晉鷗與中日藝術(shù)文化的三種緣

文/ 徐子衿

晉鷗（左三）在日本東京參加由浙江省文化和旅游廳主辦的“來(lái)詩(shī)畫(huà)浙江，為亞運(yùn)喝彩”文旅交流展。Jin Ou delivers a speech at an calligraphy exchange event commemorating the 40th anniversary of the friendly relations between Zhejiang province and Shizuoka prefecture.

日語(yǔ)里有個(gè)詞叫“一期一會(huì)”，意思是表演茶道的人會(huì)在心里懷著“難得一面，世當(dāng)珍惜”的心情來(lái)誠(chéng)心禮遇面前每一位品茶客人。其實(shí)，最早這個(gè)日語(yǔ)詞匯前面還有一個(gè)佛教禪語(yǔ)的中文譯詞叫“會(huì)者定離”，可以通俗解釋為世事無(wú)常，聚散總相隨。“會(huì)者定離，一期一會(huì)；勿懷憂也，世相如是?！边@兩個(gè)詞連在一起組成的這一句禪語(yǔ)，提醒人們要珍惜生命中每個(gè)瞬間的機(jī)緣，并為人生中可能僅有的一次相會(huì)付出真心。

人們常說(shuō)，篆刻是最被賦予“一期一會(huì)”意義的藝術(shù)形式之一，因?yàn)樵谥斡∵^(guò)程中，刀與印料之間的碰撞會(huì)產(chǎn)生無(wú)數(shù)細(xì)小的崩裂紋理，沒(méi)有規(guī)律可尋，憑的是藝術(shù)家的天賦、功底、敏感度、創(chuàng)造力和審美情操，這讓篆刻藝術(shù)充滿了未知的魅力，每一方印章都是獨(dú)一無(wú)二的。

在積極響應(yīng)并全力協(xié)助杭州國(guó)家版本館展開(kāi)海外版本征集工作的名單里，就有一位旅居日本三十年、一直活躍于中日書(shū)法篆刻界而久負(fù)盛名的浙江籍藝術(shù)家—晉鷗。

晉鷗是西泠印社會(huì)員、中國(guó)書(shū)法家協(xié)會(huì)會(huì)員、日本產(chǎn)經(jīng)國(guó)際書(shū)展評(píng)委，同時(shí)也是日本華人文聯(lián)主席、全日制本華人印社社長(zhǎng)、全日本華人書(shū)法家協(xié)會(huì)名譽(yù)主席，他的書(shū)法篆刻在日本擁有眾多忠實(shí)粉絲，在國(guó)內(nèi)深受許多藏家青睞。幾十年來(lái)，他為中日書(shū)法篆刻的文化藝術(shù)交流發(fā)展作出了杰出貢獻(xiàn)。走近晉鷗，發(fā)現(xiàn)他至今走過(guò)的人生之路充滿關(guān)于緣分、情義和淵源的故事，能讓人不自覺(jué)地聯(lián)想到“一期一會(huì)”禪語(yǔ)中蘊(yùn)藏著的精妙深意—相逢是緣，不負(fù)流年不負(fù)卿。

這緣，是他和篆刻之緣，和東瀛之緣，和收藏之緣；將這三個(gè)緣加在一起來(lái)讀，便能更加深刻地理解他對(duì)推動(dòng)中日藝術(shù)文化交流的殷殷之情和拳拳之心。

與篆刻之緣

1957年，晉鷗出生于浙江桐鄉(xiāng)烏鎮(zhèn)，從小受其父親熏陶，酷愛(ài)文學(xué)和藝術(shù)。20歲以前，都是自學(xué)，機(jī)緣巧合下得以師從錢(qián)君匋、劉江、韓天衡、陳舜今等書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻名家。其中，與錢(qián)君匋先生相識(shí)的緣分來(lái)自錢(qián)老在桐鄉(xiāng)一位學(xué)生的介紹，后來(lái)他到上海向錢(qián)老請(qǐng)教，錢(qián)老經(jīng)常拿出一些名人字畫(huà)讓其觀賞，并作細(xì)心講解。赴日之前，晉鷗一直在桐鄉(xiāng)君匋藝術(shù)院專職研究篆刻和書(shū)法。

當(dāng)初，在學(xué)藝的路上總有人說(shuō)他是“一根筋”?！暗拇_是這樣，沒(méi)有人能阻擋我的創(chuàng)作熱情，跟老婆談戀愛(ài)時(shí)，她父親也無(wú)奈地說(shuō)，‘這個(gè)人什么都好，就是喜歡練書(shū)法，練書(shū)法又不能當(dāng)飯吃’?！睍x鷗笑道。錢(qián)君匋先生在86歲時(shí)回憶起這位學(xué)生，仍對(duì)其孜孜矻矻的鉆研精神和日漸精進(jìn)的藝術(shù)成就記憶猶新：“青年書(shū)家晉鷗，兼工各體，篆書(shū)整飾雄峻，隸書(shū)豐滿多姿，行書(shū)巧拙互見(jiàn)，草書(shū)清麗流暢，小楷師法晉唐大家，倜儻無(wú)館閣味?？逃〖颜哳H多，入秦出漢，刀韻石味，苦追天然?！?/p>

回首往事，晉鷗還曾得到過(guò)沙孟海老先生的指點(diǎn)。當(dāng)時(shí)，他先后去杭州拜訪沙老很多次，前3次都吃了閉門(mén)羹，又去了第4次。那天非常冷，晉鷗搭了別人單位的卡車(chē)來(lái)到沙老家門(mén)前，保姆看他凍得可憐便讓他進(jìn)了屋，并告訴他下周三來(lái)，沙老會(huì)在家。后來(lái)終于和沙老見(jiàn)上了面，沙老鼓勵(lì)他說(shuō)，只要持之以恒，一定會(huì)功夫不負(fù)有心人。

此后，晉鷗的書(shū)法、篆刻作品曾在全國(guó)大賽獲得20多個(gè)大獎(jiǎng)，并在上海舉辦個(gè)人書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻展，出版?zhèn)€人書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻作品集，成為國(guó)內(nèi)書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻界冉冉升起的一顆新星。

就在那時(shí)，又一個(gè)機(jī)緣悄然而至，并從此改變了晉鷗的人生軌跡。1990年，晉鷗在杭州西泠印社參加篆刻大賽時(shí)，日本著名篆刻家、全日本篆刻聯(lián)盟會(huì)長(zhǎng)小林斗盦帶了一批學(xué)生來(lái)浙江做藝術(shù)交流，其中就有日本篆刻家三圭出版社社長(zhǎng)三井雅博。三井雅博在學(xué)習(xí)中文，也非常喜歡晉鷗的書(shū)法篆刻，兩人一見(jiàn)如故。三井回國(guó)后兩人仍一直保持書(shū)信往來(lái)。三井對(duì)晉鷗說(shuō)：“現(xiàn)在日中文化交流頻繁，晉先生若能掌握日語(yǔ)，對(duì)中日文化交流一定會(huì)有很大幫助。如果你想來(lái)日本學(xué)習(xí)，我可以幫你辦理留學(xué)手續(xù)?！?/p>

與東瀛之緣

抱著“走出國(guó)門(mén)看一看”的想法，在家人和單位的支持下，1992年春，晉鷗來(lái)到日本，一切從零開(kāi)始。從就讀語(yǔ)言學(xué)校到考上東京學(xué)藝大學(xué)研究生，求學(xué)之路異常艱辛和孤獨(dú)，為了賺取學(xué)費(fèi)和支付9平方米住房的房租，他不得不同時(shí)打兩份工。

時(shí)來(lái)運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)發(fā)生在1996年，在一位日本朋友的幫助下，晉鷗進(jìn)入日本著名的三越百貨店刻章，雖然只有一周，卻成為他的篆刻進(jìn)入日本藝術(shù)界視線的“敲門(mén)磚”。當(dāng)時(shí)，一個(gè)刻章并不能賺多少錢(qián)，但占據(jù)了他一天中的大部分時(shí)間，最長(zhǎng)的一天刻了16個(gè)小時(shí)。

這過(guò)程中還發(fā)生了一件事，至今仍深深地影響著他。當(dāng)時(shí)有一位80多歲的日本老太太拄著拐杖，手上挽著布包，找到了晉鷗的篆刻臺(tái)，拿出10多方印章對(duì)他說(shuō) ：“這是我丈夫年輕時(shí)去中國(guó)觀光時(shí)買(mǎi)的，由于時(shí)間緊來(lái)不及刻，保存至今，現(xiàn)在他已經(jīng)過(guò)世了，但我想委托您幫我刻好這些印章，以了卻他的心愿。”老太太拿出一張紙，上面寫(xiě)著五六個(gè)名字，除了名字，她還拜托晉鷗在剩余的印章上刻上中國(guó)的成語(yǔ)名言。這對(duì)晉鷗觸動(dòng)很大，他初次意識(shí)到日本民間對(duì)于中國(guó)傳統(tǒng)篆刻藝術(shù)和文化是如此的推崇?！叭毡救藢?duì)中國(guó)文化的熱愛(ài)令我感動(dòng)，中國(guó)博大精深的文化能在海外如此深入人心，我感到很驕傲，很想做點(diǎn)什么?！睍x鷗說(shuō)。

后來(lái)，當(dāng)從東京學(xué)藝大學(xué)碩士畢業(yè)時(shí)，晉鷗的篆刻藝術(shù)已經(jīng)得到了日本各大博物館、美術(shù)館、百貨店畫(huà)廊的認(rèn)可。在日本最初的10年里，他刻了2萬(wàn)多方印章，為了不負(fù)各種有緣人的不同期待，必須想方設(shè)法在方寸天地之間謀篇布局、痛下功夫。

正是因?yàn)檫@些難忘而寶貴的磨練和際遇，晉鷗的篆刻藝術(shù)造詣不斷攀登上新的高峰并且吐故納新、自成一格，他借鑒了日本浮世繪、埃及壁畫(huà)，以及畢加索、梵高繪畫(huà)中的抽象造型，在創(chuàng)作上進(jìn)入了一種隨心從容的自由境界。如今在日本，由他篆刻的印章成為近百家博物館、美術(shù)館等各大藝術(shù)場(chǎng)所爭(zhēng)相銷(xiāo)售的寵兒。

2002年，晉鷗在千葉縣野田市成立了“晉鷗藝術(shù)學(xué)院”，教授日本人書(shū)法、篆刻和繪畫(huà)。在日本，幾乎所有老師都把書(shū)、畫(huà)、篆刻分為三個(gè)門(mén)類(lèi)，很少有人會(huì)像晉鷗一樣，一個(gè)人同時(shí)教授三種藝術(shù)，并且注重因材施教、教學(xué)相長(zhǎng)，因而吸引眾多書(shū)畫(huà)、篆刻愛(ài)好者從日本各地慕名前來(lái)學(xué)習(xí)。

與收藏之緣

1997年秋，中國(guó)歷史博物館文物展在京都高島屋美術(shù)館舉辦，晉鷗剛好在會(huì)場(chǎng)刻印。有一天，美術(shù)館館長(zhǎng)帶來(lái)一個(gè)60多歲的人介紹給他說(shuō)：“這是以前日本大畫(huà)家橋本關(guān)雪之孫橋本歸一先生?！痹诘弥獣x鷗來(lái)自浙江時(shí)，橋本的話匣子一下收不住了：“我爺爺生前一共去了中國(guó)一百多次，浙江是我爺爺最?lèi)?ài)去的地方，因?yàn)槟抢镉形縻鲇∩?，在那里我爺爺結(jié)識(shí)了很多書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻界的朋友，其中交往最深的是錢(qián)瘦鐵先生。從前錢(qián)瘦鐵先生還在我家住過(guò)好幾年呢?！?/p>

過(guò)了幾天，晉鷗應(yīng)邀去橋本家做客，走進(jìn)大廳便能看見(jiàn)橋本父親的6折行書(shū)屏風(fēng)，書(shū)學(xué)顏真卿。橋本的書(shū)房里，有一些中國(guó)篆刻家的印章，以錢(qián)瘦鐵先生的居多，其中還有兩方是錢(qián)老用櫻花木刻的印章。據(jù)晉鷗回憶，橋本當(dāng)時(shí)又拿出用黃布包著的兩方紫檀盒裝硯臺(tái)，兩方硯臺(tái)上都有吳昌碩銘款，邊用手擦硯臺(tái)邊感慨地說(shuō)：“這是《沈氏研林》中的名硯，以前家里有一百多方，現(xiàn)在只剩下這兩方，算是傳家寶了?！?/p>

1.晉鷗篆刻藝術(shù)館。2.晉鷗在浙江省·靜岡縣友好城市40周年紀(jì)念書(shū)法交流展上致辭。3.晉鷗（后排右四）與華人學(xué)生們?cè)谌毡緯x鷗藝術(shù)館前合影。1.Jin Ou Seal Carving Art Museum. 2.Jin Ou delivers a speech at an calligraphy exchange event commemorating the 40th anniversary of the friendly relations between Zhejiang province and Shizuoka prefecture. 3.Jin Ou (fourth on the right on the second row) takes a photo with overseas Chinese students in front of the Jin Ou Art Museum in Japan.

后來(lái)有一次，橋本和晉鷗相約到杭州拜訪錢(qián)瘦鐵先生的親戚錢(qián)大禮先生，不巧的是錢(qián)先生出差在外，又逢周日，西泠印社的骨干和社員們大多在休息。“我本想打電話通知他們，被橋本先生阻止了，說(shuō)不必驚動(dòng)大家。至今我還在后悔，當(dāng)時(shí)怎么就沒(méi)有和大家聯(lián)系，一起見(jiàn)個(gè)面，留下幾張有意義的照片呢？”晉鷗感慨道。

沒(méi)想到的是，那一次的遺憾再也無(wú)法改寫(xiě)，某一天，晉鷗收到橋本家族寄來(lái)的明信片：“先生已在一個(gè)月前謝世，為了不打擾你工作，故至今才通知你，請(qǐng)見(jiàn)諒?！?/p>

直到去年年底，他還在自己的專欄中寫(xiě)下關(guān)于《沈氏研林》中各方名硯的故事。雖然一想起便有很多不舍，但或許恰恰是與橋本先生結(jié)下的這一段藝術(shù)緣，為晉鷗的藝術(shù)生涯打開(kāi)了另一扇窗。從最初在友人處單純學(xué)習(xí)鑒賞到受人委托、為藝術(shù)藏品尋找買(mǎi)家，再到后來(lái)經(jīng)濟(jì)寬裕后開(kāi)始自行收購(gòu)各類(lèi)藏品；直至今日，除了精于書(shū)畫(huà)篆刻，晉鷗在日本收藏圈也是位名人。

逐漸地，晉鷗意識(shí)到藝術(shù)品收藏不僅僅是個(gè)人的事情，藝術(shù)應(yīng)該是社會(huì)共有、穿越時(shí)空的寶貴精神遺產(chǎn)。5年前，晉鷗還向桐鄉(xiāng)君匋藝術(shù)院捐贈(zèng)了自己收藏的王一亭《松鶴圖》，以回報(bào)藝術(shù)院的培育之恩。曾經(jīng)，晉鷗的心愿是在家鄉(xiāng)設(shè)立一座美術(shù)館，讓自己收藏的400余件珍貴字畫(huà)、印章能夠回歸故里，其中讓他頗感自滿的藏品有 ：吳昌碩作品近20件，王一亭作品50多件，還有王鐸、董其昌、文徵明等名人的書(shū)法作品，有黃賓虹、張大千、傅抱石等大家的字畫(huà)等，具有一定的質(zhì)量和規(guī)模?！叭松疃嗄芑畹揭话贇q，藝術(shù)品卻是永恒共有的，所以將來(lái)希望自己收藏的藝術(shù)品，能有一個(gè)好歸宿。”這便是一個(gè)浙江赤子良善樸素而令人敬佩的愿望。

以書(shū)法凝心

現(xiàn)在，在桐鄉(xiāng)建造晉鷗藝術(shù)館的期盼即將達(dá)成。晉鷗談到：“我想把這個(gè)藝術(shù)館作為浙江與海外文化交流的一個(gè)窗口。通過(guò)這個(gè)平臺(tái)，可以將日本的優(yōu)秀文化引進(jìn)來(lái)，把中國(guó)的文化、藝術(shù)傳播出去。作為身在海外的游子，把中華優(yōu)秀傳統(tǒng)文化傳播到海外，讓世界人民能更好地了解中華文化，是我的責(zé)任與使命?！笨上У氖?，晉鷗藝術(shù)館裝修好了，但受困于新冠肺炎疫情，他至今沒(méi)能回去著手開(kāi)館工作；晉鷗篆刻藝術(shù)館已經(jīng)開(kāi)館一年多了，也一直無(wú)法親眼去看看。

即使如此，疫情卻仍擋不住他對(duì)傳播中華優(yōu)秀傳統(tǒng)文化、推動(dòng)中日藝術(shù)文化交流的熱忱。去年，在中國(guó)駐日本大使館的支持下，他成功組織并主持了在日華僑慶祝建黨百年書(shū)畫(huà)展，吸引了眾多日本政要、中日友好人士和日本民眾來(lái)到現(xiàn)場(chǎng)參觀一幅幅寫(xiě)滿祝福和熱愛(ài)的翰墨丹青。此外，他還在東京參加了由浙江省文化和旅游廳主辦的“來(lái)詩(shī)畫(huà)浙江，為亞運(yùn)喝彩”文旅交流展活動(dòng)，并以日本華人文聯(lián)主席身份致詞：“我看到很多日本民眾在現(xiàn)場(chǎng)體驗(yàn)書(shū)法、篆刻和剪紙，心里自豪又欣慰。杭州是歷史文化名城，希望日本能更多地與浙江進(jìn)行文化、體育方面的交流。”

30年來(lái)，晉鷗先后帶領(lǐng)日本訪問(wèn)團(tuán)前往中國(guó)近百次，在日本策劃“豐子愷故鄉(xiāng)赴日漫畫(huà)展”“西泠印社日本三大展”“浙江青田篆刻藝術(shù)展”等大型展覽，還參與協(xié)辦數(shù)十個(gè)中日書(shū)法交流展，為中日兩國(guó)書(shū)法篆刻藝術(shù)交流傾盡全力。對(duì)他有知遇之恩并成為摯友的三井雅博曾這樣談起晉鷗：“經(jīng)常聽(tīng)他講要成為‘中日文化藝術(shù)交流的橋梁’，來(lái)日這么多年這一信念至今沒(méi)有改變?！?/p>

2004年，晉鷗與幾位在日華僑書(shū)法家共同籌建“全日本華人書(shū)法家協(xié)會(huì)”。他希望可以通過(guò)該協(xié)會(huì)團(tuán)結(jié)起在日華人書(shū)法家，共同進(jìn)行書(shū)法篆刻的藝術(shù)創(chuàng)作、研究與交流。同時(shí)，通過(guò)華僑華人的橋梁作用，促進(jìn)中國(guó)國(guó)內(nèi)書(shū)法家、書(shū)法團(tuán)體與日本書(shū)法篆刻界進(jìn)行更多更深入的交流與交往。

當(dāng)年，書(shū)圣王羲之在紹興蘭渚山下以文會(huì)友，寫(xiě)下“天下第一行書(shū)”—《蘭亭序》，唐代四大書(shū)法家中有兩個(gè)都和浙江有關(guān)系?！叭毡久癖娭杏胁恢垃F(xiàn)任首相的，但沒(méi)有人不知道王羲之?！睍x鷗坦言，在海外傳承和發(fā)揚(yáng)中國(guó)書(shū)法藝術(shù)，是自己下一個(gè)十年要做的最重要的事。他曾做過(guò)調(diào)查和統(tǒng)計(jì)，在近100萬(wàn)在日華僑中，有練習(xí)書(shū)法習(xí)慣的僅有幾百人。對(duì)此，晉鷗的心情是急切而焦慮的。為了讓更多華僑華人學(xué)習(xí)書(shū)法篆刻，他每月在東京中國(guó)文化中心開(kāi)辦公益書(shū)法教室，指導(dǎo)華僑華人學(xué)習(xí)書(shū)法，書(shū)法課不收學(xué)生一分錢(qián)，完全免費(fèi)。從幾年前開(kāi)始，他每年都要舉辦幾場(chǎng)大型公益書(shū)法講座。

另一方面，晉鷗認(rèn)為，藝術(shù)文化交流過(guò)程中還應(yīng)該以有容乃大的心態(tài)去研究和欣賞日本書(shū)法家的閃光點(diǎn)。他希望，將來(lái)能收藏百幅日本名家的書(shū)法，向國(guó)內(nèi)書(shū)法界介紹日本書(shū)法的特點(diǎn)，只有知己知彼才能不斷進(jìn)步。“日本的文化源自中國(guó)，又有很多自身的創(chuàng)新，中日文化之間有很多共通之處，地域上又是一衣帶水的鄰邦，這其中確實(shí)有很多微妙的緣分，兩國(guó)在藝術(shù)文化交流上需要更加深層次的思考和探索。”晉鷗補(bǔ)充道。

晉鷗書(shū)法作品。Calligraphy works by Jin Ou.

Jin Ou’s Destiny with Art and Culture in China and Japan

By Xu Zijīn

In Japanese, there is a word “ichi-go ichi-e” (for this time only), which means that the tea ceremony performer will sincerely treat every guest in front of him/her. This reminds people of cherishing every once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Seal engraving is considered one of the art forms that are fully endowed with the meaning of “ichi-go ichi-e”, because during the carving process, countless tiny crumbling textures will be created by the knife cutting into the carving material, which, with no pattern to follow, fully depends on the artist’s talent, skills,sensitivity, creativity and aesthetics. That gives seal engraving its mysterious charm, because each seal is unique.

There is a famous Zhejiang artist named Jin Ou, who has lived in Japan for 30 years and has long been active in the Chinese and Japanese calligraphy and seal carving circles. He is among those who have responded positively and assisted the China National Archives of Publications and Culture (Hangzhou) in collecting overseas calligraphy editions.

Jin is a member of the Xiling Seal Art Society, a member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, a member of the Japan Sankei International Calligraphy Exhibition, as well as the president of the Chinese Literary Association in Japan, the president of the Chinese Seal Society in Japan, and the honorary chairman of the Chinese Calligraphers Association in Japan. Over the decades, he has made outstanding contributions to the cultural and artistic exchanges between Chinese and Japanese calligraphy and seal carving. When we get to know him better, we find that his life is full of stories about how he has been bound with seal carving, with Japan and with collection, which reminds us of the subtle meaning hidden in “ichi-go ichi-e”.

Born in 1957 in Wuzhen, Zhejiang’s Tongxiang city, Jin grew up influenced by his father’s love for literature and art, and he was self-taught until the age of 20. Later he was given the opportunities to study under famous calligraphers and seal carvers such as Qian Juntao, Liu Jiang, Han Tianheng and Chen Shunjin.Before he went to Japan, Jin had been studying seal carving and calligraphy at the Tongxiang Juntao Art Institute.

2019年，晉鷗榮獲產(chǎn)經(jīng)新聞社“書(shū)法貢獻(xiàn)獎(jiǎng)”。（資料照片）In 2019, Jin Ou received an award from Sankei Shimbun for his contributions to promoting Chinese calligraphy. File photo.

Jin has also received guidance from Sha Menghai (1900-1992).Back then, he went to Hangzhou to visit Mr. Sha, only to be shut out for the first three times. But he didn’t give up and went for the fourth time. Finally he got to meet Mr. Sha, who encouraged him that as long as he perseveres, his efforts would be rewarded at the end of the day.

Since then, Jin’s calligraphy and seal engraving works have won more than 20 awards in national competitions. He has also held his own calligraphy and seal engraving exhibitions in Shanghai and published his own collections, becoming a rising star in the Chinese calligraphy and seal engraving circle.

Just at that time, another opportunity came and changed Jin’s life ever after. In 1990, when participating in a seal carving competition at the Xiling Seal Art Society in Hangzhou, Jin got acquainted with Mr. Mitsui, president of Sankyu Publishing House. Mitsui was studying Chinese and loved Jin’s calligraphy and seal engraving, so the two of them clicked immediately. They kept in touch even after Mitsui returned to Japan. Mitsui once said to Jin, “Nowadays, Japan and China have frequent cultural exchanges. If you could master Japanese, it must be very helpful for the cultural exchange between our countries. If you want to come and study here, I can help you with the procedures.”

Therefore, supported by his family and institution, Jin went to Japan in the spring of 1992 and started everything from scratch.From language school to graduate school at Tokyo Gakugei University, he worked extremely hard and had to do two part-time jobs in order to pay his tuition and house rent.

Another life-changer happened in 1996. With the help of a Japanese friend, Jin entered the famous Mitsukoshi Department Store in Japan to work as a seal engraver, which, although lasted for only a week, became the “door knocker” for his seal carving to enter the Japanese art world. Later, when he graduated from Tokyo Gakugei University with a master’s degree, Jin’s seal carving art had already been recognized by major Japanese museums, art museums and galleries. During his first decade in Japan, he carved more than 20,000 seals.

It is because of these unforgettable and precious trials and encounters that Jin’s artistic attainments in seal carving have constantly reached new heights and he has become a unique artist.Drawing on Japanese ukiyo-e, Egyptian frescoes, and the abstract shapes in Picasso and Van Gogh’s paintings, he has been creating after his own heart freely and calmly. Today in Japan, his seals are a favorite in nearly 100 museums, galleries and other major art venues.

In 2002, Jin established the Jin Ou Art Academy in Noda,Chiba prefecture to teach Japanese people calligraphy, seal carving and painting. In Japan, almost all teachers categorize calligraphy,painting and seal carving into three disciplines, and few teach all three at the same time like Jin does, who focuses on teaching each student according to their abilities, thus attracting many enthusiasts from all over Japan.

Jin’s relationship with Mr. Hashimoto, grandson of the great Japanese painter Kansetsu Hashimoto (1883-1945), opened up another window for his art career. From simply appreciating art pieces, finding buyers for artworks on commission, to acquiring various collections on his own, Jin is now a celebrity in the Japanese collectors’ circle.

Gradually, Jin has realized that art collection is not only a personal matter, but also a valuable spiritual heritage that transcends time and space and is to be shared by the society. Jin once wished to set up an art museum in his hometown, where his proud collection of more than 400 precious paintings and seals could be returned and stored.

晉鷗書(shū)法作品。Calligraphy works by Jin Ou.

“People live a finite life up to a hundred years, but art is an eternal common asset. In the future, I hope my collection could be preserved properly.” This is the simple and admirable wish from a Zhejiang artist.

Now, the expectation of building the Jin Ou Art Museum in Tongxiang is about to be ful filled. “I want to use this art museum as a window for cultural exchange between Zhejiang and the rest of the world. Through this platform, we can introduce the excellent culture of Japan and spread the culture and art of China,” said Jin. Although due to the pandemic he has not been able to return from Japan to see another museum — Jin Ou Seal Art Museum, which has been opened for more than a year, Jin has always been enthusiastic about promoting art and cultural exchanges between China and Japan.

“Japanese culture originated from China and has been greatly innovated based on that origin. There are many things in common between Chinese and Japanese cultures, and we are neighbors geographically, which indeed connects us in some subtle way.Therefore, we need to further think and explore in our art and cultural exchanges,” Jin added.