Innovation Based On Traditions: A Study Of Dong Qichang's Artistic Creation And Its Impact

Dong Qichang's influence of painting is everlasting and having a great impact on present arts. As far as calligraphy is concerned, he, together with Xing Dong, Mi Wanzhong, Zhang Ruitu, is listed as"Four Masters of Calligraphy at late Ming Dynasty". He was proficient in "Zen" and the spirit of "Zen" was well embodied in the realm of calligraphy. Influence of his calligraphy reached the highest state at the period of Emperor Kangxi .His arts combine his artistic personality with his special background of the times, thus forming a kind of goods to the Yat Tang-Song Dynasty paintings with the aesthetic standards. The quiet, fresh and plain mood of his work is embodied naturally and fully through the ink form. He was still in the pursuit of the ancient artistic cultivation and his outstanding artistic achievements were not only different from other artists', but also were praised by other artists highly.The paper includes five chapters.The first chapter focuses on Dong Qichang's characters, his living environment and experiences to explore the goods as the late Ming and Yi Dong Qichang painting on behalf of the life and character.In the second chapter, some explorations will be made according to his works and others' reviews about him to analyze his profound thoughts and reveal the sources of his creation: Confucianism, Taoism, Zen and Heart School.In chapter three and four respectively, the paper is aimed at studying Dong's innovation according to his landscape paintings and calligraphy and revealing his impacts on the later generations.Chapter five mainly studies the procedure of Dong's acquiring his fame and his his styles' influence on the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty landscape painting.