Yang Xi｜Written in Shanghai in 1927, when it comes to Xie Zhiguang, it can be said that everyone knows it.

Yang Xi | Written by

In Shanghai in 1927, when and Xie Zhiguang were mentioned, it can be said that no one knew about it. This year, Xie Zhiguang made public the beauty cigarette label pattern he had carefully drawn for Huacheng Company, which immediately caused a strong sensation in Shanghai; the picture showed a beautiful young girl with a peach-shaped face, full of affection, unparalleled elegance and amorous feelings. Thousands of kinds ; A large number of men were drunk, making this beauty picture become the benchmark for Shanghai's aesthetic fashion; the rich ladies and wives who spent all day playing mahjong and cards at home also attracted it and developed it into the lifestyle of upper-class women, which became popular for a while Nationwide!

Huacheng Company realized the huge profits brought by advertising, and the board of directors immediately decided to name the cigarette "Meili". From then on, the street advertisements of "Meili" brand became a beautiful urban landscape in Shanghai, and the product became popular. Sold across the country and across the ocean, Xie Zhiguang’s name has become a household name!

Xie Zhiguang's monthly card work

As the beauty card became popular, seven beauties including the famous Peking Opera actress Lu Meiyu all thought that the beauties in the painting were themselves, and they showed off to others, causing many misunderstandings and jokes. From this we can see the exquisiteness of Xie Zhiguang's painting skills. The beauties in his paintings are not based on someone or someone as a model, but are just the beauty in his own mind.

Chinese films before 1930 were all silent films. The first talkie film "The Red Peony" starring the film actor Hu Die became famous all over the country. Xie Zhiguang was impressed by Hu Die's charming image and appearance, and invited her to be the model for his "calendar"; Hu Die readily agreed, knowing that Xie Zhiguang had excellent painting skills. Hu Die's star power caused Xie Zhiguang's fame and the price of his paintings to skyrocket, reaching as high as 500 yuan per painting.

The movie queen of the Republic of China, Hu Die

Xie Zhiguang himself has a bright mind. He took advantage of his fame to open a studio and open enrollment for students. The tuition fee for each student was NT$500, and there was also an apprenticeship banquet and apprenticeship ceremony. These grand events were the envy of countless painters in Shanghai at that time. In old Shanghai, living standards were generally not high, and the average worker's monthly salary ranged from a few yuan to ten yuan. The tuition fee of NT$500 is like a sky-high price to ordinary people. Driven by fame and profit, people come to sign up to learn painting in a steady stream. This batch has just left and another batch has arrived, and it is very prosperous.

Xie Zhiguang's calendar work "Portrait of a Beauty"

"Calendar" is a new variety of Chinese folk New Year paintings. In the old days, Shanghai was known as the "Paradise of Adventurers"; the entry of foreign capital made old Shanghai transform into the capital market, and some Western art Aesthetic concepts and painting theory also entered the public eye. The sales of products are inseparable from advertising. The advertising forms of foreign advertisers have encountered difficulties in adapting to the Chinese market. Therefore, they are favored by advertisers as "calendar pictures" with monthly calendars and solar terms in Chinese folk New Year pictures. . Foreign manufacturers have invited Chinese painters to design designs based on product content, and match them with traditional landscapes or lady figures for advertising, and have received satisfactory results. As the market prospered further, more and more screen contents were included, including clothing, fabrics and silks, daily chemical powders, pharmaceutical preparations, and cigarettes and smoking accessories. The business was extremely hot and the supply exceeded the demand!

Xie Zhiguang made a calendar for Yongbei flashlights and batteries.

This "Beauty Picture" is an advertisement made by Xie Zhiguang for Yongbei flashlights and batteries. The picture shows a young girl wearing a cheongsam, her hands hanging naturally on her left knee, with a beautiful face and dignified manner; Through the round window behind, you can see the water pavilion, white geese, and sparkling water outside the house. , adding infinite vitality to the picture. The roses behind the girl's head hang down from the circular window. They are both decorative and seem to convey a warm message to the viewer together with the girl's smiling expression. This is the most rare intelligence and wisdom of an excellent advertising producer.

In terms of painting methods, because Xie Zhiguang studied Western painting , he combined sketching with the smudge method of Chinese painting, using a brush to draw the sketch relationship, and then used the transparent characteristics of watercolor to cover or smudge the characters and pictures. The layers are superimposed to make the characters' skin plump and clear, and their clothing to be crystal clear, replacing the outlining and coloring in the original New Year paintings, giving the picture a photographic effect. In terms of color for , he chose warm tones, mainly brown. Only the rose leaves in the background of the head are green, which not only enhances the calmness of the picture, but also forms a warm and cold contrast with the tones of the characters; it sets off the young girl beautifully. The arms are plump and the skin is creamy, as if it can be broken by a blow; Xie Zhiguang uses watercolor painting methods and elements of ancient Chinese architectural paintings to blur the lake rocks and waterside pavilions outside the window; he adds a little light green to light brown in the rendering of the background wall , making the whole picture look more coordinated, colorful, warm and pleasant! In terms of style,

designed a patterned frame around the screen, placed the flashlight and battery inside, and printed the advertising text and manufacturer name. At that time, the images of commodities in this form were either placed on the hands or sides of the characters in the paintings, or painted in a corner of the picture; they were often carefully carved, with strong textures and thought-provoking. Most of the products are cigarettes, but there are also perfumes, soaps, mosquito coils, cloths, bicycles, alcohol and medicines, and there are many kinds. Xie Zhiguang painted the flashlights and batteries on the painting very brightly and realistically, and the styles were complete, large and small. The bottom was equipped with a calendar and auspicious day and time reminder design, which became the "aesthetic, decoration, advertising, and practical" design at that time. "Monthly Plaque" is an exquisite product.

Xie Zhiguang

Xie Zhiguang was born in a poor family in Yuyao, Zhejiang in 1900. He loved painting since he was a child. At the age of 14, he learned to draw figures from the then painter Zhou Muqiao, which laid a solid foundation for New Year painting creation. Later, he was recognized and accepted as a student by Zhang Yuguang, the founder of Shanghai Art College. He entered the school to study Western painting, and then was officially admitted to the Art College to receive formal art education. After graduation, he was engaged in commercial advertising design.

"Calendar" was once a historical stage in the development of advertising art, a form of folk painting popular with the masses. It came into being with the economic development of foreign commodities. It has witnessed the changes of the times and the passage of time, and it must also be because of Economic decline and withdrawal from the historical stage it occupies. How does grasp the pulse of the times at such a critical moment and pull it out of the alley of death? This is a question that Xie Zhiguang and the authors who painted the calendar should think about.

Around 1940, the market for calendar cards was on a downward trend. Seeing that the market was not going well, some picture studios in Shanghai turned to developing the New Year picture market. Xie Zhiguang transformed his lady paintings works, canceling the product image in the advertisement, and not indicating the company name, and only appearing as the characters in the paintings; he immediately conquered the aesthetic orientation of the public, and his new lady paintings were very popular. , immediately became a hot commodity among publishers.

Xie Zhiguang's work "Kaiyuan Palace People"

This picture "Kaiyuan Palace People" is a Chinese lady painting painted by Xie Zhiguang in 1942. No matter in terms of picture composition, character modeling, clothing embellishment, furniture furnishings, painting techniques, etc., it is They are all full of strong Chinese elements and are a new authentic traditional painting of ladies.

In the painting, he first used line drawing to outline the expressions of the characters, tables and stools, lamps, carpets, cats and cranes, and screens, and then used light ink to dye the characters' clothing, heads and facial features, deepening the layers; The hair is dyed one at a time using fine strokes and thick ink strokes until the hair is as black as growing out of the scalp, and then the patterns on the clothing are outlined.

did not start coloring until he checked that the entire picture was dyed. When was coloring, he started with the face, using light ocher to give a three-dimensional sense to the facial features, and then dyed the neck and hands; the first time of coloring After finishing, paint again and go through "three alum and nine dyeing" until the color is satisfied. After the general color of 's face is revealed, he begins to dye the clothes. The dyeing is completed with a flat coating method. This way, with the help of the light ink dyed in the front, it is easier to express the brightness and body feeling of the clothes.After the characters were colored and their general expressions could be basically reflected, they began to draw tables and carpets. The color of the carpet is heavy in ink, with obvious changes in light and shade; the colors of the several tables are dyed with ocher and cinnabar. When dyeing, he deliberately combined the techniques in Western paintings to create a sense of volume in the cases, which serves as a foil to the characters in the painting. Function: Carpets and tables are dyed using the overlay dyeing method, which is completed in several times. After the contrast between the tables, carpets and the general colors of the characters is revealed, then go back and deeply depict the characters' faces, necks and hands, use white powder and Zhuji to make them flesh-colored, and over-dye the face, neck and hands; Finally, the cheeks, nose, upper and lower eyelids, and fingertips were lightly dyed with Zhu and magenta to show the gorgeous and smooth skin. Finally, the character's small cherry mouth was dyed, and the pupils were drawn with thick ink dots.

The tables and floor parts are adjusted according to the basic tones of the characters so that they can better set off the spiritual temperament of the characters. They may be deepened or finely engraved, depending on the effect. Finally, cats, cranes and other indoor furnishings are added. Draw them one by one. After the overall effect of the picture is achieved, the ink lines and color lines that were covered up by color during the creation process are re-outlined and carefully adjusted, and a classical lady picture is completed with an inscription and seal.

Xie Zhiguang's work "Thrush at Jingzhao"

Xie Zhiguang painted many similar works at this stage, such as "Thrush at Jingzhao", "Waiting for the Moon with the Qin", "Out of the Fortress", "Happy Flowers and Full Moon", "Worship the Moon" and "Drunken Picture", etc. The characters in the picture are vivid, beautiful, gentle and elegant, unique, fresh and refreshing, and can be appreciated by both refined and popular people. They can all be regarded as masterpieces of his artistic creation!

The following work is Xie Zhiguang's "Luo Shen". I will give a brief review of it for the readers. This work was published by the Shanghai Picture and Film Society. It was in folio and priced at 1.3 cents at that time. There is a text introduction below the painting: "Based on the Peking Opera of the same name, after the death of Empress Zhen, she became the god of Luochuan and appeared with her lover Cao Zhi The story of the meeting. The picture depicts the scene of Empress Zhen appearing on the water of Luochuan, reflecting the desire of young men and women in ancient times to pursue a happy life. "

Xie Zhiguang's work "Luo Shen"

In this picture, Xie Zhiguang chose Luo Shen to look back and smile. With a shy face and affectionate eyebrows; perhaps Cao Zhi was raising his hand to call her on the shore, and she was putting on makeup to express the joy of love in Luo Shen's heart.

In terms of character modeling, he described the Luo Shen as having a delicate face, fluttering clothes, fishes falling and geese falling, and flowers shy of the moon. The movements of his hands and feet make people feel relaxed and happy, as if they have emerged from feathers and ascended to immortality. Compared with the calendar cards he wrote back then, is really a completely different person: the shape of the calendar cards is influenced by Western aesthetic consciousness. Although the craftsmanship is delicate and meticulous, it has a bit of coquettishness and tackiness; the facial depiction of Luo Shen and the overall character The modeling, in terms of costumes, colors, techniques, and the overall effect of the picture, is far better than that of calendar-type works; the characters appear more plump, giving people a sense of beauty. The interpretation of the original meaning of "Luo Shen Fu" is also very accurate: "...I told him: Its shape is as graceful as a startling giant, and as graceful as a swimming dragon. The autumn chrysanthemums are shining brightly, and the spring pine trees are gorgeous. The moon is covered by light clouds, and the drifting snow is like the flowing wind. Looking at it from a distance, it is as bright as the morning glow; when looking at it, it is as bright as a flower rising from Lubo. The red lips are bright on the outside, the teeth are white on the inside, the eyes are bright and the eyes are good at seeing, and the dimples support the right..." The New Year painting "Luo Shen" can indeed be called a representative work of the new era!

Xie Zhiguang's work "Happy Flowers and Full Moon"

In the 1950s and 1960s, Xie Zhiguang turned his attention to the creation of Chinese paintings, directly linking the brush with the expression of real-life themes. This painting "Ten Thousand-Ton Hydraulic Press" is the highlight of his paintings. work. In December 1961, Shanghai Jiangnan Shipyard successfully researched and manufactured the first 12,000-ton hydraulic press in China, filling a gap in my country's heavy machinery industry.Due to the rapid development of domestic economic construction, electric power, metallurgy, and heavy machinery all required large forgings. At that time, there were only a few small and medium-sized hydraulic presses in the country, and large forgings could not be forged at all. The required large forgings could only be imported. Therefore, the successful development of the 10,000-ton hydraulic press was A very important piece of good news. Xie Zhiguang was also delighted. He hurriedly brought his sketchbook and camera to go deep into life, ate and lived with the workers, and led students into the factory several times to familiarize themselves with and describe life. He drew several small drafts based on the sketches on site and carefully conducted comparative research.

Facing the huge and complex metal structures, machinery and equipment, factory structures, and worker operations, for Xie Zhiguang, who was born in New Year painting, it was like facing a huge problem with no way to start. It was like stepping into another world of painting. . However, Xie Zhiguang, who was in his 60s, did not retreat, but faced the difficulties head on. He took the draft of the composition to seek the opinions of the master workers, and finally finalized the composition.

During the creation process of Xie Zhiguang's work "10,000-ton Hydraulic Press"

, he chose the moment when the 10,000-ton hydraulic press was working on the forging, and placed the huge hydraulic press in the center left of the picture, using an angled perspective, which facilitated the expression of the three-dimensionality of the subject. Effect. The lower third of the painting is the work site. The upper part of the 10,000-ton hydraulic press is a huge steel structure roof. The crisscrossing steel bars set off the metal properties of the main body; the aerial vehicle and the aerial crane are behind the 10,000-ton hydraulic machine, which enhances the The picture is huge and solemn. On the picture, there are more than a dozen workers working nervously, and countless people who are visiting and studying are lined up at the entrance of the gate, which adds a strong flavor of the life of the times to the picture.

In terms of painting method, he adopted the traditional Chinese painting method. The supporting machinery and a dozen operating workers in the lower third of the picture are in the dark part. The workers' backs have the sunlight cast by the roof. He dipped his pen in light ink to paint the workers' faces. The back silhouette is vivid and lifelike. uses thick ink to outline the structure of the supporting machinery, and light ink to give out its sense of volume and ground effect, leaving ground reflections. The main body of the 10,000-ton hydraulic press is neatly and rigorously used with colors, which is a bit like painting advertising products. This makes it easy to draw the characteristics of the precise structure of the main parts and reflects the characteristics of high, precision and cutting-edge technology; the aircraft and aviation vehicles in the background The cranes and steel structure roof trusses are all painted with light ink, making them messy but not messy. htmlThe five huge lifting steel columns in the 70,000-ton hydraulic press were painted by Xie Zhiguang to make the steel texture shine brightly; the twelve large characters "Shanghai Jiangnan Manufacturing Factory, 1961" were clearly carved on the body of the hydraulic press; is bright red The forging is slowly passing through the forging mouth, turning the ground red, and the crowd of onlookers seems to be shouting in excitement and ecstasy; a bustling work scene is vividly displayed under Xie Zhiguang's hands, and the scenes blend together, making people gasp in admiration and breathtaking!

During this period, he also created a large number of works that reflected real life, which have become beautiful memories of people who came from that era, such as "South Lake Revolution Memorial Ship", "Spring Breeze and Green South Bank of the River", "Great Friendship", "Mao Mao" "The Chairman's Good Boy" and so on.

Xie Zhiguang's work "Spring Breeze and Green River South Bank"

Why can Xie Zhiguang transform from a folk New Year painting author to a generation of masters in the Chinese painting circle? I think it needs to be explained from four aspects:

1. Experience from his life tribulations

Xie Zhiguang came from a humble background. In 1913, his family followed his father to Shanghai, and his father opened a small coal shop on Sixth Street to make a living. When he was young, he often helped his father take care of the business, sometimes taking care of the store, sometimes pushing the coal cart to deliver briquettes to customers' homes, in exchange for a few copper coins to subsidize the family.

At the age of fourteen, he especially loved painting, and was later introduced to Zhou Muqiao . Zhou Muqiao is well-known as the creator of woodblock New Year paintings in Shanghai Old School Field and Suzhou Taohuawu in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China. Xie Zhiguang's painting experience under him laid a good foundation for his future painting development. This New Year painting titled "Mr. Ye Cui is Positive" was painted by Xie Zhiguang, and clearly bears the shadow of Zhou Muqiao.

Xie Zhiguang New Year Painting Works

In 1916, he was officially admitted to the Shanghai Art College to receive formal art education. His painting skills were taught by Zhang Yuguang, Liu Haisu and other school teachers and he improved rapidly. After graduation, he worked in stage art and commercial art design. The first monthly card he published, "Cruise Boat on the West Lake", had a unique composition and novel techniques, and was in line with the aesthetic orientation of Shanghai citizens at that time. Once it was published and put on the market, it immediately set off a rush to buy in the "Shili Foreign Market"; the publisher never expected it. The event was so popular that the print run was doubled overnight to meet market demand.

In 1929, Xie Zhiguang, Zheng Mantu, Hang Zanying and others organized and established the "Art Friends Society" to combine traditional Chinese painting with Western painting methods to form a new New Year painting style. Xie Zhiguang made outstanding contributions to making the "calendar plate" a cultural symbol of old Shanghai.

Because Xie Zhiguang's painting style was very in line with the social atmosphere of the time, he was sought after and was invited to design works for Nanyang Brothers Co., Ltd. Huacheng Company also saw his potential and hired him as the director of the company's advertising department with a high salary. In his personal love life, although he went through twists and turns, he was still happy in the end. After the founding of New China, in view of his prestige in the painting world, he was hired as a painter of the Shanghai Chinese Painting Academy, a member of the Chinese Artists Association, a director of the Shanghai Branch of the Chinese Artists Association, and a member of the Shanghai Federation of Literary and Art Circles (Second Session); The new atmosphere made him see hope; it should be regarded as a huge turning point in his artistic life, and he devoted his limited energy into unlimited artistic creation.

Xie Zhiguang’s calendar work

2. Spirituality comes from his understanding of things

Xie Zhiguang has developed his keenness and spirituality in reading things through his suffering experience at a young age. He can find the hope of life from difficult situations and find the way to the other side. path. Loving art is actually a very painful thing. It is like surviving in a crack. Without artistic inspiration, you will never be able to create good works; And often this kind of art and inspiration come from the artist's understanding of life. Observations, experiences and insights; perhaps because Xie Zhiguang’s poor background created his desire to survive, the biting cold wind when delivering briquettes blew the bud of inspiration in his heart; enabling him to find inspiration in places where others cannot see it.

For example, he has lived in the countryside for a long time since he was a child. When he first arrived in Shanghai, he was disturbed by the sound of playing mahjong in the streets. He knew that there was a game between the rich and the rich, and he, who was not clothed and had no food, was A poor boy with a full belly doesn't care a dime; but When he was about to create a New Year painting, things that had nothing to do with him turned into inspiration. He combined reality with history and used ancient metaphors to draw a picture of "Hongwu Hao Gambling", which brought together Zhu Yuanzhang, Shen Wansan and other monarchs and ministers. The gambling scene is vividly depicted. Once it was published, buyers flocked to it, and it became a work with an explosive increase in circulation at this stage, and there was an endless stream of followers.

Xie Zhiguang’s calendar work

3. Coming from his spirit of inheritance and innovation

Xie Zhiguang started his career by painting "calendar cards". His painting techniques combine Chinese and Western art, and he is deeply influenced by Zhang Yuguang and Liu Haisu. However, he did not conform to the conventional. With his keen talent in painting and the spirit of hard exploration, he created his own style of calendar painting. "Peach Blossom and Magnolia Fragrance", "Beautiful Brand Cigarette" and "Beauty Portrait" are all from this period. representative.

Xie Zhiguang's "Peach Blossom and Magnolia Fragrance" Monthly Plaque

After the founding of New China, Xie Zhiguang realized that the old painting techniques and expressions were no longer suitable for the needs of reality, and quickly changed the subject of creation to rural life. His "Rural Women's New Clothes" is in this aspect creative practice. The two young, beautiful and healthy women in the painting have become the protagonists of the painting, completely different from the pretentious demeanor of fashionable girls in the past. Judging from the appearance, one of the two women looks older. The burden of the family made her cut off her braids and put a towel on her head. At first glance, she is a northern woman; the woman with braids has a brighter face. With a somewhat childish expression, he sat on the stone by the pond and gazed into the distance, as if he was expecting or longing for something, and murmuring words; The woman standing behind her looked in the direction of her gaze, showing support and trust in her eyes; The faint smoke from the farmhouse in the distance illuminated the environment and gave an obvious footnote to the identity and thinking of the characters in the painting. Even without writing a title, you can still see the author's theme. This is Xie Zhiguang's uniqueness in composition and conception!

Xie Zhiguang's work "New Clothes for Rural Women"

Although this work still uses the technique of brushed watercolor, it incorporates a lot of elements of Chinese gongbi painting. It looks neat but not rigid, gorgeous but not tacky, bright but not thin, full and full. No stagnation. The rising fog in the picture shows the sun shining through, indicating that the time is early morning, implying that the lives of rural people are just like the rising sun, and the days will become more and more happy. The painting is full of poetry and expectation. I think any common people living in rural areas hope that their lives will be as full of hope as the people in the painting. This is what the author wants to express.

Xie Zhiguang wrote a couplet for himself: "Love the mountains and rivers for portraits, and splash ink to express the spirit." In the late 1960s, his painting style changed drastically, and his paintings were innovative on the basis of tradition. The brushwork is agile, the ink is green and the colors are elegant and hearty; it combines tradition and abstraction Cleverly combining figuration and representation, he sometimes splashes ink and color, and sometimes is dignified and simple. In order to express the object, he does not stick to any one method or sect, does not abide by the rules and precepts of one school, and boldly breaks through the conventions of painting; or balls of cotton or paper, Some are colored pencils on wicker, some are rubbed with fingers and palms, or some are played with clouds and snow; as long as they are suitable, they are all adopted, their works are wild and full of fun!

Xie Zhiguang's work "Picture of Plowing"

4. From his patriotic feelings

Xie Zhiguang is a patriotic painter. He was born in a poor family and has a common language for the working people at the bottom of society. Awe-inspiring and upright, with a chivalrous heart. Although he travels in the business world, his moral principles do not allow him to do things just for profit. As a painter, his works are the concrete expression of his thoughts. During his tenure as a painter at the Shanghai Chinese Painting Academy and a member of the Shanghai Federation of Literary and Art Circles committee, the works he created include "Running Iron", "Luo Shen", "Female Athletes", "10,000-ton Hydraulic Press", and "Being Chairman Mao's Good Boy", all of which are patriotic. A concrete expression of love for hometown. He was born in the countryside, and treated everyone who came to Shanghai to see him from afar as family members; throughout his life, he painted many works and gave them to relatives and friends in his hometown and countryside. He often said to his wife Fang Huizhen: "People who come to my house to ask for paintings should be polite to them. Some of them came from Hangzhou and some from Sichuan. They had a hard time traveling all the way and even brought rice paper and brushes. In fact, they gave me a 'opportunity to practice'... I should thank them." From this simple sentence! In the language, we seem to feel the beating heart of the old man.

Xie Zhiguang's love for his hometown became stronger in his later years. Most of his works at this stage were themed with rural pastoral scenery, fruits and vegetables, such as "Clouds Rising in the Spring Mountains", "Plowing in the Farm", "Hometown" "Landscape Album", "Innocent Picture", "Pomegranate", "Pumpkin Corn", "Gourd Picture", etc. To many people who came to ask for paintings, he enthusiastically gave them away without taking any remuneration, deriding himself as a "Bainongshan man", which shows that his affection for the people in his hometown is like a brotherhood!

Xie Zhiguang's landscape paintings

Because Xie Zhiguang is a humble man and not good at flattery, there are very few fans of his works, so that many people today do not know him. The past is like smoke in the mortal world, and the glory of the past has been taken away by the passage of golden years. The only thing that cannot be taken away is the art passed down to future generations. His works are deep, subtle, antique, exuding lasting artistic charm, and are elevated to spiritual freehand on the basis of realism. When we appreciate his works, he skillfully uses realism expression techniques, making people truly feel the enthusiasm of a painter to express his heart; the characters are elegant and tranquil, and the mountains and rivers are beautiful and pleasant. When exploring that spiritual world that is half illusory and half unrestrained, you will feel a mellow artistic flavor coming to your face. We miss Xie Zhiguang and a master of Chinese painting art who left silently...