4.Landscape of the soul

Lesson-4

Landscape of the Soul

By Nathalie Trouveroy

Landscape of the Soul Introduction

Landscape of the Soul, the chapter, written by Nathalie Trouveroy, discusses how Chinese art differs from European art. To make a point, the author compares and contrasts two stories. European art is concerned with reproducing an actual view, whereas Chinese art is concerned with not creating a real landscape.

Landscape of the Soul Summary

By using two different stories, the author contrasts two types of art – Chinese art and European art – in this chapter. The Tang emperor Xuanzong of China commissioned a painter named Wu Daozi to decorate a wall in the palace during the eighth century. When the Emperor first saw the wall painting, he was drawn to its outer appearance, but the painter directed his attention to a cave at the foot of the mountain. The painter told the Emperor that he would accompany him inside. The painter entered the cave, and the entrance closed behind him. The painting on the wall, as well as the painter, vanished as soon as the painter clapped his hand.

In another story, a painter refused to draw a dragon's eye because he was afraid the dragon would fly out of the painting. A master blacksmith falls in love with the daughter of a painter in another story to represent a European art form. Because of his profession, his father disapproved of him. The blacksmith sneaked into his painter's studio and painted a fly on the latest panel. The fly appeared to be so real that the painter attempted to hit it before realising it was in the painting. He was accepted as a trainee in the painter's studio. The blacksmith married the painter's daughter and went on to become one of the most well-known painters of his time.

These stories revealed how art is believed to be practised in two different parts of the world. In Europe, an artist wants the viewer to see the world through his eyes. The art must be perfect and resemble an illusion. In China, however, the artist does not paint a real one, but instead uses his inner and spiritual voice to create an abstract piece. The viewer can enter the painting from any point and travel as far as his imagination will take him. The artist wants for the viewer to enter his mind and create their own path. This is known as 'Shanshui,' which translates to'mountain water.' When they are combined, they form the word 'landscape.'

Landscape of the Soul Lesson Explanation

A WONDERFUL old tale is told about the painter Wu Daozi, who lived in the eighth century. His last painting was a landscape commissioned by the Tang Emperor Xuanzong, to decorate a palace wall. The master had hidden his work behind a screen, so only the Emperor would see it.
For a long while, the Emperor admired the wonderful scene, discovering forests, high mountains, waterfalls, clouds floating in an immense sky, men on hilly paths, birds in flight. “Look, Sire”, said the painter, “in this cave, at the foot of the mountain, dwells a spirit.”
The painter clapped his hands, and the entrance to the cave opened. “The inside is splendid, beyond anything words can convey. Please let me show Your Majesty the way.” The painter entered the cave; but the entrance closed behind him, and before the astonished Emperor could move or utter a word, the painting had vanished from the wall. Not a trace of Wu Daozi’s brush was left — and the artist was never seen again in this world.

• Dwells – live; stay
• Splendid – very impressive; superb
• Astonished – greatly surprised or impressed

Tang Emperor Xuanzong appointed a painter named Wu Daozi from the eighth century to decorate a Palace wall. It was his final work. The painter hidden his work behind a screen so that only the emperor could see it. The Emperor admired many aspects of the painting, including the discovery of forests, high mountains, waterfalls, floating clouds, men on hilly paths, and birds in flight. The painter then made him look at a cave at the bottom of the mountain in the painting and compare it to a living spirit. The entrance to the cave opened as the painter clapped his hands, and he told the emperor how beautiful the inside of the cave was, and he asked him to show it to him. The painter entered the cave, and the entrance closed behind him. The Emperor was unable to enter the cave because the painting had vanished from the wall. The painter was never seen again after that.

Such stories played an important part in China’s classical education. The books of Confucius and Zhuangzi are full of them; they helped the master to guide his disciple in the right direction. Beyond the anecdote, they are deeply revealing of the spirit in which art was considered. Contrast this story — or another famous one about a painter who wouldn’t draw the eye of a dragon he had painted, for fear it would fly out of the painting — with an old story from my native Flanders that I find most representative of Western painting.

• Disciple – a follower or a pupil of a leader, teacher
• Anecdote – a short interesting story of a real person
• Flanders – a medieval country in Western Europe

These stories played an important role in Chinese classical education. Similarly, the books of Confucius and Zhuangzi are full of such stories, which aid the master in guiding and assisting his followers. These stories, like the art, were thought to be deeply revealing of the spirit. In contrast to the previous story, there was another famous story about a painter who refused to paint a dragon's eye. He was afraid the dragon would fly out of the painting. It was one of many stories that came from a mediaeval country in Western Europe.

In fifteenth-century Antwerp, a master blacksmith called Quinten Metsys fell in love with a painter’s daughter. The father would not accept a son-in-law in such a profession. So Quinten sneaked into the painter’s studio and painted a fly on his latest panel, with such delicate realism that the master tried to swat it away before he realised what had happened. Quinten was immediately admitted as an apprentice into his studio. He married his beloved and went on to become one of the most famous painters of his age. These two stories illustrate what each form of art is trying to achieve: a perfect, illusionistic likeness in Europe, the essence of inner life and spirit in Asia.

• Antwerp – a city of northern Belgium
• Delicate Realism – the quality of art that makes it seem real
• Swat – hit or crush something
• Apprentice – trainee; learner
• Illusionistic Likeness – an illusion created which resembles something

Quinten Metsys, a master blacksmith in Antwerp during the fifteenth century, falls in love with a painter's daughter. Because the father was not accepting of their relationship due to his profession, the blacksmith sneaked into the painter's studio and painted a fly on his most recent panel. The painting was so lifelike that the master tried to hit the fly away before realising it was only a painting. The blacksmith was accepted as a trainee at the studio. He married the painter's daughter and went on to become one of the most famous painters of his generation. The two stories told above attempt to depict the form of art in two distinct regions. In Europe, art is perfect and resembles something; in Asia, art conveys the essence of one's inner life and spirit.

In the Chinese story, the Emperor commissions a painting and appreciates its outer appearance. But the artist reveals to him the true meaning of his work. The Emperor may rule over the territory he has conquered, but only the artist knows the way within. “Let me show the Way”, the ‘Dao’, a word that means both the path or the method, and the mysterious works of the Universe. The painting is gone, but the artist has reached his goal — beyond any material appearance.

As in the Chinese story, the artist reveals the true meaning of his work to the Emperor, who rules over his territory but is unaware of the path within. The Emperor only saw the painting's outer appearance. The artist created a work that was mysterious and 'Dao,' which means something that has both paths. As soon as the artist arrived at the caves, the painting vanished, proving that some work is more than actually meet the soul.

A classical Chinese landscape is not meant to reproduce an actual view, as would a Western figurative painting. Whereas the European painter wants you to borrow his eyes and look at a particular landscape exactly as he saw it, from a specific angle, the Chinese painter does not choose a single viewpoint. His landscape is not a ‘real’ one, and you can enter it from any point, then travel in it; the artist creates a path for your eyes to travel up and down, then back again, in a leisurely movement. This is even more true in the case of the horizontal scroll, in which the action of slowly opening one section of the painting, then rolling it up to move on to the other, adds a dimension of time which is unknown in any other form of painting. It also requires the active participation of the viewer, who decides at what pace he will travel through the painting — a participation which is physical as well as mental. The Chinese painter does not want you to borrow his eyes; he wants you to enter his mind.

The landscape is an inner one, a spiritual and conceptual space.

• Figurative painting – metaphoric representation of an art
• Leisurely – unhurried or relaxed
• Conceptual Space – relation with an abstract representation

The Chinese landscape painting is a representation of the artist's thoughts rather than a representation of a real viewpoint. Western painting is a figurative art form in Europe. The European painter paints a landscape to depict a specific scene in the landscape, whereas the Chinese painter does not select a specific viewpoint. You can enter the painting at any point and travel as far as your thoughts and imagination will take you. The Chinese artist wishes for you to travel by creating your own path and then emerge in a relaxed manner. This method of viewing a painting is more enjoyable in China. A horizontal scroll is a type of painting in which one section of the painting is opened one at a time by rolling it up to move to the other side. It adds a dimension that is not found in any other form of art. It necessitates the viewer's mental and physical participation. The Chinese painter wishes for you to enter his mind and see the painting through his eyes. Chinese artists' landscapes are spiritual, inner, and conceptual or abstract in nature.

This concept is expressed as shanshui, literally ‘mountain water which used together represent the word ‘landscape’. More than two elements of an image, these represent two complementary poles, reflecting the Daoist view of the universe. The mountain is Yang — reaching vertically towards Heaven, stable, warm, and dry in the sun, while the water is Yin — horizontal and resting on the earth, fluid, moist and cool. The interaction of Yin, the receptive, feminine aspect of universal energy, and its counterpart Yang, active and masculine, is of course a fundamental notion of Daoism.

What is often overlooked is an essential third element, the Middle Void where their interaction takes place. This can be compared with the yogic practice of pranayama; breathe in, retain, breathe out — the suspension of breath is the Void where meditation occurs. The Middle Void is essential — nothing can happen without it; hence the importance of the white, unpainted space in Chinese landscape.

• Daoism – a Chinese philosophy based on the writings of Lao-Tzu
• Void – empty; vacant

The Chinese concept of art is also known as 'Shanshui,' which translates as mountain water. It is used in combination to represent the word 'landscape.' The Daoist viewpoint is reflected in an image's two complementary poles. Yang, the mountain in the landscape, means to reach vertically towards heaven, to be stable, warm, and dry in the sun. Water, on the other hand, represents Yin, the receptive and feminine aspect of universal energy. Yang is active and masculine, and it is the opposite of Yin. There is a third essential element, a Middle Void, which is where they interact. This middle void is comparable to Pranayama, which means to breathe in, retain, and exhale. The void in this meditation process is represented by the suspension of the breath. It is a necessary component because without it, nothing can happen. As a result, the white unpainted space in Chinese landscapes is just as important.

This is also where Man finds a fundamental role. In that space between Heaven and Earth, he becomes the conduit of communication between both poles of the Universe. His presence is essential, even if it’s only suggested; far from being lost or oppressed by the lofty peaks, he is, in Francois Cheng’s wonderful expression, “the eye of the landscape”.

• Conduit – channel; tube
• Oppressed – burdened; worried
• Lofty – tall or high

A man's important role is found in the middle void. Man acts as a channel of communication between the universe's two poles, Heaven and Earth. The presence of man is required. It is not being lost or suppressed as a result of high peaks, but he is the landscape's eye (Francois Cheng's expression).

About the Author

Nathalie Trouveroy is a cultural historian. She was born on the 2nd of February, 1975. She is the wife of a Belgian ambassador in India, and she has travelled extensively with her husband. She and her friend Agnes Montanari recently illustrated William Dalrymple's masterpiece, 'City of Djinns.'