醉草-drunken scripts

        王晓平先生的书法艺术，《抒怀于笔   相濡以“墨”》第3期曾作了专门介绍。2012年在南京由江苏省书法家协会、省美术馆联合举办的王晓平书法个展《醉墨飞花》，是王晓平书法艺术的集中展现。退休以后，王晓平先生继续在书法领域里辛勤耕耘，尤其是在醉墨狂草方面作了进一步的深入探索，逐渐形成了自己的醉草书法特色。

        Mr. Wang Xiaoping's calligraphy art was specially introduced in the third issue of "Expressing Feelings with Brush and Ink". In 2012, Wang Xiaoping's calligraphy solo exhibition "Drunken Ink Flying Flowers" , a concentrated display of Wang Xiaoping's calligraphy art, was jointly organized by the Jiangsu Provincial Calligraphers Association and the Provincial Art Museum in Nanjing. After retiring, Mr. Wang Xiaoping continued to work hard in the field of calligraphy, especially in the field of “Drunken Cursive”, and made further in-depth explorations, gradually forming his own characteristics of drunken cursive calligraphy.
 
            书法史上，人们曾把唐代书法家张旭、怀素醉后狂草称之为为“醉草”，认为在醉酒状态下的狂草创作有着特殊的地位和美感。张旭怀素也被并称为“颠张醉素”。

        In the history of calligraphy, people once called the calligraphy done by calligraphers Zhang Xu and Huai Su in the Tang Dynasty "drunk cursives" after they were drunk. It was believed that the wild cursive calligraphy creation in a drunken state had a special feature and beauty. Zhang Xu and Huai Su together are also known as "Dian Zhang Zui Su"(which means Zhang the Frantic and Su the Drunken).
 
            王晓平在自己的书法实践中，对醉草书法形成了自己的独特认识。他认为醉草有“心醉形不醉，形醉心不醉”之分，从而把醉草分为两种状态，一是真醉忘形，醉醺中凭感性用甩、抖、砸的笔毫向纸面喧泄，创作出意外之喜，即如怀素所说“醉里得真如”那种境界；二是清醒时仿照醉后意象，理性运用书法技法运笔挥酒，采用纵横穿插、挪移错位、割裂拉伸、浓淡虚实等手段，在纸面上挥酒出意料之中市又意料之外的形状意境。正如赵景园先生在采访王晓平后所写《醉墨飞花意释阴阳》一文中所说，第一种是微醺状态，真情所驱，忘技生机，追求的是“无意于佳乃佳”的艺术效果；第二种是理性支配下，吸取醉意状态下作品意境，利用传统和当代技法的艺术处理手段，进行再度创作，以获奇思妙想、巧手偶得的艺术效果。
 
        In his own calligraphy practice, Wang Xiaoping formed his own unique understanding of drunken cursive calligraphy. He believes that drunken cursive can be divided into "even if the mind is drunk but not the form of art, and on the contrary, even though the form is unkempt but not the intention", and thus divides drunken cursive into two states. One is true drunkenness and forgetfulness, in which drunkenness relies on sensibility to flicking, shaking, and smashing brush-strokes. The noise on the paper creates unexpected joy, which is the state of "getting the truth when you are drunk" as Huai Su said; the second is to imitate the image after drunkenness when you are sober, rationally use calligraphy techniques to use the brush and drink, and use vertical and horizontal interweaving, shifting and dislocation. Methods such as splitting and stretching, shadings and verisimilitudes create unexpectedness and especially those unexpected shapes and artistic conceptions on paper. As Mr. Zhao Jingyuan said in the article "Drunken Ink Flying Flowers Revealing Yin and Yang" written after interviewing Wang Xiaoping, the first is a state of slight drunkenness, driven by true feelings, forgetting skills and promoting vivacity, and pursuing the artistic effect of "unintentional virtue" . The second type is under the control of rationality, absorbing the artistic conception of the work in the drunken state, using traditional and contemporary artistic processing methods to re-create the image and scene, in order to mimick the artistic effects obtained by whimsical ideas and skillful hands.
 
            王晓平近期作品，可谓是对醉草书法最好的诠释。在这些作品中，或流畅或迟涩的线条，随着作者的心绪变化，如大海之波涛，一波继一波生生不息；时而浓墨重彩，时而枯笔飞白，阴阳虚实，极尽变化之能事；用笔八面出锋，或沉稳或弹跳，俯仰向背随心而出；结体奇思出人意料，挪移错位割裂拉伸使人应接不暇；章法上纵横穿插，大小欹侧，变幻无穷，给人以美的享受。
 
         Wang Xiaoping's recent works can be said to be the best interpretation of drunken cursive calligraphy. In these works, the lines, which may be smooth or slow, change with the author's mood, like the waves of the sea, one after another. Sometimes the ink is thick and colorful, sometimes the dry brush is white, the yin and yang are empty and full, and they are full of changes. These endeavors reflect the use of the brush in all directions, either calmly or vividly, tilting back and striking out at will; the structure is unexpected, moving, dislocating, splitting and stretching, which makes people overwhelmed; the composition is interspersed vertically and horizontally, large and small, sideways, and endlessly changing, giving people a sense of wonder, immersing people in the sea of beauty.
 
            王晓平的醉草书法艺术特色，表现在三个方面：
The artistic characteristics of Wang Xiaoping's drunken cursive calligraphy are shown  in three aspects:
 
            第一，王晓平的醉草书法，已突破了传统书法的某些范畴，是对当代书法的一种探索。传统书法要求点画精致可细细把玩，当代书法更看重视觉的冲击力，王晓平醉草有意识地在视觉冲击力方面进行了不懈探索，认为应以更强的视觉艺术性给人以快乐和心灵振动的享受。他的醉草作品还突破了传统书法的一些经典笔法，试用砸、甩、抖、酒等有别于传统的技术来表现书写内容，以期突出自己对书写内容的理解，寄托自己的情感。单字斗方“虎”“龙”“梅”等作品，在这方面就作了不少可贵的探索。
 
          First, Wang Xiaoping's drunken cursive calligraphy has shattered certain categories of traditional calligraphy and is an exploration of contemporary calligraphy. Traditional calligraphy requires delicate stipples that can be enjoyed carefully, while contemporary calligraphy pays more attention to visual impact. Wang Xiaoping’s Drunken Cursive Art consciously and unremittingly explores the visual impact, believing that stronger visual artistry should be used to give people happiness and spiritual resonance. His drunken grass works also breaks through some classic calligraphy techniques, different from traditional methods, these processes include smashing, throwing, shaking, and drinking to express the written content, foregrounding his understanding of the written content and express his emotions. Works such as single-character work like "Tiger", "Dragon" or "Plum" have made a lot of valuable explorations in this regard.
 
            第二，王晓平醉草又是根植于传统书法土壤之中的。王晓平早年学书法，受到林散之、尉天池、言恭达等大师名家的票陶。从篆隶入手到写狂草，数十年来的书法实践，使他对传统书法的技法运用驾轻就熟。在醉草作品中，我们仍可以看到张旭怀素草书线条的影子、王铎连绵书写和涨墨法的借鉴运用。他的张扬个性的作品，仍有对传统书法共性美感的追求。他一直把自己的醉草限定在书法范畴，强调要在对经典草书继承中进行大胆想象再创造。这与当代一些摒弃传统技法、着眼构成设计、追求强装饰性的作品有着明显的分野。
 
        Secondly, Wang Xiaoping's drunken cursive is rooted in the soil of traditional calligraphy. Wang Xiaoping studied calligraphy in his early years and was influenced by masters such as Lin Sanzhi, Wei Tianchi and Yan Gongda. Decades of calligraphy practice, starting from seal script and official script to writing cursive script, imbues him with the application of traditional calligraphy techniques. In his Drunken Cursive works, we can still see the shadow of Zhang Xuhuai's cursive lines, Wang Duo's continuous writing and the use of rising ink. His works are idiosyncratic yet still pursuing the common beauty of traditional calligraphy. He has always limited his cursive writing to the scope of calligraphy, emphasizing bold imagination and reinvention while inheriting classic cursive scripts. This is clearly different from some contemporary works that abandon traditional techniques, focus on composition design, and pursue strong decorative qualities.
 
            第三，王晓平的醉草书法作品更加突出表现阴阳变化对比。中国古代哲学认为，“一阴一阳谓之道”，阴阳相互依存、相互作用，影响事物发展的趋向，决定事物的性质，反映其变化规律。黑白、虚实、动静、正奇、疏密、擒纵、开合、浓淡都是阴阳变化在书法仁品中的表现。王晓平以阴阳美学作为其醉草书法艺术的理论支撑。他认为，阴阳是书法艺术的核心，书法艺术贵在表现阴阳。他的醉草书法创作，很好地表现了他的这种艺术审美观。
 
        Thirdly, Wang Xiaoping’s drunken cursive calligraphy works more prominently express the contrast between yin and yang. Ancient Chinese philosophy believes that "The combination of and contrast between Yin and Yang are called Tao". Yin and yang are interdependent and interact with each other, affecting the development of things, determining the nature of entities, and reflecting their underpinning laws. Black and white, virtual and solid, movement and stillness, orthogonality, density, escapement, opening and closing, and shade are all manifestations of the changes of yin and yang in calligraphy benevolence. Wang Xiaoping uses yin-yang aesthetics as the theoretical support for his drunken grass calligraphy art. He believes that yin and yang are the core of calligraphy art, and calligraphy art is valuable in expressing yin and yang. His drunkard calligraphy creations well express his artistic aesthetics.
 
            王晓平的醉草书法艺术不乏对传统狂草书法的诸多探索。他说，探索新路子，开辟新疆域，是他以后研习书法的座标。我们祝愿他在对醉草书法的探索中，不断取得新的成果。

         Wang Xiaoping's drunken cursive calligraphy art is full of explorations of traditional wild cursive calligraphy. He said that exploring new ways and opening up new territories will be the coordinates of his future study of calligraphy. We wish him continued success in his exploration of Drunken Cursive Calligraphy.