Reinterpretation Of The Image Of "Sixteen Great Kings" In Zhang Shengwen's Painting Scrol

The "Zhang Shengwen Painting Scroll",also known as the "Dali Kingdom Painter Zhang Shengwen Painting the Vatican Statue Scroll",is divided into three thematic images.In the third thematic image,which is the 131-134 opening position,more than ten people are depicted with different shapes and costumes,and it is listed as the "Sixteen Kings".Nowadays,there is not much attention in the academic community to this thematic image,let alone a dedicated article for discussion.However,the author found that there are actually many problems with this thematic image.Firstly,The title of the screen chart "The Sixteen Kings" does not specify when and where the Sixteen Kingdoms were founded? Most introductory articles believe that the portrayal is of the Sixteen Kings of India,but based on the characteristics of the characters,this statement is clearly a paradox,as there is a clear image of the Central Plains emperor in the picture.Secondly,the monarchs from different regions in the picture have highly ethnic features,which raises two questions.Firstly,since they are not the Sixteen Kings of India,why are there the same number of people? The second is whether the portrayal of such exquisite character images is realistic or artistic processing based on fan text.If fan text intervenes in the creative process,where does fan text come from? Once again,the theme of the painting is ambiguous,and there are different opinions in the academic community.It may be broken down as a scene of "the Sixteen Kings of Tianzhu" worshipping Buddha due to the title and postscript,or it is believed to represent the tribute scene during the Nanzhao Kingdom period based on unofficial records,but no convincing reason has been given.How should the viewer understand the role played by the theme painting in the entire painting,What is the logical relationship between it and the other two thematic images in terms of space and content? Finally,the theme does not show any clear relationship with the Dali Duan family,and what is the intention behind it?The royal sponsorship will intentionally instruct the painter to add the theme image at the end of the scroll.For the discussion of the above issues,first of all,this article compares the image of the alien king in this painting with the image representation of the alien king in other painting works,as well as the textual description of the alien king image in literature,and matches them one by one.Combined with the surrounding relations of Dali,it is found that the identity of the sixteen kings depicted is not the sixteen kings of India,and they are not in the same era,Then it was determined that the painting was not a reproduction of historical facts.Then,by tracing the source of the title and postscript on the painting,it was speculated that the painter borrowed the story motif of the "Sixteen Kings of India" from the "King of Renwang Protectorate Sutra",which is why it fits so well in terms of number of people;For the expression of character images,different types of fan texts such as images,textual records,and social experiences may be used.Regarding the theme idea to be expressed in the screen,as the image presentation and expression techniques of the screen are very similar to the theme paintings of "Gong Gong" and "Li Buddha",the "Sixteen Kings" screen and the theme paintings of "Gong Gong" and "Li Buddha" are compared and analyzed in terms of schema and techniques,It is believed that this painting integrates the expression mode of the themes of "official tribute" and "worshipping Buddha",and uses the spatial layout of the Dunhuang Vimalakiri scripture murals to express a theme of "worshipping Buddha" that is different from traditional paper based painting.Finally,for the creative intention,due to the similar political functions of "Zhang Shengwen’s Painting Scroll" and "Nanzhao Tuzhuan",and there are obvious signs of imitation between the two.Taking the purpose of drawing the "Nanzhao Tuzhuan" as the starting point,combined with the political turmoil during Duan Zhixing’s accession to the throne and the analysis of the royal Buddhist culture,it is ultimately believed that the purpose of the appearance of the "Sixteen Great Kings" screen is threefold: firstly,it hopes to use the anti insurgency power of the "Ren Wang Hu Guo Jing" to quell the rebellion;The second is to use the opposition and equality relationship formed between the theme image and the "Li Zhen Emperor Buddha Ritual Map" theme image to promote the legitimacy and legitimacy of the Gao family’s throne and strengthen the royal power in the hands of the Duan family;The third is to satisfy the political imagination of Emperor Li Zhen,Duan Zhixing,towards serving the four barbarians...