Review on “Simple Pleasures: Li Jin with Roger Law”
Text by Joshua Gong
Starting 4 May, 2024, the Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University will be presenting an exhibition entitled “Simple Pleasures: Li Jin with Roger Law“. This exhibition showcases the paintings of Li Jin, an artist whose works highlight the contemporary friendship between China and the West. The exhibition also features artworks by other notable artists such as Su Liupeng (1791-1862), Zhou Sicong (1939-1996), Zhu Xinjian (1953-2014), Roger Law, and Fang Lijun, which vividly portray the modern development of Chinese calligraphy and painting.
There are approximately 22 artworks by Li Jin currently on display at the Ashmolean Museum. These paintings were collected by British artist Roger Law and have been donated to the museum. Most of the pieces in the collection were created between the mid-1990s and 2010, a period which saw a rapid development of Chinese contemporary art. Roger Law, a renowned British painter with a passion for Chinese visual culture, learned about Li Jin’s art through an influential gallery in Australia. The two artists were introduced to each other and their friendship blossomed during China’s reform and opening-up period.
連接東西的情樂：評論「有情皆樂:李津與羅傑·勞」
撰文 x 龔之允
2024年5月4日，《有情皆樂-李津與羅傑·勞 (Simple Pleasures:Li Jin with Roger Law) 》在牛津大學阿什莫林博物館開幕。本次展覽通過以藝術家李津的畫作為線索，向觀眾直觀地展示了一段連結中西的當代友情。此外，展覽還配套展出了蘇六朋(1791—1862)，周思聰(1939～1996)，朱新建(1953—2014)，羅傑·勞(Roger Law)，方力鈞的作品，全方位立體地展現了中國書畫的當代化發展。
此次展出的李津作品大約有22件，為英國畫家羅傑·勞的舊藏，現已捐獻給阿什莫林博物館。藏品畫作大部分集中在20世紀90年代中期到2010年這個時間段，正好與中國當代藝術飛速發展的時間相吻合。英國著名的畫家羅傑·勞對中國的視覺文化非常感興趣，通過澳大利亞的一家資深的畫廊，瞭解到了李津的藝術。羅傑與李津相識和相知，成了中西友誼在改革開放階段的一個縮影。
Li Jin is a Chinese artist who mainly focuses on ink paintings. His paintings showcase the simple joys of everyday life of contemporary Chinese people. Li Jin drew inspiration from his own personal experiences and developed traditional Chinese genre paintings with the theme of people eating and drinking. Li Jin explored various aspects of ink painting on paper, such as ink, brushwork, composition, and perspective, to develop his unique style. His artworks directly express his innermost feelings, breaking away from the artificiality of traditional calligraphy and painting. Roger Law, a British artist who shares Li Jin’s love for food and drink, also creates paintings and porcelain pieces that resonate with Li Jin’s artwork. The two artists have a pure artistic friendship, which is evident in their illustrated letters to each other.
李津的作品以水墨為主，描繪的內容大多為當代中國人日常生活中的簡單的幸福。李津以自己的親身經歷為出發點，以飲食男女為主題，繼承和發展了中國傳統風俗畫。李津在用墨、筆法、構圖和視角等多方面對紙本水墨繪畫進行了當代化的探索，形成了獨特的風格。正是這種直抒胸臆的繪畫，打破了傳統書畫中較為俗套的做作，讓同樣喜歡飲食男女的英國藝術家羅傑·勞找到了共鳴。羅傑·勞的畫作和瓷器作品也呼應了兩人之間的友誼，以及他們在藝術上的互相影響。李津和羅傑之間的帶有插畫的書信，也向觀眾展示了他們之間純真的友誼。
At the end of the 20th century, as globalisation accelerated, Chinese contemporary art gradually integrated into the world. This helped to challenge the Western-centric view of art and provided an alternative art appreciation system. The Ashmolean Museum has held a series of exhibitions of Chinese contemporary art, which were initiated by the late art historian Michael Sullivan (1916-2013). Professor Shelagh Vainker has continued Sullivan’s work, presenting visually stunning and intellectually thought-provoking exhibitions to viewers at the Chinese Painting Gallery in Ashmolean.
Dr Chen Yi is the guest curator of this exhibition. Based on the collection and gallery space, she conducted in-depth thinking and planning on the theme.
在20世紀末，在全球化加速發展的進程中，中國當代藝術也逐步融入世界，為去西方中心主義提供了一套完整的藝術案例和體系。阿什莫林博物館的系列中國當代藝術展覽，離不開已故藝術史家麥克蘇利文 (Michael Sullivan,1916-2013) 的倡議。馬熙樂教授 (Shelagh Vainker) 繼承了蘇利文的遺志，在阿什莫林的中國繪畫館，通過展覽實踐，向觀眾展示了一場又一場鮮活、生動又不失學術批判性的展覽。
陳誼博士 (Chen Yi) 為此次展覽的特邀策展人。她根據藏品與展廳的情況，對展覽主題進行了深入的思考與策劃。
Man and Dog (1998-2001) , Li Jin ©李津工作室 Lijin Studio
First of all, from a timeline, the exhibition aims to invite the audience to view the differences in the expression of interest in Chinese contemporary art by comparing Su Liupeng’s painting with Li Jin’s.
Su Liupeng was a well-known figure in the Lingnan painting circles during the Qing Dynasty. He gained fame for his genre paintings that depicted the life of ordinary people in the city. However, his painting in the exhibition still showcased the ideal scenes of talented scholars and beauties among traditional literati and officials. The painting’s scenery is well-proportioned, with landscapes (in the distance and on screens) and a study room. Although the talented scholars and beauties depicted in the paintings were happy, their behavior still conformed to traditional Confucian etiquette. In contrast, Li Jin’s paintings are more life-oriented, with the main subjects being the artist’s daily life, such as love between men and women and delicious food. Mr. Li Jin believes that traditional literati always have certain taboos that they are hesitant to touch upon while creating paintings. His paintings no longer use etiquette to mask emotions but pay more attention to the real experience of the moment.
In the words of the artist: “Contemporary experimental ink painting has several frameworks, which emphasise grand themes. But I am an outlier. I have no baggage. I hide in a hut and integrate into the hutong culture, eating, drinking, and painting.”
By comparing ancient and modern times, the audience can understand the modern transformation of Chinese society and art.
首先，從時間線上，展覽希望通過蘇六朋的畫作與李津的對比，讓觀眾瞭解到，中國當代藝術在趣味表達上的差異。蘇六朋為清代嶺南畫壇的代表人物，以描繪百姓市井生活的風俗畫著稱。儘管如此，展覽中的蘇六朋畫作描繪的依然是傳統文人士大夫理想中的才子佳人場景。畫中的佈景錯落有致，有山有水，文房皆備。才子佳人雖然歡樂，但行為舉止仍合乎傳統儒家的禮節。相比較而言，李津的繪畫溝通更加生活化，繪畫的主體是藝術家的日常——男歡女愛和美食佳餚。李津先生認為傳統文人在創作繪畫的時候總有一些禁忌羞於觸碰，而他的繪畫不再以禮儀為情感遮掩，更注重當下真實的體驗。
用藝術家的話來說，就是：「當代實驗水墨，有個幾本框架，就是講究大題材和大關照，但我是異類，沒有包袱，躲進小屋，融入衚衕文化，吃吃喝喝，畫著玩。」
通過古今的對比，觀眾能瞭解到中國社會以及藝術的現代化轉型。
Fish banquet, 2002 ©李津工作室 Lijin Studio
Secondly, based on the art form of Li Jin’s works and the space of the gallery, Dr Chen Yi made a symmetrical and hierarchical layout. The exhibition hall is divided into two floors: upper and lower. The upper floor displays the stylistic changes in Li Jin’s paintings, while the lower floor mainly displays Li Jin’s circle of friends. This staging method allows the audience to experience Chinese painting as a comprehensive visual presentation of art form and life.
The upper floor has three walls, and most of Li Jin’s works are arranged on the upper floor. They are designed symmetrically based on the creation era, style and content. Larger works are placed on the two side walls, while smaller works are placed on the middle wall, considering the viewing distance. Corresponding to the upper floor, there is a whole high-rise wall, suitable for hanging vertical scrolls and long scrolls. Opposite the high wall of the lower floor is a display cabinet, suitable for displaying some documents and small items.
其次，根據李津的繪畫形式與展廳的空間，陳誼博士進行了對稱且有層次的佈局。展廳被分為上下二層。上層展示李津畫作的風格變遷，而下層主要展示了李津的朋友圈。這樣的展示方式，讓觀眾能過體會到中國畫是藝術形式與生活的綜合視覺呈現。
上層為三面牆，李津的大部分作品都被安排在了上層，綜合創作時代、風格和內容，進行了對稱設計。兩面邊牆放置了尺幅較大的作品，而中間的牆，考慮到觀看的距離，擺放了尺幅較小的作品。下層與上層對應的是一整面高層牆，適合掛立軸和長卷，下層高牆的對面則是展櫃，適合擺放一些文獻和小件物品。
Installation image of “Simple Pleasures” at the Ashmolean Museum
Li Jin’s paintings are very distinctive. They express the fluidity of the human body through experiments with ink media. For example, people swim freely and naked in a pond. One of Li Jin’s paintings (Nude Figure Diving) shows part of this liberty.
Mr Li Jin likes the feeling of being like a fish in water very much:”At that time, you could swim freely in Houhai Lake, Beijing. I often got a boat in Houhai and swam there myself, and sometimes I swam naked in the dead of night. This inspired me to express that kind of coherence in my paintings. It feels watery. This is a kind of providence. My name contains three points of water.”
李津畫作非常有特點，那就是通過水墨媒介的實驗來表現人體的流動性。比如，人在池塘中自由自在地裸體游泳，李津的一幅畫作就表現了這種自在的局部。
李津先生非常喜歡如魚得水的感覺：「那個時候北京後海可以隨便游泳。我經常在後海弄個船划，我自己也在那游泳，然後夜深人靜的時候有時候也光著游。這給了我靈感，在繪畫中表現那種一氣呵成，又濕濕的感覺。這也似乎是一種命理，我的名字裡面就帶著三點水。」
Nude figure diving, 2001 ©李津工作室 Lijin Studio
Li Jin, the artist, believes that his early works constantly added new elements. Initially, he only focused on painting and did not delve much into traditional poetry, calligraphy, and sealing. As he underwent physiological changes, his brush handling also evolved from tender to more sophisticated. As his understanding of life changed, he started to truly comprehend the mystery of calligraphy. The process of creation, addition, and subtraction through personal experience made his paintings more individual, spontaneous, and candid.
One of Dr Chen Yi’s favourite exhibits is Painting the Flowers from its Reflection. In the painting, a goose on the shore and a woman in the pond look at each other. This is different from the conventional themes of Wang Xizhi (the saint of calligraphy) with geese. From a critical perspective, it gives the audience an open interpretation without losing humour.
Chen Yi believes:”When I saw this painting, I felt it was completely subversive of tradition but also very interesting. It highlighted the artistic characteristics of Li Jin. The artist did not experience many complicated and snobbish social influences at the time, and the eyes he painted were direct and native.”
李津認為他早期的作品是在不斷做加法，一開始只專注畫畫，對於傳統的詩書畫印，則沒有太多涉及。隨著生理機體的變化，藝術家的手感也發生了改變，從有彈性，變得更老辣。隨著人生感悟的變化，也開始真正領悟到了書法的奧妙。通過切身體悟進行的創作和加減法，使得畫作更具有個體性、自發性和率真性。
陳誼博士最喜歡的一件展品就是《觀影描畫圖》。畫面中一隻在岸上的鵝與池塘里的女性互相對視著。這有別於傳統王羲之畫鵝的俗套題材，從批判的角度，不失幽默地給予觀眾一種開放式的解讀。
陳誼認為：「我當時看到這幅畫作的時候，覺得完全顛覆傳統，但又非常有趣，突出表現了李津老師的藝術特點。藝術家當時沒有那麼多的世故人情，畫出來的眼神是直接率真的。」
The Goose (2002), Li Jin
Another characteristic of Li Jin’s paintings is that they are completely improvised and do not make any presets.
The artist said:”I draw without sketches. I pick up the brush and follow along. You are still in a hazy state when you don’t touch the pen with the paper. Because you don’t know how to deal with the next few steps, the painting process is full of surprises.”
The curators made full use of the characteristics of the exhibition wall to enhance the intimate interaction between the paintings and the audience.
李津的畫作還有一個特點，那就是完全即興，不做預設。
藝術家說：「我畫畫沒有草圖。我是拿起筆來順著走。在沒拿筆接觸紙的時候，你還處於朦朦朧的狀態。因為你不知道後面幾步怎麼處理，但這反而使得繪畫的過程充滿驚喜。有一種探索的樂趣。」
策展人充分利用了展牆的特性，增強了畫作與觀眾之間的親密互動。
Finally, the exhibition theme was strongly extended through the display of Li Jin’s circle of friends. Before Li Jin’s solo exhibition, the Chinese Painting Gallery held Fang Lijun’s solo exhibition, which retains the portrait of Li Jin painted by Fang Lijun. Although Fang Lijun and Li Jin have different artistic styles and approaches, their friendship remains strong. Chinese contemporary art has evolved from three major traditions and has undergone various changes throughout history. As we move into the second decade of the 21st century, Chinese art is expected to continue to produce exciting performances. Even though the solo exhibitions of Li Jin and Fang Lijun differ in their presentation methods, their artistic spirit is well connected. In contemporary times, artists have broken free from the limitations of a single culture and have focused on individuality. This has led to a diverse and colourful range of artistic expressions. However, art still manages to convey universal human emotions and brings people closer together by fostering individual interaction.
The exhibition fully demonstrated the artist’s artistic characteristics and social charm. It is hoped that this exhibition will invite more viewers to appreciate Chinese art, bridge the cultural gap, and facilitate cultural exchanges between China and the West.
最後，通過李津朋友圈的展示，讓展覽主題有了很強的延伸。在李津個展之前，中國畫館展舉辦了方力鈞的個展，而本次展覽保留了方力鈞繪制的李津肖像。方力鈞與李津雖然在藝術風格和創作上有很大的差異，但這並不妨礙兩人的友情。中國當代藝術從三大傳統中一路走來，經歷了各種運動式的歷史變遷。在21世紀的第二個十年，中國藝術必然會有更精彩的演繹。李津與方力鈞的個展，雖然在呈現方式上有很大的不同，但其精神內核有很強的同一性。藝術家在當代擺脫了單一的文化束縛，追求個性，藝術的呈現更多元多彩，同時，藝術又表達了普遍的人性，拉近了個體與個體之間的互動交流。
總的來說，《有情皆樂》充分展示了藝術家的藝術特點和社交魅力，希望本次展覽能讓更多的觀眾瞭解中國藝術，拉近文化間的距離，讓中西之間的文化交流向著更好的方向發展。
Li Jin and Roger Law at Ashmolean Museum
Simple Pleasures:Li Jin with Roger Law
4 May – 17 Nov 2024
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
