WOU-KI WITH PHILOSOPHICAL THINKING OF LAO ZI AND ZHUANG ZI In the 20th century, two painting masters appeared in Chinese art circles. One was called "Buddhist artist" and the other was called "Taoist painter". The former refers to the Chinese painting master Chang Daichien and the latter refers to the painting master Zao Wou-ki. Although Chang Daichien was a monk at youth, the theme he created was sometimes linked with Buddhist art, but now we have no intent on investigating the essence of their religious beliefs. In fact, the so-called "Buddhist artist" and "Taoism painter" were derived by an anecdote when two masters once met, they just amused each other with the other party's "name". The phrases of "Dachien" and "Wou-ki" in Chinese are indeed rich in philosophical meaning. Here, we would like to introduce the creative painting master, Zao Wou-ki, who has philosophical thinking of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi. The phrase, Wou-ki, was specially granted by the artist's grandfather, who was a believer of Taoism, as the given name of the artist. "Wou-ki" means the primordial state of the universe. It is the primeval chaos and is believed that was the stage before earth and sky were formed. Zhang Heng, an astronomer in Eastern Han Dynasty, had once put forward the concept of the infinite universe with the saying that "Yu represents Wou-ki, zhou symbolizes Taichi." The study of philosophical thinking of infinite universe has gradually become the artistic value abided by Zao Wou-ki in his life. All his paintings have been signed with two ancient Chinese characters, Wou-ki, showing that he is always thinking about his own cultural origin. REDISCOVER CHINA Zao Wou-ki once said: "Picasso taught us how to draw a Picasso, Cézanne taught me how to appreciate the essence of our Chinese paintings." He meant that the appreciation of Picasso's paintings couldn't get much room for inspiration, but for Cézanne, particularly when admiring the "Mont Sainte Victoire", "The undifferentiated hues between the mountains and the sky are strikingly similar to that in classical Chinese ink paintings." Zao Wou-ki thinks that travel is the best way to enrich the creativity. Chinese literati in the ancient time got the philosophy from visiting the mountains and rivers. Modern artists can naturally find the good materials to excite inspiration by visiting museum and sightseeing scenic spots around the world. In 1951, Zao Wou-ki traveled to Bern, Switzerland, and he discovered Paul Klee's paintings first time in an exhibition. Paul Klee's paintings expressed the inner world by analogous calligraphic symbols, which fitted closed with the artist's mind. Inspired by Klee, who deeply influenced by Chinese calligraphy and Arabic text, Zao Wouki's paintings no longer show motionless objects, nor flowers exist. He has turned to imaginable symbols and unreadable handwriting. Zao Wou-ki has found another level of western painting and entered the "poetical" free world. Alain Jouffroy, a French poet and art critic, made a comment in the "Art" magazine, "Zao Wou-ki's work shows clearly how the Chinese vision of universe, where blurredness and faraway backgrounds mirror, rather than the scenery gazed at, a contemplative mind, has become a universal modern one. Men as different as Paul Klee, Mark Tobey or Henri Michaux also resort to it." The world outlook of Chinese people and the philosophy of Taoist thinking based on Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi have hidden in Zao Wou-ki's delicate mentality, and penetrated into his paintings. The symbols and lines under Zao Wou-ki's brush have presented pleasant and liberated feelings. Inspired by the picturesque Chinese inscriptions on oracle bone and ancient bronze objects, Zao Wou-ki had reveled in the culture of his motherland for a period. However, besides the serious emotional hurt, the impact of Klee brought no small burden on him later on, and he almost banished himself at a time. Afterward, he simply abandoned all symbols and image. "Every cloud has a silver lining." After twists and turns, he started to search for broad space. The magnificent mountains and gorgeous rivers are waiting for him. Since 1958, Zao Wouki's paintings no longer have ahe title, and only the date of completion was noted on the back of the painting canvas. FREEDOM OF THE CREATIVE PRACTICE Zao Wou-ki found love again in Hong Kong and his second beautiful wife, May, was a film star. When they came back to Paris, they moved into a new house and a large studio, where had especially been the haven for isolating his soul from the outside. At that time, he was moving toward the new prime of his artistic achievement. For the period spanning 1960 to 1970, Zao channeled all his energy towards painting. As written in his autobiography, he took on these 10 years like a speeding Porsche. He was racing against time to present his newfound thoughts. Driven by love, he worked fervently. Looking back, he felt a sense of gratification and achievement, having advanced his works into the matured stage. In 1960, he participated in the Venice Biennale, and in 1964, he held the first retrospective solo exhibition. With the help of Galerie de France in Paris and Kootz Gallery in the United States, the annual exhibition of Zao Wou-ki was held continuously in Europe and the United States. His exhibition had high visibility and was widely welcomed by most people. The size of his paintings also got bigger and bigger with his self-confidence. The rich creativity of Zao Wou-ki made him reach another high peak in 1960s. Zao Wouki said in an interview, "Most people are subject only to one kind of tradition, but I subordinated to both traditions." It shows that he was influenced by dual relationship of Chinese traditional culture and western art. He spoke of the influence on him by Paris more than once. Paris makes him become a true artist, and with the maturing of thinking, he gradually rediscovered China. In turn, China was reflected in his paintings. However, this has to be attributed to Paris. If he had not studied in Europe, not in Paris, a city with comprehensive humanism and culture, he would have not showed his art features as today. Undoubtedly, his paintings have blended with the essence of Chinese and the western arts. "(He) has combined the affection of France with the space perception of the Far East." (Japanese art historian Shuji Takashina stated.) But in the 1960s, his works had intensified brushwork and the sense of movement, and his heart was filled with complicated emotional entanglement, due to his wife who suffered from depression. Many art critics believe that the death of his wife, May, in 1972, had become the demarcation of Zao Wou-ki's paintings. He picked up the driving force from ink painting later on. It can be said that Zao Wou-ki's oil paintings turned to gorgeous color after 1970s, focusing on the light sense in the painting. Take "1.12.68" (13.2.77) as example to comment the classical style of Zao Wou-ki From the subject of the works "1.12.68" (13.2.77), this is a painting completed on December 1, 1968, and added some strokes on February 13, 1977. Two dates can be seen occasionally in Zao Wou-ki's works. 1968 is the prime for the artist, vigorous and cheerful with creativity. Especially, when this painting was selected for grand retrospective exhibition at Palais des Beaux- Arts, Charleroi in Belgium, it is beyond description that the artist or the represented Galerie Fra, as well as the works, is strong and significant. However, 1968 was also the year that the grief and indignation filled up Zao Wouki. The first sentence in his autobiography jointly written by his third wife, Françoise, in French in 1988 mentioned his father, "Mon père est mort en 1968, en pleine Révolution culturelle." Zao Wou-ki has been recognized in the foreign land for many years since before 1968, but he could not be able to return hometown to visit his parents smoothly, because of major historical turning in China since 1949. Zao Wou-ki didn't get the visa until 1972, and he returned to the hometown he left 24 years ago. The deep regret for his father was lasted to 1985 and was slightly relieved, when Zao Wou-ki came back to his alma mater to give lecture in Hangzhou. Perhaps, it was because of the grief for the loss of his beloved father and the torture by the serious illness of his wife, a fierce uncontrollable emotion could be seen in his works of "1.12.68", just as it appeared in his other works of this period with same ponderous momentum. The large red background in "1.12.68" with dark ochreous brushwork tossing and entangling, a golden and white brilliancy mildly infiltrated in the space of the picture, forming a balance of contrast with the vibration and producing a large momentum and tension. From the layout of painting, Zao Wou-ki adopted vertical scroll as Chinese landscape painting for his works of "1.12.68", rather than the banner as often adopted in west for natural scenery. The vertical structure composes a lofty and far-reaching realm, which is a Chinese world outlook and space concept. However, having been living in Paris for long period, Zao Wou-ki has been also impacted by western heritage aesthetic thinking. He ingeniously put unique light of the west into his creation. The magnificent and brilliant performance, as well as the mysterious and splendid colors and fantasy space expressed in the works of "1.12.68", this painting had once been supported by Galerie de France and sent to Palais des Beaux-Arts, Charleroi in Belgium for exhibition. Later, it was purchased by Aix Gallery in Stockholm as a collection. Zao Wou-ki's artistic influence has transcended borders. The art institutions and collectors, who are fond of collecting his works, are around the world. Zao Wou-ki got the Japan Royal Award, "Praemium Imperial Award of Painting from Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko"(1994), and the highest honor for a member of Académie des Beaux Arts (2002) many years ago. In the developing history of abstract art in China, Zao Wou-ki has already been honored as a pioneer, playing an important role in this field. Perhaps in the course of artistic career, Zao Wou-ki could be considered lucky, but at the same time, in the course of his life, he has experienced numerous misfortunes. He has sturdily overcome a lot of difficulties and emotional turmoil. He has expressed all the heartfelt emotions and touches in his paintings. After experienced the vicissitudes of life, the artist is gradually getting unperturbed and moving toward "primordial serenity", which is the ideological core spirit of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi in China, and entering a far-reaching painting world, roaming with freedom and leisure.