质存在——这使个体超越成为真实事件。故而，所有的证明只是自证，一切的了悟只能自了。个体必须倾听和领悟自己的心灵，因为那是自身存在的依据。

　　所以，我们欣赏叶向礼的作品，何尝不是在重新检点自己生命意义，领悟自己的灵魂深度呢？

乙未年夏日 客 京华 十三陵国际艺术园区 怡园斋

严渊：博士 九三学社 浙江理工大学 公共空间艺术研究所 所长 扬子晚报专栏 策展人 艺术家

Whims are Candid

--An Interpretation of Ye Xiangli's Art

　　In whatever perspective, the skill of Chinese literati ink paintings is not an absolute value, but a relative concept or a relative skill. The best ancient Chinese calligraphers and painters devoted painstaking efforts to setting a standard to skills (Surely one's own is the sole standard). However, in fact, there are great differences between their skills, or even diametrically opposed, which is more evident between their tastes or compositions of literati paintings. Qi Baishi and Huang Binhong, while painting plum blossoms in similar contents and forms, adopt different ink and brushes. We judge their paintings from their unique handling of ink and brushes, instead of from contents or forms. Therefore, the features of Chinese literati paintings lie not in certain standards, but in non-standard ink and brushes, which guarantees literati paintings and is the greatest "initiator" of calligraphy being independent from paintings. The independence of calligraphy means the birth of advanced painting skills. It is quite a recent matter that "ink, brushstrokes and colors" of European paintings became an independent condition for aesthetics.

　　The independent ink and brushes, closely bond with the presence and existence of human beings, with the rhythm, pulse and respiration of human beings, constitute the origin of movement. The starting point of ink and brushes is reality, which constructs the significance of Chinese paintings.

　　However, pure skills are not sufficient for the presence of a work of art and calligraphy would be meaningless if without the support of skill ethics. Therefore, culture, as an evolving momentum, serves as a bridge between history and individuals, which is the support for the skill ethics of Chinese calligraphy.

　　As mentioned earlier, paintings are a construction of meaning, which is supported from two levels: seeking a proper cultural position externally and pursuing the nature of life internally. Only after finding satisfactory answers can artists complete the meaning construction of their works.

　　From a professional point, we appreciate the works of Ye Xiangli not just from external looks, e.g. the similarities of lotus leaves and the texture of landscape, but from how the penetration and evolution of ink culture on individuals happens, which is immediate presence beyond the limits of time and space and turns an abstract concept of culture into specific color, ink and brushes on paper; therefore, artists become the conductors of culture. Specifically speaking, Ye Xiangli, with his pursuit of ink and brushes, fulfills this transformation of time and space. We really appreciate the correlation between individuals and history, parts and the whole situation, which is the significance of his works.

　　As far as individuals are concerned, works also show personalities. Only a complete individual can fully receive the "frequency" of Chinese culture and history. When Ye Xiangli is creating, he is shifting freely between figurative and abstract, modern and classical, or even eastern and western arts, so a great number of new insights and styles will emerge over a period of time, which people praise a lot. His rich and extensive works contain many different aesthetic concepts in harmony. In fact, Ye Xiangli is neither a painter in traditional sense, nor one in contemporary sense, as he did not get rigid class-like training. His works are free and unconstrained, spanning several spheres without any boundaries. For example, his depiction of lotuses combines modern spontaneous invisible multi-colors and traditional dots and lines. Seemingly random ink and brushes reveal his unique understanding of skills. Multifarious colors, with subtle manifestation of art, are similar to him, serious and facetious, ancient and modern, open and firm, precise and unrestrained, often going directly to the core of the problem. The golden rules of tradition and modern often fail in him, as he cares little in his creations, which fits his personality and the independence of his works. Such independence implies the "core power" of his works, stemming not from the support of skills, but from his candid heart.

　　In any case, no painting is a visual physiological phenomenon. In Chinese history, it has always been a delicate art "as heavy as collapsed clouds or as light as cicada wings; as slender as the rising moon or as wonderful as nature". Such subtlety can only be felt with the combination of one's heart and mind, so the combination of heart and mind can realize artistic pursuit and be the core of Chinese paintings.

　　Everyone has heart and mind, but heart and mind are not "instantaneous and naturally existent", which needs full-time "on-the-spot" training. Only innocent and vivid lives can fulfill the ancient saying "a painting is just like a person", meaning that Chinese art requires the full integration of works, soul and behavior, which, as stated by The Golden Mean, is the art of whims. Only in this way can life be transformed into ink, brushes, forms and contents and realize the salvation of a life. When an artist has reached this status, what else can he pursue?

　　In my opinion, Ye Xiangli himself has been fully integrated with his works, so, in this sense, his works and personality can be understood and appreciated by us. Instantaneous whims facilitate the achievement of an individual and the significance of works.

　　Therefore, his works constitute a world; the birth and growth of the world is the carrier of his soul.

　　It is no doubt the painting is a spiritual product and it is meaningful unless it is responsible for the spirit. For an artist, the spirit is not an existence derived from logic, but an inevitable result of individual existence. It is not a surface, but beyond surface. So, the significance of viewing a work of art is to remind us that we are comprehending an existence beyond ourselves. In modern society, no matter how capricious the information terminal is and how people believe in the future of technological revolution, however, the question about human beings remains eternal.

　　I would say that understanding is instantaneous, which is not anything of extension and appearance, and reconstruct, or even open the people's own time and space fields. It "retrieves" or understands the nature of existence-it makes individual surpass a possibility. Therefore, all the evidence should be self-proved and all the ideas should be self-understood. Individuals should listen to and comprehend their minds, because it is the basis for their existence.

　　To sum up, while we are appreciating Ye Xiangli's works, it seems we are figuring out our life significance and fathoming the depth of our souls.

Written in Yiyuan Studio, International Art Zone of Thirteen Imperial Mausoleum, Beijing in summer, 2015

Yan Yuan, Doctor, member of Jiusan Society, is Director to Public Space

Art Institute of Zhejiang University of Technology, planner, artist and critic to the columns of Yangtze Evening News

作者：严渊