走進世界的“西湖陸”

阿童

五月的姹紫嫣紅之中，有一位精神矍鑠的老人站在游人如織的西子湖邊。清風(fēng)拂過，他的臉上始終浮現(xiàn)著微微的笑意。西湖，給了他藝術(shù)創(chuàng)作的靈思妙感；他，也用一把刻刀將西湖展示給了全世界。

這位老人，就是人稱“西湖陸”的中國美術(shù)學(xué)院教授、著名版畫藝術(shù)家陸放先生。歐洲、美洲、東南亞……陸放先生曾到世界各地講學(xué)、交流、展覽，他和他的水印木刻西湖作品享譽世界。中國美術(shù)館、大英博物館、前蘇聯(lián)莫斯科博物館、法國巴黎造型藝術(shù)中心博物館、美國波特蘭藝術(shù)館等著名學(xué)術(shù)收藏機構(gòu)均將他的“西湖”版畫熱情攬入懷中。因為他，給被譽為版畫“國粹”的木版水印技法，融入現(xiàn)代的生命力。更將傳統(tǒng)的木刻水印技法與現(xiàn)代木刻版畫藝術(shù)相融合，在表現(xiàn)“西湖”這一主題上，達到了超然的和諧，將西湖的含蓄嬌藏、清雅柔美表現(xiàn)得淋漓盡致。1996年，中國版畫家協(xié)會為表彰陸放先生的杰出貢獻，特授予他版畫界最高榮譽——“魯迅版畫獎”。

正值浙江省與日本靜岡縣正式結(jié)為友好省縣30周年，筆者再度拜訪了這位著名的中國版畫藝術(shù)家，傾聽他與版畫的故事，與他分享將中國版畫傳播到世界的自豪。

陸放先生是江蘇昆山人，自小就藏著對西湖的向往。1955年，當(dāng)他考入美院附屬中學(xué)的那一天，他終于和夢里的西子見面了?？磻T了浩淼的太湖，那波光瀲滟的西子湖，在陸放眼里顯得清秀靈巧。更為幸運的是，從那時起，他的住所就一直沒有遷動；數(shù)十年來，這座與西湖近在咫尺的寓所，便成了他親近西湖的最好理由。朝賞夕伴，西湖就住進了他的生命里。

有一年初夏的雨后，已成為浙江美術(shù)學(xué)院（現(xiàn)為中國美術(shù)學(xué)院）版畫系教授的陸放獨自來到蘇堤邊。一幅怡人的景象打動了他：眼前的堤岸緩緩地延伸到湖里去，湖水又慢慢地漫上來，猶如湖水和堤岸在深情擁抱；兩邊的楊柳倒映在水面，恰似一位出浴少女對鏡梳妝……他從心底里贊嘆：杭州西湖真可謂集自然美、人文美、倫理美于一體，達成美的極致！陸放把西湖之美收進了心扉?；厝ブ螅麆?chuàng)作了第一幅水印木刻西湖作品《蘇堤春曉》。從此，陸放便與西湖越發(fā)親近，授課之余，他跑遍了西湖的角角落落；刻刀下、木版上，一幅幅描摹西湖的作品也呼之而來。

潘天壽先生說：“西湖好看入畫難。”西子湖的風(fēng)情，不僅在于她四季各不同，雨晴各相宜，更在于她有豐富深厚的人文內(nèi)涵。要抓住西湖的情態(tài)，概括出西湖的嬌韻，卻非一朝一夕可以達到。因此，不論是嚴(yán)冬酷暑，還是昏晨雨夕，陸放先生常常會漫步湖濱，駐足湖畔，時時刻刻細細品味，揣摩西湖的含蓄清靈，一有所得，即掏出紙筆，把稍縱即逝的感受記錄下來。50余年來，陸放為西湖描畫過無以計數(shù)的小稿速寫，終于以詩人般的靈性，品讀出西湖的種種神韻，并以獨特的水印版畫技巧去詮釋西湖之美。古人認(rèn)為游西湖，宜于月夜、雨中、霧里、雪后，陸放教授也特別喜愛表現(xiàn)晨昏月中、煙雨迷濛、銀妝素裹的西湖。他的刀筆之下，詩情畫意相融，妙趣墨韻盎然。西湖的煙柳、西湖的荷花、西湖的秋月……一幅幅具有西子情韻的代表性作品《煙雨西子》《清晨奏鳴》《西泠仲夏》《平湖秋月》《三潭印月》等廣受好評。陸放先生和他的作品也因此得到國際版畫界的高度評價和悉心典藏。

1982年4月20日，浙江省與日本靜岡縣正式結(jié)為友好省縣關(guān)系。同年，由靜岡縣主辦，浙江省協(xié)助的“靜岡縣中國浙江省展覽會”在靜岡縣剛剛落成的靜岡產(chǎn)業(yè)館隆重舉行。由于展覽會上需要展現(xiàn)西湖風(fēng)光的中國藝術(shù)作品，主辦方在展會前輾轉(zhuǎn)找到陸放先生，請求送去10幅作品參展。當(dāng)作品抵達靜岡產(chǎn)業(yè)館展出后，日本的觀眾們震驚了！他們從來沒有看到過這樣散發(fā)著如此清雅氣息、具有中國水墨畫神韻的版畫作品！主辦方立即誠懇致電陸放先生，請求收藏這些作品。但是考慮到這些具有代表性意義的精品力作應(yīng)該留在中國，陸放委婉地拒絕了對方的請求。

后來，日方又幾度邀請，甚至由國會議員出面，陸放先生才于1991年帶著他之后創(chuàng)作的80余幅版畫作品，前往日本舉辦了他的個人展覽。展覽大獲成功，所有的參展作品均被日本的藏家們留下。

1994年，美國馬里蘭學(xué)院院長親自發(fā)出邀請，請陸放先生去美國進行為期兩個月的講學(xué)。這次的講學(xué)為中國現(xiàn)代水印木刻版畫技法傳入美洲大地播下了種子。法國、俄羅斯、菲律賓……去世界各地交流、講學(xué)，陸放帶著“西湖”版畫跑過了歐洲很多著名博物館，但他卻從未看到過一幅水印版畫。而唯一擁有浮世繪時代傳自中國的水印技術(shù)的鄰邦日本，也只有帶著濃厚平版套色油印個性的作品。

于是，他進一步借鑒始于明代南京十竹齋畫坊的技法，摒棄了一般版畫中黑白色調(diào)大量運用的特點，在保留木刻版畫的刀味與木味的基礎(chǔ)上，大膽采用色彩變化來豐富畫面，并通過套色宣紙水印中的“水暈”技法，使傳統(tǒng)木刻水印在表現(xiàn)“西湖”這一母題上達到了內(nèi)容與形式的高度和諧。其中最難掌握的就是宣紙上的水分和顏色，對于一幅作品中水分的掌握，要經(jīng)過很多次實驗。水是流動的，于是水印版畫是活的。陸放先生說，即使把我的刻版拿去，也難以印制出我的作品神韻。

版畫創(chuàng)作是寂寞的。陸放先生的一幅版畫作品，一般至少需要兩三個月甚至更長的時間來完成。對于人們“版畫就是印出來的”這一偏頗的理解。陸放先生用了一個時間的比對來說明藝術(shù)創(chuàng)作的艱辛。印一張版畫，和一位國畫家繪制一幅四尺整張國畫山水的時間相當(dāng)；而刻一套印版，則與一位油畫家畫完一幅數(shù)米長的大幅油畫的時間相近。并且，按照國際慣例，版畫的印數(shù)有嚴(yán)格的規(guī)定，一套版子，只能印制２５張?！皣媱?chuàng)作是做加法，油畫創(chuàng)作是做加減法，版畫則是做減法。每下一刀都決定著作品的成敗。”陸放先生說。

50余年與西湖相伴，西湖的一情一景都成筆在胸，可陸放的西湖系列版畫尚不足30件，令人咋舌嘆奇。陸放先生說，一是創(chuàng)作難度大，３個月創(chuàng)作一幅，不能有很多數(shù)量；二是西湖乃自然、人文之大美，不是所有風(fēng)景都能以版畫的形式來表現(xiàn)。因此，陸放先生一幅幅清潤華滋、水氣流動的作品彌足珍貴。水印木刻版畫作品《斷橋殘雪》被中國美術(shù)館收藏，《蘇堤春曉》、《晨曲》被大英博物館收藏，《銀姿》被前蘇聯(lián)莫斯科博物館收藏，《瑞雪》被法國巴黎造型藝術(shù)中心博物館收藏，《雪花飄飄》被美國波特蘭藝術(shù)館收藏……世界各大博物館的青睞，足以說明陸放“西湖”版畫的價值和意義。

去年秋天，“陸放藏書票博物館”在江南名山莫干山落成，舉辦過無數(shù)次個展的陸放先生，仍無私地將一生的藝術(shù)創(chuàng)作與觀者分享……

傳承了2000多年的水印木刻技法，是中華民族的智慧結(jié)晶，被稱為版畫界的“國粹”！當(dāng)石版、銅版、鋅版、絲網(wǎng)等版畫技術(shù)在世界版畫創(chuàng)作中盛行的時候，這一種清韻流轉(zhuǎn)、富有水墨之美的版畫藝術(shù)，屬于西湖，屬于中國！□

Master Recreates West Lake in Prints

By A Tong, our special contributor

Lu Fang is a professor of watercolor woodblock printing with China Academy of Art in Hangzhou. Within the circles of art, how-ever, he is famed as West Lake Lu. His West Lake masterpieces are in the collections of such prestigious museums as China Art Mu-seum, British Museum, Moscow Art Museum, the Centre National Des Arts Plastiques in Paris, and Portland Museum of Art of the United States.

Born in 1932 in Kunshan in neighboring Jiangsu Province, Lu Fang came to Hangzhou in 1955 when he began to study at the af-filiated middle school of the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts, the predecessor of present days China Academy of Art. He fell in love with the West Lake at the first sight. After four years study at the academy, he began to teach the printmaking art at his alma mater in 1960. Though he loved the West Lake dearly and he has been living in the same house just a stones throw from the lake over decades, years had elapsed before he was able to find a way to reproduce the lake in his watercolor block printing art. One summer day after rain, he strolled along the Su Causeway on the lake and found he was fascinated by the way the lake, the willows, the causeway interacted with each other. He thought he had at last discovered his artistic bond with the lake. Back home that day, the inspired artist started carving his impression and memory onto wood blocks. This was his first art reproduction of the lake.

The legendary lake has been a centerpiece of poems and essays and paintings since very ancient times. Pan Tianshou (1898-1971), a prominent master painter and director of Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts, famously commented on the difficulty of painting the West Lake, saying that the beauty of the lake was hard to paint.

That is partly why there are few modern masterpieces of the West Lake and why Lu Fangs watercolor woodblock prints of the West Lake are so highly appreciated. Lu Fang is one of the few artists who have successfully translated their love of the West Lake into image artworks.

His first international fame came in the early 1980s. On April 20, 1982, Zhejiang Province and Shizuoka Prefecture of Japan bonded as twin cities. Zhejiang decided to hold an exhibition in Shizuoka. Organizers from Zhejiang looked for artworks that could convey the beauty of the West Lake. They approached Lu. Lus ten prints of the West Lake made a sensation at the exhibition. The Japanese visitors were astonished by the soul-touching artistry oozing from the watercolor block prints. They had never seen anything like this before. The Japanese side phoned Lu Fang, asking if it was possible to buy the ten masterpieces. Lu declined on the grounds that the pieces should stay in China.

Over the following years, Lu was approached many times to hold an exhibition in Japan. It was not until 1991 that Lu Fang took more than 80 pints to Japan for a solo exhibition. It was a success. Collectors bought all the exhibits. Kitaoka Fumio (1918-2007), presumably the best printmaker of Japan in his lifetime, came all the way to visit Lu in Hangzhou. He proposed to exchange one of his artworks for one of Lu. Lu agreed, but declined for another ex-change.

Master Lu is more than a printmaker who captures the beauty of the West Lake. He is an innovative watercolor block printer. Based on the techniques of Ten Bamboos Studio of Nanjing of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), where watercolor woodblock printing was invented and perfected, Lu developed sophisticated printing tech-niques. He remarks that other people would not be able to print the style and charm well even if they use his woodblocks.

As a master of watercolor block printing, Lu came to internation-al fame for a reason. While he created masterpieces in this special printing genre, most foreign printmakers had never seen the Chi-nese watercolor woodblock printing. Lu was invited to give lectures and teach in special courses.

For Lu, printmaking is a lonely enterprise. It usually takes him three months to produce a work of art. Some people mistakenly think that, since printmaking is just a way of printing, how difficult would it be to print things? According to his calculation, making a print usually takes as much time as a traditional Chinese artist cre-ates a painting on a piece of four-foot rice paper. Carving a full set of blocks takes as much time as an oil painter creates an oil painting that is several meters long. His prints are precious simply because he can make no more than 25 prints on a set of blocks. This is a rule followed more or less by all the printmakers in the world.

Though Lu Fang has known the lake for more than 50 years, the number of his print artworks of the lake is less 30. It is only natural. It takes him about three months to complete carving a set and it takes him more time to find a new way to reproduce a scene of the lake. It is because, though the lake embodies the best of history and culture and gardening, it is hard to capture a right moment, right angle to make the lake look beautiful on a print. □