Wieneke Archive Book 4i : Art - General Presscuttings

THE WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN MAGAZINE 7 ART/ CHINESE PAINT' NG By Sandra McGrath EDMUND CAPON, Director of the Art Gallery of New South Wales and Chi- nese scholar, was in a very "Saturday morning" relaxed mood. Wearing blue jeans and puffing on a big black cigar, Mr Capon off- ered champagne while we talked about his new picturebook publication, Chinese Paint- ing, (Phaidon). Actually, we didn't get to that point too quickly. A Whiteley drawing of a giraffe niffing an explodhig frangipani caught my eye first. It turned out that the panting was a THE SIXTH PATRIARCH CHOPPING BAMBOO - Liang K'ai, 13th century, Sung Dynasty. ONE OF TIlE EIGHT PRIZED STEEDS - Guiseppe Castiglione, 1688.1766, Ch'ing Dynasty. birthday present from his wife - who had chosen it because he has a real thing, al- ways has had, about giraffes. One of Capon's more esoteric wishes is to have one living in his garden, "I don't think people would mind," he muses. On a more serious level, however, he would dearly love Australians to know more about Chinese art. To this end he has organised an exhibition of 100 Chinese paintings to be shown here in August 1980 - straight from Peking, and never allowed to be shown overseas before. Need I add that in the museum world that is a VERY big co ap indeed, His own book, just published, is certainly a good layman's imroduction to Chinese art. "It's not an academic book," says Capon, but hastens to add that that doesn't mean you don't have to be an academic to write it. For the majority of Westerners, he admits, Chinese art is something of a problem. For Australians it is a large problem because there is so little of it here to be seen. Flipping through the pages of his book. Capon points to a 17th century painting by Chu Ta (Chu-da) called Fish and Rocks which is dramatically abstract. "A painting of that sort of abstraction of natural elements was weird to a 17th cen- tury European; or 18th or 19th century European for that matter. "it's only recently, and I mean recently, because of the abstract contemporary movement, that this painting can be better understood and appreciated.' Turning to another painting, River Land- scape executed in 1704 by Wang Yuan Ch'i, Capon again points out the abstraction in the details of rocks, mountains and trees. "At that time in Europe," he says emphati- cally, "there was nothing even REMOTELY comparable to this." Going furthur back, Capon points out a work by Liang K'ai done in the 13th Cen- tury. It shows a man chopping a bamboo plant. This drawing, explains Capon, represents a very important tradition which emerged in the south in the Sung Dynasty. It was known, he says, as the Contempla- tive (Ch'an) Style, or in Japan, the Zen. It was a style wich reflected the isolation of man on one hand and his closeness to na- ture on the other. "Ma Yuan's Landscape with Egrets on a Snowy Bank, is of this same perr,.1 and to - contemplative two works encapsulate the and philosophic notions of the time." Just why these pictures were moody and contemplative can be explained in historical terms, says Capon. The ruling house of Sung had been defeated in the north in the early 12th century, and had been pushed into the south where they had re-esta- blished themselves. This had promoted a certain cultural and philosophical intro- spection which, says Capon, is reflected in Ma Yuan's paintings. Capon's book covers paintings from the second century BC to AD 1952, The last painting shows an agricultual co-op on which the inscription calls for increased production. "I've included this picture to show how alive the tradition still is and to emphasise the continuity of Chinese art," he explains. The book lists the general characteristic of Chinese painting, whatever tu being an ink or wash placeacconna as paper. he Chinese never used oils because line has always been paramount') Capon ex- plains. While most of us know little about Chinese art, most of us do know that the Chinese were crazy (somewhat like their English cousins) about putting the horse -- in or fashioning them in ceramics. (Thefamed c Tang horse, for example).hl There are good reasons for this, says Capon, in the second and third centu- ries was the basis of transport, -But when the Chinese crossed central Asia they en- countered a new breed of horsn'",alled the Fergano. Before that they only Mongol poniee were EGRETS ON A SNOWY BAN,. placed The faces subordinate situation i scene. s always have a bland mused look, which is in complete contr Japanese erotic art which is always gerated and aggressive. "The men in Japanese erotic art,' Capon, "have penises like oak trees. Is an obsessional quality to it. "The European painter," states Cap) primarily concerned with with form ture, color and realism. The Chinese ter is always, even in landscape, cone with the IDEA. The human presence I,AINTITTI(.5CULPTURT (.R.APIRCS pi510P4110% ART BOORS lioUarl Eamon.: Ett,:1 BRIDGE' Current uni.1 /11 'S I.R211.1,AN Mendgy to Friday 10 Someday 11 am IS DP* 11. U) 11 Mt+ rAUCTIONEIN