"扬州八怪"之说，由来已久。但8人的名字，其说互有出入。据李玉棻《瓯钵罗室书画过目考》中的"八怪"为罗聘、李方膺、李鳝、金农、黄慎、郑燮(又名郑板桥)、高翔和汪士慎。此外，各书列名"八怪"的，尚有高凤翰、华岩、闵贞、边寿民等，说法很不统一，今人取"八"之数，多从李玉棻说。扬州八怪，职业而已，不能说是正面人物还是反面人物，有时含贬义。

从康熙末年崛起，到嘉庆四年"八怪"中最年轻的画家罗聘去世，前后近百年。他们绘画作品为数之多，流传之广，无可计量。仅据今人所编《扬州八怪现存画目》记载，为国内外200多个博物馆、美术馆及研究单位收藏的就有8000余幅。他们作为中国画史上的杰出群体，已经闻名世界，把徐渭的泼墨手法发挥到顶峰。

扬州八怪之八位画家，生前即声名远播。李鳝、李方膺、高凤翰、李勉，先后分别为康熙、雍正、乾隆三代皇帝召见，或试画，或授职。乾隆八年，弘历见到郑板桥所作《樱笋图》，即吟诵了"乾隆御览之宝"朱文椭圆玺。乾隆十三年，弘历南巡时，封郑燮为"书画史"。罗聘尝三游都下，"一时王公卿尹，西园下士，东阁延宾，王符在门，倒屣恐晚;孟公惊座，觌面可知。"

扬州八怪大胆创新之风，不断为后世画家所传承，有时含贬义。近现代名画家如王小梅、吴让之、赵之谦、吴昌硕、任伯年、任渭长、王梦白、王雪涛、唐云、王一亭、陈师曾、齐白石、徐悲鸿、黄宾虹、潘天寿等，都各自在某些方面受"扬州八怪"的作品影响而自立门户。他们中多数人对"扬州八怪"的作品作了高度评价。徐悲鸿曾在郑燮的一幅《兰竹》画上题云:"板桥先生为中国近三百年最卓绝的人物之一。其思想奇，文奇，书画尤奇。观其诗文及书画，不但想见高致，而其寓仁悲于奇妙，尤为古今天才之难得者。"

在扬州当地还流传这一种说法:"扬州八怪"是指扬州地区的"丑八怪"。由于扬州八怪的艺术风格不被当时所谓的正统画派所认同，而且他们追求的就是自然，就是真实、现实，他们就把一些生活化，平民化的都搬到他们的书画作品之中，甚至把社会的阴暗面揭露出来。这种行为使得统治者的利益受损，说他们都是画坛上不入流的"丑八怪"，扬州八怪因此而得名。文艺理论家最后把"扬州八怪"归纳为8人。在扬州当地有纪念馆，就立着他们的雕像。

 "扬州八怪"究竟指哪些画家，说法不尽一致。有人说是八个，有人说不止八个;有人说这八个，有人说另外八个。据各种著述记载，计有十五人之多。因清末李玉棻《瓯钵罗室书画过目考》是记载"八怪"较早而又最全的，所以一般人还是以李玉棻所提出的八人为准。即:汪士慎、郑燮、高翔、金农、李鳝、黄慎、李方膺、罗聘。至于有人提到的其它画家，如阮元、华岩、闵贞、高凤翰、李勉、陈撰、边寿民、杨法等，因画风接近，也可并入。因"八"字可看作数词，也可看做约数。

郑燮(怪在传奇)

郑燮(1693--1765)，字克柔，号板桥，江苏兴化人，应科举为康熙秀才，雍正十年举人，乾隆元年进士。官山东范县、潍县知县，有政声以岁饥为民请赈，忤大吏，遂乞病归。作官前后，均居扬州， 以书画营生。擅画兰、竹、石、松、菊等，而画兰竹五十余年，成就最为突出。取法于徐渭、石涛、八大山人，而自成家法，体貌疏朗，风格劲峭。工书法，用汉八分杂入楷行草，自称六分半书。并将书法用笔融于绘画之中。主张继承传统十分学七要抛三，不泥古法， 重视艺术的独创性和风格的多样化，所谓未画之先，不立一格，既画之后，不留一格，对今天仍有借鉴意义。诗文真挚风趣,为人民大众所喜诵。亦能治印。有《郑板桥全集》、《板桥先生印册》等。

他的代表作是《竹石图》。板桥画竹有"胸无成竹"的理论，他画竹并无师承，多得于纸窗粉壁日光月影，直接取法自然。针对苏东坡"胸有成竹"的说法，板桥强调的是胸中"莫知其然而然"的竹，要"胸中无竹"。这两个理论看似矛盾，实质却相通，同时强调构思与熟练技巧的高度结合，但板桥的方法要"如雷霆霹雳，草木怒生"。 板桥这幅《竹石图》，竹子画得艰瘦挺拔，节节屹立而上，直冲云天，他的叶子，每一张叶子都有着不同的表情，墨色水灵，浓淡有致，逼真地表现竹的质感。在构图上，板桥将竹、石的位置关系和题诗文字处理得十分协调。竹的纤细清飒的美更衬托了石的另一番风情。这种丛生植物成为板桥理想的幻影。板桥的竹子，连"扬州八怪"之一金农都感叹说，相较两人的画品，自己画的竹子终不如板桥有林下风度啊。

有"凡吾画兰、画竹、画石，用以慰天下之劳人，非以供天下之安享人也。"

板桥的书法， 自称为"六分半书"，他以兰草画法入笔，极其潇洒自然，参以篆、隶、草、楷的字形， 穷极变化。这幅"两歇杨林东渡头"行书，体现了郑板桥书法艺术独特的形式美，"桃花岸"三字提顿之间尤为明媚动人。郑板桥别具一格的新书体，开创了书法历史的先河。

高翔(怪在淡泊)

高翔(1688--1753)，字凤岗，号西唐，又号樨堂，江苏扬州府甘泉县人，清代画家，

金农

金农

"扬州八怪"之一。终身布衣。善画山水花卉。其山水取法弘仁和石涛，所画园林小景，多从 写生中来，秀雅苍润，自成格局。画梅〖皆疏枝瘦朵，全以韵胜。〗亦 善于写真，金农、汪士慎诗集开首印的小像，即系高翔手笔，线描简练，神态逼真。精刻印，学程邃。亦善诗，有《西唐诗钞》。

晚年时由于右手残废，常以左手作画。与石涛、金农、汪士慎为友。清朝的李斗在《扬州画舫录》中有过这样的记载:"石涛死，西唐每岁春扫其墓，至死弗辍"。意思是说，石涛死后，高翔每年春天都去扫墓，直到死都没有断过。从这里也可以看出他们之间的友谊很深。高翔除擅长画山水花卉外，也精于写真和刻印。

金农(怪在才)

金农(1687-1764)，字寿门，号冬心，浙江仁和(今杭州)人，久居扬州。平生未做官，曾被荐举博学鸿词科，入京未试而返。他博学多才，五十岁后始作画，终生贫困。他长于花鸟、山水、人物，尤擅墨梅。他的画造型奇古、拙朴，布局考究，构思别出新意，作品有《墨梅图》、《月华图》等。他独创一种隶书体，自谓"漆书"，另有意趣，又谓金农体或冬心体，笔画横粗竖细，撇飘逸而捺厚重，字体多呈长方形，头重脚轻，甚为好看。

精篆刻、鉴定，善画竹、梅、鞍马、佛像、人物、山水 。尤精墨梅。所作梅花，枝多花繁，生机勃发，还参以古拙的金石笔意 ，风格古雅拙朴，作品有《墨梅图》、《月华图》等。又长于题咏，"每画毕，必有题记，一触之感"。也擅长书法，取法于《天发神忏碑》、《国山碑》、《谷朗碑》。写隶书古朴，

楷书自创一格，号称"漆书"，另有意趣，又谓金农体或冬心体，笔画横粗竖细，撇飘逸而捺厚重，字体多呈长方形，头重脚轻，甚为好看。篆刻得秦汉法。诗文有《冬心先生集》，《冬心先生杂著》，其书画题跋被辑成有冬心画竹、画梅、画马、自写真、杂画题记等。

李鳝(怪在命)

李鳝(1686--1762)，字宗扬，号复堂，又号懊道人，江苏兴化人 。康熙五十年中举，五十三年以绘画召为内廷供奉，因不愿受正统派画风束缚而被排挤出来。乾隆三年以检选出任山东滕县知县，以忤大吏罢归。在两革科名一贬官之后，至扬州卖画为生。与郑燮关系最为密切，故郑有卖画扬州，与李同老之说。他早年曾从同乡魏凌苍学画山水，继承黄公望一路，供奉内廷时曾随蒋廷锡学画，画法工致 ;后又向指头画大师高其佩求教，进而崇尚写意。在扬州又从石涛笔法中得到启发，遂以破笔泼墨作画，风格为之大变，形成自己任意挥洒，水墨融成奇趣的独特风格，喜于画上作长文题跋，字迹参差错落，使画面十分丰富，其作品对晚清花鸟画有较大的影响。

黄慎(怪在悟性)

黄慎(1687-1770后)，字恭懋，躬懋，一字恭寿，菊壮，号瘿瓢，东海布衣等，福建宁化人。擅长人物写意，间作花鸟、山水，笔姿荒率，设色大胆。为"扬州八怪"中全才画家之一。

青年时，学习勤奋，因家境困难，便寄居萧寺，"书为画，夜无所得蜡，从佛殿光明灯读书其下"。善画人物，早年师法上官周，多作工笔，后从唐代书法家怀素真迹中受到启迪，以狂草笔法入画， 变为粗笔写意。

黄慎的写意人物，创造出将草书入画的独特风格。怀素草书到了黄慎那里，变为"破毫秃颖"，化联绵不断为时断时续，笔意更加跳荡粗狂，风格更加豪宕奇肆。以这样的狂草笔法入画，行笔"挥洒迅疾如风，"气象雄伟，点画如风卷落叶。黄慎的人物画，多取神仙故事，对历史人物和现实生活中樵夫渔翁、流民乞丐等平民生活的描绘，给清代人物画带来了新气息。黄慎的人物册页《赏花仕女图》刻画一美丽女子对花的沉迷。而《

西山招鹤图》则取材于苏轼《放鹤亭记》，画面右侧立一白鹤，老叟似在仰望空中飞翔之鹤，童子手挽花篮，却自顾嘻嘻而乐。 "生平梦梦扬州路，来往空空白鹤归"(黄慎《题林逋驯鹤图》)，黄慎两次寓居扬州，先后17年，十里扬州，成为他一生的依恋。他的人物画最具特色,有《丝纶图》、《群乞图》、《渔父图》等。他的诗被同乡人雷宏收集起来，编为《蛟湖诗抄》。

李方膺(怪在倔)

李方膺(1695~1755)，中国清代诗画家，字虬仲，号晴江，别号秋池，抑园，白衣山人等，通州(今江苏南通)人。寓居金陵借园，自号借园主人。为"扬州八怪"之一。出身官宦之家，曾任乐安县令、兰山县令、潜山县令、代理滁州知州等职，为官时"有惠政，人德之"，后因遭诬告被罢官，去官后寓南京借园，自号借园主人，常往来扬州卖画。与李鳝、金农、郑燮等往来，工诗文书画，擅梅、兰、竹、菊、松、鱼等，注重师法传统和师法造化，能自成一格，其画笔法苍劲老厚，剪裁简洁，不拘形似，活泼生动。被列为扬州八怪之一。有《风竹图》、《游鱼图》、《墨梅图》等传世。著《梅花楼诗钞》。善画松、竹、兰、菊、梅、杂花及虫 鱼，也能人物、山水，尤精画梅。作品纵横豪放、墨气淋漓，粗头乱服 ，不拘绳墨，意在青藤、白阳、竹憨之间。画梅以瘦硬见称，老干新枝 ，欹侧蟠曲。用间印有〖梅花手段〗，著名的题画梅诗有〖不逢摧折不离奇〗之句。还喜欢画狂风中的松竹。工书。能诗，后人辑有《梅花楼诗草》，仅二十六首，多数散见于画上。

汪士慎(怪在人)

汪士慎(1686--1759)，字近人，号巢林，别号溪东外史、晚春老人等，原籍安徽歙县，居扬州以卖画为生。工花卉，随意点笔，清妙多姿。尤擅画梅，常到扬州城外梅花岭赏梅、写梅。所作梅花，以密蕊繁 枝见称，清淡秀雅，金农说;画梅之妙，在广陵得二友焉，汪巢林画 繁枝，高西唐画疏枝。(《画梅题记》)但从他存世画梅作品看，并 非全是繁枝，也常画疏枝。不论繁简，都有空裹疏香，风雪山林之趣。 五十四岁时左眼病盲，仍能画梅，工妙腾于示瞽时,刻印曰:左盲生、尚留一目著梅花。六十七岁时双目俱瞽，但仍能挥写狂草大字，署款心观，所谓盲于目，不盲于心。善诗，著有《巢林诗集》。

罗聘(怪在使命)

罗聘(1733-1799)，字遁夫，号两峰，又号衣云、别号花之寺僧、金牛山人、 洲渔父、师莲老人。清代著名画家，为"扬州八怪"之一。祖籍安徽歙县，后寓居扬州，曾住在彩衣街弥陀巷内，自称住处谓"朱草诗林"。为金农入室弟子，未做官，好游历。画人物、佛像、山水、花果、梅、兰、竹等，无所不工。笔调奇创，超逸不群，别具一格。他又善画《鬼趣图》，描写形形色色的丑恶鬼态，无不极尽其妙，藉以讽刺当时社会的丑态。兼能诗，著有《香叶草堂集》。亦善刻印，著有《广印人传》。金农死后，他搜罗遗稿，出资刻版，使金农的著作得以传于后世。其妻方婉仪，字白莲，亦擅画梅兰竹石，并工于诗。子允绍、允缵，均善画梅，人称"罗家梅派"。其代表作有:《物外风标图》(册页)、《两峰蓑笠图》、《丹桂秋高图》、《成阴障日图》、《 谷清吟图》、《画竹有声图》等。

 扬州自隋唐以来，即以经济繁荣而著称，虽经历代兵祸破坏，但由于地处要冲，交通便利，土地肥沃，物产丰富，战乱之后，总是很快又恢复繁荣。进入清代，虽惨遭十日屠城破坏，但经康熙、雍正、乾隆三朝发展，又呈繁荣景象，成为我国东南沿海一大都会和全国的重要贸易中心。富商大贾，四方云集，尤其以盐业兴盛，富甲东南。经济的繁荣，也促进文化艺术事业的兴盛。各地文人名流，汇集扬州。在当地官员倡导下，经常举办诗文酒会。诗文创作，载誉全国。有些盐商，堪称豪富，本身亦附庸风雅，对四方名士来扬州者，多延揽接待。扬州因而吸引了全国各地的许多名士，其中有不少诗人、作家、艺术家。所以，当时的扬州，不仅是东南的经济中心，也是文化艺术的中心。

富商大贾为了满足自己奢侈生活的需要，对物质和精神上的产品也就大量地需求，如精美的工艺品、珍宝珠玉、鲜衣美食，在书画方面更是着力搜求。流风所及，中产之家乃至平民中稍富有者，亦求书画悬之室中，以示风雅，民谚有"家中无字画，不是旧人家"之说。对字画的大量需求，吸引和产生了大量的画家。据《扬州画舫录》记载，本地画家及各地来扬州的画家稍具名气者就有一百数十人之多，其中不少是当时的名家，"扬州八怪"也就是其中的声名显著者。以"扬州八怪"为代表的扬州画派的作品，无论是取材立意，还是构图用笔，都有鲜明的个性。这种艺术风格的形成，与当时画坛上的创新潮流和人们审美趣味的变化有着密切的联系。中国绘画至明末清初受到保守思想的笼囿，以临摹抄照为主流，画坛缺乏生气。这一萎靡之风激起有识之士和英才画家的不满，在扬州便出现了力主创新的大画家石涛。石涛提出"笔墨当随时代"、"无法而法"的口号，宛如空谷足音，震动画坛。石涛的理论和实践"开扬州一派"，稍后，终于孕育出了"扬州八怪"等一批具有创新精神的画家群体。

 坎坷波折的身世

"扬州八怪"究竟"怪"在哪里，说法也不一。有人认为他们为人怪，从实际看，并不如此。八怪本身，经历坎坷，他们有着不平之气，有无限激愤，对贫民阶层深表同情。他们凭着知识分子的敏锐洞察力和善良的同情心，对丑恶的事物和人，加以抨击，或著于诗文，或表诸书画。这类事在中国历史上虽不少见，但也不是多见，人们以"怪"来看待，也就很自然的了。但他们的日常行为，都没有超出当时礼教的范围，并没有晋代文人那样放纵--装痴作怪、哭笑无常。他们和官员名士交流，参加诗文酒会，表现都是一些正常人的人。所以，从他们生活行为中来认定他们的"怪"是没有道理的。现在只有到他们的作品中，来加以研究。

独辟蹊径的立意

"八怪"(金农、汪士慎、黄慎、李鳝、郑燮、李方膺、高翔、罗聘)不愿走别人已开创的道路，而是要另辟蹊径。他们要创造出"掀天揭地之文，震惊雷雨之字，呵神骂鬼之谈，无古无今之画"，来自立门户，就是要不同于古人，不追随时俗，风格独创。他们的作品有违人们欣赏习惯，人们觉得新奇，也就感到有些"怪"了。正如郑燮自己所说:"下笔别自成一家，长于诗文。"在生活上大都历经坎坷，最后走上了以卖画为生的道路。他们虽然卖画，却是以画寄情，在书画艺术上有更高的追求，不愿流入一般画工的行列。他们的学识、经历、艺术修养、深厚功力和立意创新的艺术追求，已不同于一般画工，达到了立意新、构图新、技法新的境界。

不落窠臼的技法

中国绘画历史悠久，源远流长，其中文人画自唐宋兴盛起来，逐步丰富发展，形成一套完整的理论体系，留下大量的作品，这是中国绘画的骄傲。明清以来，中国各地出现了众多的画派，各具特色，争雄于画坛。影响最大的莫过于以"四王"为首的虞山、娄东画派，而在扬州，则形成了以金农、郑燮为首的"扬州八怪"画风。这些画家都继承和发扬了我国的绘画传统，但他们对于继承传统和创作方法有着不同的见解。虞山、娄东等画派，讲求临摹学习古人，以遵守古法为原则，以力振古法为己任，并以"正宗"自命。他们的创作方法，如"正宗"画家王珲所说，作画要"以元人笔直墨，运宋人丘壑，而泽以唐人气韵，乃为大成"。他们跟在古人后面，亦步亦趋，作品多为仿古代名家之作( 当然在仿古中也有创造)，形成一种僵化的局面，束缚了画家的手脚。

挥洒自如的笔锋

"扬州八怪"诸家也尊重传统，但他们与"正宗"不同。他们继承了石涛、徐渭、朱耷等人的创作方法，"师其意不在迹象间"，不死守临摹古法。如郑板桥推崇石涛，他向石涛学习，也"撇一半，学一半未尝全学"。石涛对"扬州八怪"艺术风格的形成有重要影响。他提出"师造化"、"用我法"，反对"泥古不化"，要求画家到大自然中去吸收创作素材，强调作品要有强烈的个性。他认为"古人须眉，不能生我之面目;古人肺腑，不能入我之腹肠。我自发我之肺腑，揭我之须眉"。石涛的绘画思想，为"扬州八怪"的出现，奠定了理论基础，并为"扬州八怪"在实践中加以运用。"扬州八怪"从大自然中去发掘灵感，从生活中去寻找题材，下笔自成一家，不愿与人相同，在当时是使人耳目一新的。人们常常把自己少见的东西，视为怪异，因而对"八怪"那种抒发自己心灵、纵横驰骋的作品，感到新奇，称之为怪。也有一些习惯于传统的画家，认为"八怪"的画超出了法度，就对八怪加以贬抑，说他们是偏师，属于旁门左道，说他们"示崭新于一时，只盛行于百里"。赞赏者则夸他们的作品用笔奔放，挥洒自如，不受成法和古法的束缚，打破当时僵化局面，给中国绘画带来新的生机，影响和哺孕了后来像赵之谦、吴昌硕、齐白石、徐悲鸿等艺术大师。

特立高标的品行

他们对当时盛行于官场的卑污、奸恶、趋炎附势、奉承等作风深恶痛绝。八人中除郑板桥、李方膺做过小小的知县外，其他人均一生以"鲁连"、"介之推"为楷模，至死不愿做官。就是做过官的郑板桥也与常官不同。他到山东上任时，首先在旧官衙墙壁上挖了百十个孔，通到街上，说是"出前官恶俗气"，表示要为官清廉。 "扬州八怪"一生的志趣大都融汇在诗文书画之中，绝不粉饰太平。他们用诗画反映民间疾苦、发泄内心的积愤和苦闷、表达自己对美好理想的追求和向往。郑板桥的《悍类》、《抚孤行》、《逃荒行》就是如此。 "八怪"最喜欢画梅、竹、石、兰。他们以梅的高傲、石的坚冷、竹的清高、兰的幽香表达自己的志趣。其中罗聘还爱画鬼，他笔下的鬼形形色色，并解释说"凡有人处皆有鬼"，鬼的特点是"遇富贵者，则循墙蛇行，遇贫贱者，则拊膺蹑足，揶揄百端"。这哪是在画鬼，分明是通过鬼态撕下了披在那些趋炎附势、欺压贫民的贪官污吏身上的人皮，还了他们的本来面目。 在封建制度极端残酷又大兴文字狱的时代，他们却敢于与众不同，标新立异，无怪乎当时一督抚摇头直称"怪哉、怪哉"。邓拓在咏清代著名画家郑板桥时曾写道"歌吹扬州惹怪名，兰香竹影伴书声"，可以算作对他们"怪"之特点的总结吧。

There are different opinions about which painters Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics refers to. Some say eight, others say more than eight; some say eight, others say eight. According to various writings, there are more than fifteen. Since Li Yuzhen's "A Bibliographic Examination of Ou Bo Luo's Room Painting and Calligraphy" in the late Qing Dynasty is the earliest and most complete record of "Eight Eccentrics", the general people still take the eight persons proposed by Li Yuzhen as the criterion. Namely: Wang Shishen, Zheng Xie, Gaoxiang, Jinnong, Li Shu, Huangshen, Li Fangzhao and Luo Bin. As for other painters mentioned, such as Ruan Yuan, Huayan, Minzhen, Gao Fenghan, Li Mian, Chen Zu, Bian Shoumin, Yang Fa, etc., can also be incorporated because of their close painting style. Because the word "eight" can be regarded as a numeral or an approximate number.

Zheng Xie (strange in legend)

Zheng Xie (1693-1765), the character Kerou, No. Banqiao, Xinghua, Jiangsu Province, should be the imperial examinations for Kangxi Xiucai, Yongzheng Ten Years, the first year of Qianlong scholar. In Fanxian County and Zhixian County of Weixian County in Guandong Province, there was a political voice to beg for relief for the people who were hungry year after year, and then begged for help and returned home. Before and after he became an official, he lived in Yangzhou and earned his living by painting and calligraphy. He is good at drawing orchids, bamboos, stones, pines and chrysanthemums, and has made outstanding achievements in painting orchids and bamboos for more than 50 years. Xu Wei, Shi Tao and Badashan people were chosen as their parents. They have a clear physique and strong style. Work calligraphy, mixed with eight Chinese characters into regular scripts, self-proclaimed six and a half books. And the calligraphy with pen into the painting. It is advocated that the inheritance of the tradition should be based on three principles, not muddying the ancient law, and attaching importance to the originality of art and the diversity of style. The so-called "before painting, without standardising, after painting, without leaving a standardise" still has reference significance for today. The poems are sincere and interesting, which are popular among the people. It can also cure seals. There are the Complete Works of Zheng Banqiao and the Printed Book of Mr. Banqiao.

His representative work is Bamboo and Stone Map. Banqiao painted bamboo has the theory of "no thoracic bamboo", he painted bamboo without a teacher, more than paper window powder wall sunshine and moonlight, directly take natural. In view of Su Dongpo's statement that "there is a bamboo in the breast", Banqiao emphasizes that bamboo in the breast "knows nothing but bamboo", and that "there is no bamboo in the breast". Although these two theories seem contradictory, they are essentially identical. They also emphasize the combination of conception and skilled techniques. However, the method of slab bridge should be "like thunderbolt, grass and trees grow in anger". In Banqiao's Bamboo and Stone Picture, the bamboo is hard, thin and straight, standing on top of each other, straight into the clouds. His leaves, each leaf, have a different expression. The ink is bright, strong and light, vividly expressing the texture of bamboo. In the composition, Banqiao coordinates the position relationship between bamboo and stone and the inscriptions. The delicate and clear beauty of bamboo sets off another style of stone. This tufted plant is the ideal illusion of Banqiao. The bamboo of Banqiao, even Jinnong, one of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou", laments that compared with their paintings, the bamboo they painted is not as good as Banqiao's under-forest demeanor.

There are "Where I paint orchids, bamboos and stones to comfort the laborers of the world, not for the people who enjoy the world." "

Banqiao's calligraphy, known as the "six-and-a-half book", began with the Lan-cao painting, which was extremely natural, with the characters of seal, official script, grass and regular script, changing poorly. This "two Xies Yanglin East Ferry" travel book reflects the unique form beauty of Zheng Banqiao's calligraphy art, especially between the three words "Peach Blossom Bank" and "Titon". Zheng Banqiao's unique new style of calligraphy opened a new era in the history of calligraphy.

Gao Xiang (strange in indifference)

Gaoxiang (1688-1753), Fenggang, Xitang and Shuitang, a painter of Qing Dynasty from Ganquan County, Yangzhou Prefecture, Jiangsu Province.

Jin Nong

Jin Nong

One of the Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou. Lifetime clothing. Good at painting landscapes and flowers. His landscape is based on Hongren and Shitao, and the landscape he paints mostly comes from sketching, elegant and graceful, and has its own pattern. Pictures of plums are thin and thin, all winning with rhyme. He is also good at portrayal. The portrait of Jinnong and Wang Shishen's poems is Gaoxiang's handwriting, concise line drawing and lifelike manner. Fine engraving, excellent learning. He is also good at poetry, including Poetry Notes of the Western Tang Dynasty.

In his later years, he often painted with his left hand because his right hand was disabled. Friends with Shi Tao, Jinnong and Wang Shishen. Li Dou of the Qing Dynasty recorded in Yangzhou Painting Boat Record that "Shi Tao died, and the tomb was swept every spring of the Western Tang Dynasty until the death of Fu Tui". That is to say, after Shi Tao's death, Gao Xiang went to visit his grave every spring until he died. It can also be seen from this that the friendship between them is very deep. Gao Xiang is good at painting landscapes and flowers, but also at portrayal and engraving.

Jinnong

Jinnong (1687-1764), the word Shoumen, No. Dongxin, Renhe, Zhejiang (now Hangzhou), has lived in Yangzhou for a long time. He had never been an official in his life. He was recommended as a learned poet and returned to Beijing without a test. He was knowledgeable and talented. He began to paint after he was fifty years old. He was poor all his life. He is good at flowers and birds, landscapes and figures, especially in plum. His paintings, such as Momei Tu and Yuehua Tu, are exquisite in shape, simple in layout and original in conception. He created an original Li script, called "Lacquer Book", which is also interesting. It is also called Jinnong Body or Dongxin Body. The brushwork is thick and thin, elegant and heavy, the font is rectangular, the head is heavy and the foot is light, so it is very beautiful.

Fine seal carving, identification, good at drawing bamboo, plum, pommel horse, Buddha statues, figures, landscapes. Especially pure plum. The plum blossoms are flourishing and vigorous. They also refer to the clumsy golden and stone brushwork. The style of plum blossoms is elegant and simple. The works include "Momei Tu" and "Yuehua Tu". He is also good at inscribing, "Every painting is finished, there must be inscriptions, a sense of touch". He is also good at calligraphy, using the methods of Tianfashen Confession Stele, Guoshan Stele and Gulang Stele. Writing official scripts is primitive and simple.

Regular scripts have their own style, known as "Lacquer Book", which is also called Jinnong Body or Dongxin Body. They have thick and thin strokes, elegant and heavy strokes, rectangular fonts and light head and foot. They are very beautiful. Seals were carved in Qin and Han Dynasties. His poems and essays include The Collection of Mr. Dongxin and Miscellaneous Works of Mr. Dongxin. His calligraphy and painting inscriptions and postscripts are compiled into the inscriptions of Dongxin's paintings of bamboo, plum, horse, self-portrait and miscellaneous paintings.

Li eel (strange fate)

Li eel (1686-1762), with the character Zongyang, was named "Futang" and "Cheating Dao Ren", Xinghua Ren, Jiangsu Province. In the mid-fifty years of Kangxi's reign, painting was worshipped by the Inner Court in fifty-three years, and was excluded because he was unwilling to be bound by the orthodox style of painting. In the three years of Qianlong, he was elected as Zhixian County in Tengxian County, Shandong Province, and returned to the county with big officials. After being demoted from the two reforms, he went to Yangzhou to sell paintings for a living. Zheng You sells paintings in Yangzhou, which is closely related to Zheng Xie. In his early years, he painted landscapes from his fellow countryman Wei Lingcang, inherited Huang Gongwang's journey, studied painting with Jiang Tingxi while offering sacrifices to the Neiting court, and then asked Gao Qi, a master of finger painting, for advice, and then advocated freehand brushwork. In Yangzhou, inspired by Shi Tao's brushwork, he painted with broken brush and splashing ink. His style changed dramatically, forming his own unique style of arbitrary sprinkling, melting ink and wash into a strange and interesting style. He liked to write long inscriptions and postscripts on his paintings, which made the paintings very rich. His works had a great impact on flower and bird paintings in the late Qing Dynasty.

Huang Shen

Huang Shen (after 1687-1770), Gongyi, Gongyi, Gongshou, Juzhuang, Xiaogong, Donghai cloth and so on, Ninghua people, Fujian Province. He is good at figure freehand brushwork, intercropping flowers and birds, mountains and rivers, lacking in brushwork and bold in color design. He is one of the versatile painters in the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou.

When he was young, he studied diligently and lived in Xiao Temple because of his family difficulties. "Books are paintings, wax is not available at night, and he reads under the bright lights of the Buddhist temple." He was a good painter. In his early years, he taught law officer Zhou to do more craftsmanship. Later, he was inspired by the real handwriting of Huai Su, a calligrapher in Tang Dynasty. He painted with wild brushwork and turned it into rough brushwork and freehand brushwork.

Huang Shen's freehand brushwork created a unique style of painting cursive script. When Huai Su's cursive script arrived at Huang Shen, it became "broken without a trace of baldness". Huai Su's cursive script changed from continuous to intermittent, with its brushwork more wild and wild, and its style more bold and extravagant. With such brush strokes, the strokes "sprinkle fast as the wind," the weather is magnificent, and the dots are like the wind rolling leaves. Huang Shen's figure paintings, which mostly draw fairy stories, depict historical figures and common people's lives such as woodcutters, fishermen and vagrants and beggars in real life, bring new flavor to the figure paintings of the Qing Dynasty. Huang Shen's character album, The Picture of Ladies Appreciating Flowers, depicts a beautiful woman's addiction to flowers. "Xishan Zhaohe Tu" is based on Su Shi's "Story of the Crane Pavilion". On the right side of the picture stands a white crane. The old man looks up at the flying crane in the air, while the boy pulls a basket of flowers in his hand, but he laughs at himself. "Dreaming of Yangzhou Road in his life, he returned to and fro empty cranes" (Huang Shen's "Tiling Lin Zhi Taming Crane Tu"). Huang Shen lived in Yangzhou twice. He lived in Yangzhou for 17 years, ten li Yangzhou, and became his lifelong attachment. His figure paintings are the most distinctive, such as Silk Fiber Picture, Group Begging Picture, Fisherman Picture and so on. His poems were collected by fellow countryman Lei Hong and compiled into Jiaohu Poetry Copy.

Li Fangying (strange stubborn)

Li Fangying (1695-1755), a poet and painter of the Qing Dynasty, was born in Tongzhou (now Nantong, Jiangsu Province). Living in the Jinling Borrowing Garden, he is the owner of the Borrowing Garden. It is one of the Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou. Born in a family of officials and officials, he served as Le'an County Order, Lanshan County Order, Qianshan County Order, and Acting Chuzhou Zhizhou. When he was an official, he was "benefiting the government and virtuous people". After being falsely accused, he was dismissed and went to reside in Nanjing to borrow gardens. He called himself the owner of the gardens and often traveled to Yangzhou to sell paintings. He is good at plum, orchid, bamboo, chrysanthemum, pine, fish, etc. He pays attention to the tradition of teacher's method and the creation of teacher's method, and can be his own style. His brushwork is vigorous and old, simple in cutting, unrestrained in shape, lively and lively. It is listed as one of the eight strange people in Yangzhou. There are "Fengzhu Tu", "Tour Fish Tu", "Momei Tu" and other handed down. He is the author of The Plum Blossom House Poetry Banknote. Good at painting pine, bamboo, orchid, chrysanthemum, plum, miscellaneous flowers and insect fish, but also characters, landscapes, especially fine plum painting. The works are bold and bold, full of ink, rough head and random clothes, regardless of lines and ink, intended between ivy, white sun and bamboo. Pictured plum is known for its thin and hard, old trunk and new branches, curving sideways. The famous inscription poems of plum blossom have the phrase "No surprise at every break". He also likes to draw pines and bamboos in the wind. Work books. Neng Poetry, later generations have "Plum Blossom House Poetry Grass", only 26, most scattered in the painting.

Wang Shishen

Wang Shishen (1686-1759), a close-knit character, named Chaolin, the history of other streams, the elderly in late spring and so on, was originally from Shexian County, Anhui Province, and lived in Yangzhou to sell paintings for a living. Flowers and crafts are delicate and colorful. Especially good at plum painting, often to Yangzhou Meihua Ridge outside the city to appreciate plum, write plum. The plum blossom is known for its dense buds, delicate and elegant, Jinnong said; the beauty of plum painting is that it has two friends in Guangling, Wang Chaolin and Gaoxi Tang Dynasty. (Notes on Plum Painting) But from his works of Plum Painting, not all of them are complicated, and they are often sparse. No matter complicated or simple, they are all free to wrap up fragrance and have fun of windy and snowy mountains and forests. When he was 54 years old, he was blind in his left eye. He could still draw plum blossoms. When he was skillful in showing his eyes, he engraved the words, "Left blind students still have plum blossoms in their eyes." At the age of sixty-seven, he had both eyes, but he could still write wild and cursive characters and sign money. He was so-called blind, not blind. Good poetry, the author of Chao Lin Poetry Collection.

Luo Bin

Luo Bin (1733-1799), a literary recluse husband, named two peaks, and also named Yiyun, the temple monk of the other name Huazhi, Jinniushan people, fisherman of Zhouzhou, old man Shilian. The famous painter of the Qing Dynasty was one of the Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou. His ancestral home is Shexian County, Anhui Province. He later lived in Yangzhou. He once lived in Mituo Lane, Caiyi Street. He called himself "Zhucao Shilin". Jinnong's disciples, who are not officials, are good travelers. Painting figures, Buddha statues, landscapes, flowers and fruits, plums, orchids, bamboos and so on. The style is unique and unique. He was good at drawing "ghost charts" and describing all kinds of ugly ghosts, which satirized the ugliness of the society at that time. He is also a poet of the Vanilla Hall Collection. He is also good at engraving and is the author of Biography of Guangyin People. After Jinnong's death, he collected the manuscripts and contributed to the engraving, which enabled Jinnong's works to be handed down to later generations. His wife, Fang Wanyi, Bailian, is also good at painting plum orchid, bamboo and stone, and works in poetry. Zi Yunshao and Yun Qian are both good at painting plum, known as the "Luo Jiamei School". His representative works include: Wind Map Outside Things (album pages), Lily Map on Two Peaks, Dangui Autumn High Map, Sunmap on Yin Barrier, Gu Qingyin Map, and Picture of Bamboo Sound Map, etc.

Since the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Yangzhou has been famous for its economic prosperity. Although it has suffered the destruction of military disasters for generations, it always regained prosperity soon after the war because of its location, convenient transportation, fertile land and abundant property. In the Qing Dynasty, although the city was destroyed by the slaughter on the 10th day, it was prosperous through the development of Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong dynasties, and became a major metropolis in the southeastern coast of China and an important trade center in the whole country. Rich businessmen gathered in all directions, especially in the prosperity of salt industry and the southeast of Fujia. The prosperity of economy also promotes the prosperity of cultural and artistic undertakings. Literary celebrities from all over the country gather in Yangzhou. At the initiative of local officials, poetry and literature parties are often held. Poetry and prose creation is well-known throughout the country. Some salt merchants, who are rich and elegant in their own right, have extended reception to those who come to Yangzhou from all over the world. As a result, Yangzhou has attracted many celebrities from all over the country, including many poets, writers and artists. Therefore, Yangzhou at that time was not only the economic center of Southeast China, but also the center of culture and art.

In order to meet the needs of their luxurious life, rich businessmen also need a large number of material and spiritual products, such as exquisite crafts, jewelry, fresh clothes and delicious food, especially in painting and calligraphy. As far as the wind goes, the middle-class family and even the slightly wealthy among the common people also ask for painting and calligraphy hanging in the room to show elegance. The folk proverb says that "there is no calligraphy and painting in the family, not the old family". The great demand for calligraphy and painting attracted and produced a large number of painters. According to the Record of Yangzhou Painting, there are more than one hundred famous local painters and painters from all over Yangzhou. Many of them were famous painters at that time. Eight strange people in Yangzhou were also famous ones. The works of Yangzhou Painting School, represented by the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou, have distinct individuality, whether in terms of material conception or composition. The formation of this artistic style was closely related to the trend of innovation in the painting world and the change of people's aesthetic taste. From the end of Ming Dynasty to the beginning of Qing Dynasty, Chinese painting was confined by conservative ideas, with copying as the mainstream, and the painting circle lacked vitality. This decadent trend aroused the discontent of intellectuals and elite painters, and Shi Tao, a great painter who advocated innovation, appeared in Yangzhou. Shi Tao's slogan of "pen and ink should keep pace with the times" and "can't do without law" is like a valley footnote, shaking the painting world. Shi Tao's theory and practice of "Kai Yangzhou School" finally gave birth to a group of innovative painters such as "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou". 

A rough and tortuous life experience

There are different opinions as to where the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" are. Some people think they are weird, but in reality they are not. The Eight Stranges themselves have experienced ups and downs. They have a sense of injustice, infinite anger and deep sympathy for the poor. With the keen insight and good compassion of intellectuals, they criticized ugly things and people, or wrote poems or paintings. Although these kinds of things are not uncommon in Chinese history, they are not uncommon. It is natural for people to look at them as "strange". But their daily behavior did not go beyond the scope of etiquette at that time, nor did they indulge like the Jin Dynasty literati - pretending to be crazy, crying and laughing capriciously. They communicate with officials and celebrities, attend poetry and literature parties, and show themselves as normal people. Therefore, it is unreasonable to judge their "strange" from their life behavior. Now only to their works, to study.

An original idea

"Eight monsters" (Jinnong, Wang Shishen, Huangshen, Li eel, Zheng Xie, Li Fangying, Gaoxiang, Luo Bin) are reluctant to follow the path that others have already opened up, but want to find a new way. They want to create the words of "exposing the world, shocking thunderstorms, talking about gods and ghosts, painting without history and present". They come from the portal, that is, they are different from the ancients, do not follow the fashion and create their own style. Their works are contrary to people's appreciation habits. People find their works novel, and they feel a little "strange". As Zheng Xie himself said, "Don't write by yourself. You are better than poetry. "In life, most of them experienced frustrations, and finally embarked on the road of selling paintings for a living. Although they sell paintings, they express their feelings by painting. They have higher pursuit in the art of painting and calligraphy, and they are unwilling to enter the ranks of ordinary painters. Their artistic pursuit of knowledge, experience, artistic accomplishment, deep skill and innovation is different from that of ordinary painters, reaching a new realm of conception, composition and technique.

Skills that do not fall into a rut

Chinese painting has a long history, with a long history. Literati painting flourished in Tang and Song Dynasties, gradually enriched and developed, forming a complete theoretical system, leaving behind a large number of works, which is the pride of Chinese painting. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there have been many schools of painting in various parts of China, each with its own characteristics, striving for supremacy in the field of painting. The greatest influence is the Yushan and Loudong Painting School headed by the "Four Kings". In Yangzhou, the "Eight Eccentric Painting Styles of Yangzhou" headed by Jinnong and Zheng Xie were formed. These painters have inherited and developed our painting tradition, but they have different opinions on inheriting tradition and creating methods. Yushan, Loudong and other schools of painting emphasize copying and learning the ancients, abide by the principles of the ancients, take vigorous revitalization of the ancients as their duty, and take "authentic" as their own. Their method of creation, as Wang Ju, the "authentic" painter, said, painting to "Yuan people straight ink, transport Song people Qiu Qian, and Ze to Tang people's charm, is a great success". They followed the ancients, followed by the same trend. Most of their works were imitations of ancient masters (of course, there are also creations in the imitation), forming a rigid situation, shackling the hands and feet of artists.

A free-flowing pen

The Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou also respect tradition, but they are different from the authentic. They inherited the creative methods of Shi Tao, Xu Wei, Zhu Jin and others, and they did not adhere to copying the ancient law. If Zheng Banqiao praises Shi Tao, he learns from Shi Tao. He also "abandons half and never learns all". Shi Tao has an important influence on the formation of the artistic style of the Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou. He advocated "teacher-made" and "self-method", opposed "muddy antiquity", demanded painters to absorb creative materials in nature, and stressed that works should have strong personality. He believed that "the ancients'eyebrows could not give birth to my face; the ancients' lungs and organs could not enter my abdomen and intestines." I spontaneously open my heart and eyebrows. Shi Tao's painting thought laid a theoretical foundation for the emergence of "Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou" and applied them in practice. "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" from nature to explore inspiration, from life to find themes, write their own family, do not want to be the same as people, at that time it was refreshing. People often regard their rare things as weird, so they are curious about the works of "Eight Stranges" which express their souls and gallop across the country. Others, accustomed to traditional painters, think that the paintings of "Eight Eccentrics" are beyond the law, and depreciate them. They say that they are partial teachers and belong to the left-handed way. They say that they "show brand-new in a moment, but only prevail in a hundred miles". The admirers praised their works as bold and free, free from the constraints of statutes and ancient laws, breaking the rigid situation at that time, bringing new vitality to Chinese painting, influencing and nurturing later artists such as Zhao Zhiqian, Wu Changshuo, Qi Baishi and Xu Beihong.

Terry's high standard of conduct

They were deeply disgusted with the dirty, evil, inflamed and flattering style prevailing in the officialdom at that time. Except for Zheng Banqiao and Li Fangying, who had been a small county, all the other eight people took "Lu Lian" and "Jiezhi Tui" as models all their lives and refused to be officials until they died. Even Zheng Banqiao, a former official, is different from the regular official. When he took office in Shandong Province, he first dug a hundred holes in the walls of the old government offices and went to the streets. He said that he wanted to be honest and clean. Most of the life aspirations of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" are merged in poetry, literature and painting, and they never embellish peace. They use poetry and painting to reflect the suffering of the people, to vent their inner anger and depression, and to express their pursuit and yearning for a better ideal. Zheng Banqiao's "Humble Class", "Fugu Lonely Travel" and "Runaway Travel" are just like that. Eight strange people like to paint plum, bamboo, stone and orchid. They express their interest with plum's arrogance, stone's hardness and coldness, bamboo's nobility and orchid's fragrance. Among them, Luo Bin also likes to paint ghosts. He describes ghosts in all shapes and sizes, and explains that "ghosts exist everywhere." The characteristics of ghosts are "when meeting rich people, they snake along the wall, when meeting poor people, they scrape their feet and mock hundreds of ends". This is not a painting of ghosts, it is clear that through the ghost state, the skin of corrupt officials who tend to inflame and oppress the poor is torn off, and their true face is returned. In the era of the extreme cruelty of the feudal system and the great development of literary prisons, they dared to be different and different. No wonder a governor shook his head and called it "weird, weird". Deng Tuo wrote in chanting about the famous painter Zheng Banqiao in the Qing Dynasty that "singing about Yangzhou makes a strange name and orchid and carnation shadow accompanies the sound of books", which can be regarded as a summary of their "strange" characteristics.