Between The Roads

With a broad view of Chinese paintings throughout the ancient and modern times,themost valuable element lies in the employment of painting brushes and Chinese ink.Painting brush and ink are the soul of Chinese painting techniques as well as thespiritual core of Chinese paintings.Therefrom,a complete set of techniques andspiritual theoriesfor Chinese paintings have been developed.The techniques of usingChinese ink are also important methods to show the exterior charm and inherentappeal of Chinese paintings.Within the painting artistry,ink wash painting holds thetopmost significance.The element "ink" within Chinese paintings refers to the "ink"derived from the painting brush.Just as the saying goes:"Clothes make a man just asa saddle makes a horse",similarly,there is no ink without painting brushes.Only the ink color via the coordination and integration of Chinese painting brushes andChinese ink possesses the rhythmic charm in terms of aesthetics embedded withinChinese paintings.The object of study of this academic paper is the ink techniques ofChinese paintings.Originating from the usage of intermediary materials,inktechniques have gradually evolved into a type of mature visual language throughoutthe development history of painting.This paper firstly gives a brief review on thedevelopment history of "Chinese ink",and then expounds on studies carried out onthe "ink techniques" in different eras by following the historical developmentsequence,and lastly,the paper makes a preliminary discussion in terms of the issuesfacing the character of the contemporary age and relative creative practices.The inktechniques of Chinese paintings shall not only inherit the traditional techniques,butalso need to innovate with the trend of times.As the quote of Shi Tao goes:Chinesebrush painting shall keep abreast of the times.This quote clarifies the correct trend ofdevelopment for painting brushes and ink techniques,a unique culture symbol ofChinese paintings.As far as the author is concerned,in the contemporary era whenChinese and Western cultures are mingling and colliding with each other,thediversification of artistic development is a reflection of numerous artistic features.Within this period,a new historical positioning for traditional theories needs to beredefined;moreover,we shall gain an objective knowledge ofits social and artisticvalues for the contemporary era.To judge the quality of a Chinese painting in thetraditional sense,the techniques of using Chinese ink are very significant criteria.