Due to the peculiarities of the Chinese brush and ink, the painted line plays a crucial role in the depiction of form. On Sept. 30 Bilingual Arts looked at how the likeness of Vimalakirti was rendered in the style of Wu Daozi, who would build up clothing and form in his paintings with flowing lines.
The artist Liang Kai (approx. 1140 —1279) also painted his work Li Bai in Stroll with lines, although here he used broad strokes in an unrestrained style, using light tones. He painted the outline of the figure and clothing assertively, in what appears to be a single stroke, against a background he kept completely blank.
Liang captured the very essence of his subject with his precise control over brush and ink. With economical strokes, he created the collar with an ink wash, followed by the facial features — forehead, nose, eyebrow, eye, lips, jawline — in profile, using the tip of the brush, before painting on a wispy beard. The thickest ink he uses to paint on the top knot, then giving short flicks of the brush to depict individual strands of hair.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片：維基共享資源
This is a representative work of the Chan (Zen) Buddhist painting style, employing bold yet free, succinct brushwork to create a rendition quite ahead of its time, capturing the unpretentious personality and laid back aspect of the poet Li Bai (701 — 762) as he strolls along, reciting verse.
Liang Kai was originally known for the meticulous brushwork of his landscapes and figurative paintings. He served in the imperial art academy, at the whim of the emperor, where it was said that everyone was in awe of the detailed quality of his paintings. He would later, however, eschew the status that came with the academy, and reject the detailed, meticulous painting style that it represented, turning instead to painting Buddhist and Taoist subjects, as well as the ancient sages. He began to imbue his work with the Buddhist and Taoist concept, popular at the time, of the moment of enlightenment, using simple brushstrokes to convey profundity. This style was called jianbi hua, meaning “minimalist painting.”
Liang Kai’s conversion from painting realistic depictions to focusing on how to capture the essential spirit of his subject could be said to be a reaction to the prevailing painting style of the time. As this jianbi hua style entailed the paring away of the unessential, what was left, with each stroke of the brush, was the most essential, the most able to capture the spirit of the subject: That, in itself, was incomparable precision, something that could only be achieved through the most ardent training in realist depiction.
(Translated by Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
由於毛筆及水墨的工具特性，線條成為造形的極重要方式。九月三十日雙語藝術單元所介紹的吳道子風格的《維摩詰像》，便以流轉的細線條累積形塑人物的衣著與形象。
同樣是用線條造形，梁楷（約西元一一四○～一二七九年）的《李白行吟圖》卻是用粗闊狂放的筆勢與淡墨，幾乎是以單一的筆觸交代出著長袍的人物身形輪廓，背景則完全留白，作風大膽。
梁楷以筆墨準確地抓取事物的本質特徵：再添幾筆淡墨加厚高度成了領子，然後以筆尖輕盈幾筆交代出人物的側臉——額頭、鼻子、眉毛、眼睛、嘴唇、下巴，再刷出飄然的鬍鬚；最濃的墨畫出髮髻，再刷出頭髮，絲絲可見。
這是禪宗繪畫代表作之一，用筆簡練豪放、風格前衛，將詩仙李白（西元七○一～七六二年）不羈的個性及吟遊的瀟灑神態刻畫得極為生動。
梁楷早期以工筆細密的山水及人物畫享盛名，並曾被任命為畫院待詔，「院人見其精描之筆，無不拜伏」。然而，梁楷拒絕了畫院的高位、捨棄了精細繁複的畫法，轉以描繪佛道及古代高人逸士，並將當時盛行的禪宗佛教「頓悟」的精神帶入繪畫，以極簡的筆墨舉重若輕，被後人稱之為「簡筆畫」（或減筆畫）。
梁楷由「寫實」轉向「寫意」，可說是對當時畫風的反動。既然簡筆畫所減掉、抽去的是不重要的部分，那麼意味著所留下來的、所下的每一筆，都是最精到、最能抓住神韻——那其實是一種無比的精準，唯有深厚的寫實訓練才能夠提煉得出來。
（台北時報林俐凱）
In 2023, an 80-year-old woman in Taipei suffocated her paralyzed son after over five decades of caring for him. Turning herself in immediately, she confessed that worsening health and anxiety about who would care for him after her death had driven her to act. The court, acknowledging her difficult situation, sentenced her to two-and-a-half years in prison while recommending a presidential pardon. This rare judicial recommendation drew a complicated social response. Supporters argue that the mother’s half-century of caregiving renders her deserving of compassion instead of incarceration, believing that allowing her to live her final years in dignity and
★ Bilingual Story is a fictionalized account. 雙語故事部分內容純屬虛構。 The mango looked perfect. It sat on the fruit stand like a small sunset, red on one side and gold on the other. “I’ll take this one,” said Daniel. The fruit seller shook her head. “Not that one.” Daniel was surprised. “Why not? It looks beautiful.” “Yes,” she said, “but beautiful is not always ready.” She picked up another mango and held it near his nose. “First, smell here.” Daniel smelled the top of the mango. It was sweet and warm. “Good mangoes have a smell,” she said. “Next, feel the weight.”
A: Over 130,000 college graduates are about to enter the workforce upon graduation. B: According to a survey, the top 10 most desired careers among Taiwanese are: independent content creator, civil servant, information engineer, financial professional, medical worker, content planner, flight attendant, news anchor, designer and fitness trainer. A: What are the “dream jobs” for young Gen Zers? B: The top three for men are YouTuber, pro gamer and engineer. For women, they are writer, social media editor and YouTuber. A: Every profession has its champion. Just look at Taiwanese fire dancer Yang Li-wei — who was on fire
1. 他非常討厭偽君子。 ˇ He has a deep hatred for hypocrites. χ He has a deep hatred to hypocrites. 註︰表示「對某人懷著愛、恨」等， 常用 have a love for/of, have a hatred for/of。 例如： We have a love for/of science. The working people have a hatred for/of all forms of exploitation. 2. 問題的答案其實不難找。 ˇ The answer to this question is not difficult to find. χ The answer of this question is not difficult to find. 註︰中文中的「的」在英語中不一定都用 of 來表示，有時須用 to。其他的例子如下： 我把房間的鑰匙弄丟了。 I lost the key to the room. 中間矗立著烈士紀念碑。 In the center stands the monument to the martyrs. 這部電影的續集你看過沒有？ Have you seen the sequel to the movie? 3. 比起那家餐廳，他更喜歡這家。 ˇ He prefers this restaurant to that one. ˇ He likes
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