艺术展览｜《显与晦》左槿轩个人习作展

RONG：古今中外，你最喜欢的艺术家有哪些？

左槿轩：值得喜欢和叹服的艺术家实在太多了，我想随便哪一位艺术爱好者都能拉出一个长长的列表，梵高的《星夜》无人不知无人不晓，那么我们爱看夜空，肯定不是因为只有一颗星星最闪烁，我们爱的是被漫天的星辰点燃的这无尽的长夜。所以真还说不上来最喜欢，只能说我最近把我的注意力放在古苏美尔文明的艺术品中，我很容易在一件苏美尔的雕塑中同时看到绘画，雕刻，书法融合于一体。简单，质朴，充满感情。苏美尔人雕像上大大的眼睛，可能并不是实际上他们的眼睛大，而是他们的眼睛充满了对世界的好奇，他们有勇气去看去歌颂浩大的宇宙吧。

RONG: Throughout history and across cultures, who are the artists you hold in highest esteem?

Jinxuan: There are indeed countless artists worthy of admiration and awe. Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night" is universally known and cherished. Yet, our fascination with the night sky isn't merely for its brightest star alone; it's for the endless expanse ignited by myriad stars. Thus, it's hard to pinpoint a single favorite. Lately, I've been drawn to the art of the ancient Sumerian civilization. In their sculptures, I easily discern a fusion of painting, sculpture, and calligraphy—simple, sincere, and brimming with emotion. The oversized eyes on Sumerian statues perhaps symbolize not their actual size but their profound curiosity about the world, their courage to gaze upon and celebrate the vast cosmos.

RONG：中国的书法会对你的创作有影响吗？或者说水彩这种媒介，在你国外的生活这个经验里面，当你面对画作、画布材料的时候，有没有携带这种中国的传统文化基因在你的系统里面出现？

左槿轩：以前有个朋友给我提建议，他说在我的作品中看不到明显的当代性，应该强调当代的元素，我认为这个问题和建议本身很有意思，因为我们就是当代人，我们的经验和表达本身就不可能离开此时此地。所以刻意在作品中的强调当代，才成了一种对于当代的逃离。所以您问中国书法对我的创作有影响吗？我想这是显而易见的。我是一个中国人，我从小学写中国字，朗诵李白的诗，观摩王羲之的字，欣赏石涛的画。中国，甚至东方的一切都应当存在在我的呼吸当中，这是非常自然的。但我想在我的作品中如果有人能够看到东方的元素，我希望它们是流淌出来的，而不是着意添加的。也有很多艺术家正相反，希望背弃自己的传统去表达，甚至使用“西方的艺术语言”，我很敬佩这样的勇气，但从逻辑上，可能只是西方的词语说着东方的陈词滥调。就像顾城说“一个彻底诚实的人是从不面对选择的……就像你是一棵苹果树，你憧憬结橘子，但是你还是诚实地结出苹果。”

RONG: Has Chinese calligraphy influenced your artistic creation? Alternatively, in your experiences abroad, particularly when facing paintings and canvas materials, do you find yourself carrying the genetic imprint of this traditional Chinese culture into your system, especially with mediums like watercolor?

Jinxuan: In the past, a friend offered me counsel, noting the absence of conspicuous contemporaneity in my work and suggesting an emphasis on contemporary elements. I find this issue and the counsel itself intriguing, for we are indeed denizens of the present, our experiences and expressions inexorably tethered to the here and now. Consequently, the deliberate accentuation of contemporaneity in one's work becomes a form of escape from the contemporary. So, you inquire whether Chinese calligraphy has influenced my art? I believe this to be self-evident. As a Chinese, I have inscribed Chinese characters since childhood, recited the poetry of Li Bai, studied the calligraphy of Wang Xizhi, and admired the paintings of Shi Tao. China, and indeed all aspects of the East, should naturally permeate my being. However, in my work, if one were to discern Eastern elements, I would prefer them to flow forth organically rather than being consciously added. Conversely, many artists seek to forsake their own traditions and even employ "Western artistic language." I deeply admire this courage, but logically, it may merely be Western words articulating Eastern clichés. Just as Gu Cheng said, "A thoroughly honest person is never faced with choices... It's like being an apple tree, yearning to bear oranges, yet remaining steadfastly true to bearing apples.”

▲《显与晦》展览作品