「Art Appreciation Through Visual Reading」Eastern Aesthetics: Zhuo (Artless simplicity)

Laozi remarked: “Great skill appears clumsy”. The common folk chase cleverness and refinement, regarding intricate, elaborate craftsmanship as beauty; yet Eastern aesthetics elevates “zhuo (artless simplicity)” as the supreme artistic realm.

In Eastern aesthetics, zhuo denotes neither crudeness, clumsiness nor shoddy workmanship. It emerges when artistic mastery reaches its pinnacle: all contrived embellishments fall away, restoring things to their innate, authentic countenance.

Su Shi painted withered trees and jagged rocks. His works lack the vivid polish of meticulous fine-brush flower-and-bird painting, yet brim with vibrant vitality amid bleak, lean forms. He pursued no literal likeness, instead wielding brush and ink to give voice to the sentiments dwelling within his breast.

When discussing calligraphy, Fu Shan advocated the tenet: “refer artless simplicity over slick artifice”. He feared overly sleek, saccharine maturity would sink into vulgar conventionality.

Dry brushwork and burnt ink, withered lotus fronds and aged vines seem imperfect on the surface, yet harbour primal, genuine vitality — a realm unattainable by deliberate, laboured exquisiteness.

This aesthetic philosophy extends far beyond brush art and craft wares. In “Ode to Artless Simplicity (Fu on Zhuo)”, Zhou Dunyi explicitly upheld zhuo as honour and clever scheming as disgrace.

To uphold zhuo in personal conduct is not foolishness; it means refusing scheming and pretence, concealing consummate skill within unadorned plainness, and living in harmony with nature.

Nowadays, many people deliberately craft crude wares and label them “zhuo”. Yet feigned rustic simplicity is nothing but opportunistic trickery. True zhuo stems from innate natural grace, not contrived fabrication.

At its core, zhuo within Eastern aesthetics is a worldview. It guides people to abide by their authentic nature, unensnared by calculating worldly scheming.

In an era where everyone craves speed and facile cleverness, the state of mind rooted in zhuo allows one to settle inwardly, perceive things in their true essence, and preserve inner poise and tranquillity.

That’s all for today’s art – appreciation session. Next time, we’ll make a new pot of tea and continue exploring the world of art together.

By Mr.Shan