A Painting to See the Heart

: "Painting art comes from the heart", this is Shi Tao's view. He believes that the essence of the heart is "a painting", which will eventually return to the nature of the heart and self, which is the so-called "heart and sex homology". From the heart is the key to understanding Shi Tao's theory of one painting.

Shi Tao is a survivor.He went from being a descendant of a prominent royal family to a commoner, and then fled into an empty house.But while he demonstrated a deep understanding of the nation's demise and the twists and turns of his personal destiny, he was not able to join other artists in the resistance to Manchu rule.Instead, he chose to escape reality and devote himself to natural landscapes, expressing his inner feelings through painting and calligraphy.Shi Tao should have known something about the cause of the fall of the Ming Dynasty and realized that this trend could not be reversed, so he chose to give up the idea of resisting the Manchu Dynasty.However, although he appeared to be a monk, he was actually a man of changeable character, only forced to hide in the mountains and forests to seek solace, so he devoted more efforts to the world of painting and calligraphy as a way to express his complex inner emotions.
Shi Tao claimed to have been born into the royal and aristocratic family.At the time of the Ming Dynasty's downfall, he was just a child, and his ordination was more of a political stance.This is different from Jianjiang's "passive and isolated nature".Shi Tao's personality is full of "dynamic" factors, so he was in the Buddhist sect but his heart was drawn to the mortal world.During Kangxi's southern tour, Shi Tao received him twice and shouted 'Long live the mountain!'He also took the initiative to enter the capital and make connections with high-ranking officials, attempting to make a name for himself.However, the powerful only regarded him as a monk who could paint and did not care about him, so his success was on the verge of failure.Therefore, he lived his life in contradiction between his lofty self praise and his unwillingness to remain silent.Fortunately, he was extremely intelligent and cleverly vented this contradiction in his paintings.Therefore, his works were arranged in a horizontal and vertical manner, flashing and moving, full of vitality and tension.This is also his extraordinary brilliance and the reason why his works present magnificent characteristics.Shi Tao claimed to have been born into the royal and aristocratic family.At the time of the Ming Dynasty's downfall, he was just a child, and his ordination was more of a political stance.This is different from Jianjiang's "passive and isolated nature".Shi Tao's personality is full of "dynamic" factors, so he was in the Buddhist sect but his heart was drawn to the mortal world.During Kangxi's southern tour, Shi Tao received him twice and shouted 'Long live the mountain!'He also took the initiative to enter the capital and make connections with highranking officials, attempting to make a name for himself.However, the powerful only regarded him as a monk who could paint and did not care about him, so his success was on the verge of failure.Therefore, he lived his life in contradiction between his lofty self praise and his unwillingness to remain silent.Fortunately, he was extremely intelligent and cleverly vented this contradiction in his paintings.Therefore, his works were arranged in a horizontal and vertical manner, flashing and moving, full of vitality and tension.This is also his extraordinary brilliance and the reason why his works present magnificent characteristics.
Shi Tao once said: "Brush and ink should follow The Times, and the style of poetry and prose has turned to the simple and light painting of ancient times.Brush and ink should follow The Times, Judas style to the ancient painting simple but light."[1]He laments and criticizes the changing trends of the current social environment.

The Theory of the One Picture
Later generations commented on Shi Tao, he is considered to be an outstanding representative figure of an era, whether in painting or poetry, just based on his work "Quotations of Painting", he has an irreplaceable position in the history of Chinese painting theory.The greatest achievement of "Quotations of Painting" is that it clearly put forward the theory of "One painting" for the first time, and elevated it to the level of art philosophy, and discussed how artists can realize the freedom of creation through this theory, thus creating a new perspective of the beauty of Chinese painting.In the ancient Chinese philosophical system, ontology is also known as the "original root theory", which mainly studies the birth, survival and evolution of all things and its basic principles and basis.In Shi Tao's Quotations of Painting, we can see the idea of Tao giving birth to One, that is, the view of Tao law being natural.First of all, "One painting" has the meaning of "Tao", it is the basis of the law of the universe; Second, it can also be understood as a simplified expression to describe Shi Tao and his theory of one painting. [2]Yi Painting is the foundation of both the universe and art.When a painter's mind is filled with the chaos, vastness and fullness of the beginning of the universe, then Yi painting will naturally appear in the picture.As long as we master the method of "one painting", we can achieve the effect of "going deep into details with one painting, and the intention is clearly visible", so that the image has vitality and spiritual power.Therefore, Shi Tao's "One painting" method is a practical technique that aims to break the shackles of traditional painting rules and overcome Lao Tzu's negative thoughts of inaction in practice. [2]Yi Painting is regarded by Shi as the basic concept of his artistic philosophy.It not only covers and explains the laws of the birth and development of all things in nature, but also summarizes a way of creating life and its form.This "One painting" represents nature and art creation, and it has also become the basic principle that artists follow.

A Painting to See the Mind
Although Shi Tao is a painter, he is also a monk.For Buddhist believers, "One painting" represents the "one mind Dharma realm" in the Huayan world, "one thing?Clear mind to see the nature ", "clear understanding of their own mind, see the nature". [3]This echoes the "unity of mind and nature" mentioned in the Hua Yan Sutra.Zhong Yueying believes that the "One painting" theory proposed by Shi Tao is both a way of thinking, a cognitive system and a practical strategy.If we understand it according to the Buddhist definition of "one", we can come to the conclusion that "mind nature is the same" and "a painting sees mind nature".Therefore, "one painting" can also be regarded as "mind painting".[3]"Bitter Gourd Monk's Quotation" mentions a painting at the beginning, and discusses the art through the discussion of the mind, which not only conforms to the concept of Buddhism, but also conforms to China's deep cultural tradition --emotional expression and spiritual pursuit.

The Spirit of a Painting
From the perspective of handed down works, Shi Tao is not only considered an innovative painter in the history of painting, but also a prolific author with a wide range of creative themes.Shi Tao's expressive techniques are rich in variation, yet can be uniquely and harmoniously unified into his own style and characteristics.The changes in his painting style are closely related to his life experiences.He has traveled to Guangxi, Jiangxi, Hubei, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Beijing throughout his life.The true mountains and waters of nature have endowed him with profound painting skills and foundations.In his exploration and perception of nature, he integrates the technical strengths of his predecessors.Therefore, he emphasizes "learning from nature" in his painting creation, and constructs his painting creation and aesthetic system as "using brush and ink to write about heaven and earth while swimming in pottery".Shi Tao is a monk who transitioned from Zen to painting, thus his painting style seems to have a transcendent artistic conception, with high artistic achievements in landscapes, figures, flowers, and animals.Of course, 'searching for all the peaks and sketching' is the most important key to the success of Shi Tao's painting art.
If an artist only relies on the representation of things during the creation process, his works may appear dull and lack personality and creativity.To achieve breakthroughs and innovations, the artist's keen insight is needed first to discover unique things and give them new life.By constantly adjusting the way of thinking and the Angle of observation, the artist can get inspiration from it, thus laying the foundation for innovation.At the same time, they also need to shape their inner purity and have a broad mind, which is the spirit of Yihua.

Combine Their Own Professional Perception
As for the relationship between oil painting creation and life, I think creation is to create through one's own understanding and aesthetic appreciation through one's own creative and favorite expression techniques, and there is an inherent relationship between creation and life.If the two are separated, the picture will be emotionless and empty.Therefore, I believe that creation can reflect life, and creation also comes from life.I like bitter melon and Shang Shitao's "One painting theory" very much.It fully affirms the personality of the creator, fully respects the creativity of the artist, and explores the source of this creative personality and innovation.
Shi Tao put forward the idea of "searching the peak and writing the draft", advocating that the painter should go into nature to feel the real landscape "a painting".Only after a lot of imitation and practice, can the painter accumulate rich materials and experience, better master the traditional painting skills, and understand the painting principles, which reflects Shi Tao's emphasis on nature sketching.When painting oil landscapes, I also like to go sketching, walking into nature and feeling the air, light and color.I also have this feeling in the process of painting, painting photos and sketching outside are completely two different feelings.After a lot of painting, I can quickly improve my level.
Recently, there is a popular word, Chinese oil painting, which requires the use of traditional Chinese painting expression and composition methods to paint oil, among which freehand oil painting is not dependent on the depiction of the image of things, the color and object on the picture should have their own personality and creativity, explore things and give new life.

Conclusion
Throughout the world of Shi Tao before and after his death, for over two hundred years, his pursuit and controversy have never ceased.Among the nearby modern masters and people, Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics, Zhang Daqian, and Fu Baoshi are all very "stone enthusiasts".From multiple opinions, it seems that the voices praising and praising Shi Tao outweigh the harsh criticism.However, no one is perfect.In the long river of Chinese art history, the position of Shi Tao in the development of modern art is undeniable, but from a strict theoretical perspective, his artistic shortcomings should also be reflected upon.
"Brush and ink should follow The Times" embodies Shi Tao's soul.[4] It is a living spirit that requires artists to move with the changing times.As young people with all the favorable conditions, we should understand the full significance of Shi Tao's painting.