Ni Yide 倪貽德: The True Significance of Nude Art 裸體藝術之真義

裸體藝術之真義

Like other new theories and ideas, nude art has permeated our culture under the influence of trends of modernization. It is not only a sign of the Renaissance but a pioneer of the Renaissance as well. The quaintness of Florence and the spring of the Rhine River will soon appear on the splendid land of China. We indeed rejoice for such a bright future! However, in the early stage of the emergence of a new thing, when exposed to places that have never been touched, it is bound to be misunderstood and opposed by most of the old forces. When socialism was first introduced into China, it was regarded as the great scourge by the rich and powerful. Similarly, nude art is misunderstood by the Chinese people. Although this is to be expected, this misunderstanding is still a great hindrance to the future of our art world.

同別種新的學說新的思想一樣，裸體藝術也隨着現代的潮流滲入我們的國土了。這是一種文藝復興的徵象，再生時代的先驅。佛羅倫市的古香，萊茵河畔的春色，行將重現於我中華燦爛的國土。我們應當怎樣地為光明的前途欣喜而跳躍！然而一種新的東西當初要行於素未曾接觸過的地方的時候，必定要遭大多數舊勢力的誤解和反對。社會主義傳進了中國，權貴富豪都視為洪水猛獸，同樣，裸體藝術也是被國人誤解得這樣厲害的。這固然早在我們的意料之中，然而長此這樣誤解下去，對於我們藝術界的前途確是一種莫大的阻礙。

From my observation, apart from the philistines (yongren 庸人),[1] who tend to be amoral, there are three types of people who have an attitude towards nude art in China today:

以我個人的觀察,國人對於裸體藝術，除開無是非之心的庸人以外，還有以下的三種人物：

1. People who regard nude art as pornography that harms society’s morals and corrupts public decency, and therefore firmly oppose nude art based on the obsolete ethics bred from the dross in Confucianism.[2]

一。立足於舊道德的觀念之上，視裸體藝術為傷風敗俗的淫畫，而絕端反對的。

2. People who are somewhat open-minded and have a bit more sense believe that nude paintings can be used as practice, but nothing beyond. In other words, they consider nude paintings to be rudimentary practice for painting figures in clothes.

二。比較前一種人的頭腦稍為清楚一點，也稍為新穎一點。他們認裸體畫相當的可以練習，不過單只能終於練習而止。換言之，就是他們認裸體畫為著衣人物畫畫之初步練習。

3. People who take advantage of the reputation of the nude painting and draw obscene content with inferior techniques in order to make a profit by ingratiating unremarkable naive youths.

三。盜取裸體畫的美名，用卑陋低下的技術，繪出種醜陋的姿態，以取媚一般無識的青年男女而從中圖利的。

Although the three types of people mentioned above share no similarities in their attitudes, what they do share in common is having not learned one bit of the true significance of nude art. Their false understandings on nude art are more than enough to wipe out the development of Chinese modern art in ‘the world of New Art’.[3]

這三種人的態度雖各不同，然而他們沒有了解裸體藝術的真義則一。他們那種謬誤的見解，多足摧殘我們新藝術界的發展而有餘。

The number of people who belong to the first type is significantly large and almost makes up two thirds of the total. If they become powerful, they will ban nude art like other obscene books and paintings. Then comes the unimportant literati, who prefer to put on a moral façade and strongly castigate the artists for their sins. Generally, the second type of people are perhaps the so-called minzhong yishuzhe (the commoner artist 民眾藝術者). They think the aesthetics of nude art is not practical and is merely an artists’ boring game, so we often hear their contemptuous criticism. The third type of people are increasing gradually. Being crooked merchants who make fake art, they take advantage of the reputation of nude art to gain profit while using the excuses mentioned above to defile true nude art. Therefore, I think that people in the art world should take certain steps to explain the significance of nude art. This is a necessary and urgent matter.

第一種人的頭數之巨，差不多要佔全部的三分之二，他們要是大權在握的時候，就可把它和淫書春畫一樣的禁止。其次是一般下等的文人，他們偏要戴起道德的假面具，肆口痛斥提倡裸體藝術者的罪惡，第二種人大抵是一些所謂民眾藝術者，他們以為唯美的裸體藝術是不切於實用，是藝術家無聊的遊戲，所以也常常聽見他們輕蔑的非議。第三種人則現在日見其多，他們每竊取了裸體藝術的美名以圖漁利；而他們那種奸商式的魚目混珠的假冒，適足以被第一第二兩種人的借口，而使純正的裸體藝術也同時被污。所以我覺得我們身居於藝術界的人，費一點功夫來把裸體藝術的真義解說一番，實是當今必要而急迫的工程。

Generally, people cannot escape mentioning “quxianmei” (the beauty of curves 曲線美) when they explain nude paintings, so it has become a popular and fashionable phrase.[4] Whenever it is mentioned, I would suffer from a severe headache. In fact, the beauty of curves is not enough to include all the values of nude art. Why are curves necessarily beautiful? If so, we only need to paint curves like arcs, circles and waves, then claim that this is the pinnacle of beauty. But it is not the case. So, we can see that there are other important reasons why the human figure is beautiful.

通常解釋裸體畫的人，總離不了“曲線美”三字，於是“曲線美”便大行天下而成為一種時髦的名詞，到如今只要一提起曲線美，就不覺要使我頭痛欲絕。其實曲線美實不足以包括裸體藝術之全部。曲線何以一定會美？要使曲線一定是美的，那麼我們只要把弧形，圓周形，波狀形等等的曲線畫在畫上，就可以說是美之極致了。可見人體之所以為美，尚有其他重要的原因在着。

I will talk about formalism. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said that as for the condition of formalism in aesthetics, the most important thing was the consistency within the variety. If consistency were to dominate beauty, it would be humdrum, and if variety were to dominate beauty, it would be fragmented and present irregular status. The basic structure of the human body is a perfect example of consistency within variety. Feet support the central part of the body, and hands are on both sides of the body, maintaining the balance of the body. What’s more, the head is located at the upper portion of the torso. It works as the core and can control other parts of the body. What an accurate example of consistency! Some changes also emerge from consistency in the structure of the body. For example, the shape of the chest is slightly similar with that of the abdomen. Subtle differences, however, are found between them. It is the same with limbs. The beauty of consistency and the beauty of variety are in the human body. That is what we call “quxianmei”. Therefore, when studying nude paintings, we cannot ignore the consistency and the variety in the human body and should pay more attention to human anatomy.

我們先從形式方面說吧。形式美之條件，最主要的便是變化中之統一，古時希臘的阿里士多德便這樣的說了。單是統一而無變化，則失之單調；徒變化而不同意，那就支離錯雜而呈不規則的狀態。人體的構造，恰恰是合乎變化中之統一的條件。我們看他中央的軀體，下有二腳的支持，左右有二手的支配，十分能保持全體的重心；而頭正生於中央之最上部，成為全體之中心，能集中各部之勢力，這是多麼整齊而統一呢！然而他在統一之中又能現出變化，如胸和腹之形雖略相似，然其間卻有極巧妙的變化；此外如上膊上腿，前膊下腿亦然，他是既有變化之美，同時亦有統一之美——通常所謂曲線美，大概就是指此而說——因此，我們研究裸體畫不可以忽略了人體的權衡，而尤不可忘了人體的解剖。

The beauty of forms mentioned above was perused by people who lived in Ancient Greece and the Classical period. Modern artists have a new perception on nude paintings, and they do not place very much value upon fixed aesthetic form. You can tell this trend from the nude paintings of Paul Cezanne and Henri Matisse. As for the beauty of the human figure, what modern artists pursued was enjoyment caused by voluptuousness, roundness and colors of the human figure.

以上所講的是形式的美，是古希臘時代所追求的美，是後代古典主義時代所追求的美。現代的新藝術家對於裸體畫的觀念，卻又進了步，他們對於這有一定方式的形式美不甚重視了，我們只要看一看塞尚納，馬提斯等的人體畫就可以知道一般的傾向。原來現代的藝術家對於人體所追求的美，乃是由人體之肉感，圓味，色彩，而引起的美的陶醉。

When looking at a round thing, no matter what it is, we are delighted and feel peaceful, especially for those artists who have a strong perception of art. What’s more, presenting a three-dimensional circle on a two-dimensional drawing is the most difficult thing, and as people who study foreign paintings, it requires earnest endeavors. Since this thing is not simple and cannot be completed without constant effort and advanced skills, the artist experiences the delights of achievement. Art critics also value the work due to its difficulty. All parts of the human figure, such as the body, the head and limbs, represent roundness. They are all cylindrical. The plump body of a young lady is a perfect example. Her ample breasts, long legs and plump buttocks evoke pleasure and passion.

不論甚麼物體，凡是帶有圓味的，都能使我們看了身心中起一種適當的調和與愉快，尤其是感覺特別發達的畫家。而且更有一層，在平而上顯出立體的圓，是最不容易的事，也是我們洋畫者所最應努力的事。惟其最不容易，而能由不斷的努力與巧妙的技巧以表出。在創作者固能自得其成功的愉快，在鑒賞者亦能因其難能而珍視。人體的全部，卻無一處不現其圓味，如軀體，如頭顱，如四肢，都是由一種圓筒形組織而成的。而尤其是妙年豐盛的女性的肉體，她那高高隆起的一對乳峰，她那玉柱一般的兩條大腿，她那肥大突出的臀部，是何等的能引起我們生的愉快，愛的活躍！

Sensual pleasure is closely related to roundness. It is human nature to fall passionately for soft things, like the fragrance of flowers, the sways of willows, and the delightful songs and beautiful dances of maidens. They make us feel happy and at peace because they have a sense of gentleness and softness. We can see the beauty of softness, and even feel the touch of it. This is why females are the models for nude paintings; their figures possess a sense of gentleness and softness. The most outstanding artist in drawing nude females is the leading painter of the impressionist style, Renoir. The most peculiar thing about his art is that he could fully express the gentleness of sensual pleasure. He could perfectly capture the maidens’ lovely faces and charming postures. When we look at his work, we can naturally feel that our heart and mind have arrived at a harmonious state; we walk into a realm of peace, love and beauty. In the meantime, we acknowledge that this kind of gentleness of sensual pleasure makes female figures beautiful.

與圓味有密切關係的，便是肉感。人類的天性，大概是對於柔軟的物質具有熱烈的愛慕，花的芳香，楊柳的輕風，少女的清歌妙舞，所以能引起我們諧和的愉快者，無非是具有一種溫柔的軟味的原故，而這軟味更能由視覺的美而感到觸覺的美。所以裸體畫為什麼要取女性做模特兒，便是因為女的肉體含有溫軟的軟味的原故。描寫裸體女子之最傑出者，當推印像，印象派的巨子羅諾爾，羅氏的藝術之最獨到處，我們可以說就是能將柔和的肉感充分地表現出來，他所繪的裸體的妙年少女，愛嬌的貌，嫵媚的姿態，可謂發揮殆盡，我們只要一看到他的作品，全身心就會不知不覺的感到一種適當的調和，而入於平和愛美之境；同時我們也就可以曉得，女性肉體之所以為美者，大半是因於這溫柔的肉感。

Finally, I am going to talk about the color of the body. The beauty of color can generally be divided into harmony and contrast, and the color of flesh belongs to the former. Though the change of its color scale is complicated and extremely nuanced, they all belong to a main color – a kind of warm color. More importantly, we should know that the color of flesh is closely related to blood circulation.[5] The blood circulates ceaselessly. As a result, the color of flesh is always changing. Therefore, if we look at the color of flesh of a healthy person, we can feel the animation, the throb, and the unlimited creativity of life. There is much inspiration and revelation an artist can gain from this!

最後要說到人體的色彩了。色彩之美，大概有所謂調和與對照，人體的色彩美，是屬於前者。它的變化雖是複雜，然而其色階之推移極為微細，而且都是從屬於一種主要的色彩，這主要的色彩便是一種溫暖的熱色。我們要更曉得，人體的肉色，與血脈之運行極有關係，血脈之運行周流不息，人的肉色也隨着瞬息變化。所以在一個健康人的肉色上看來，在在都可以看出生命之活躍，生命之顫動，生命之無限創造。藝術家在這上邊，可以得到多少豐富的靈感與不盡的暗示！

Art is not a rude and stubborn tyrant, much less an old-fashioned Taoist scholar, but an angel of Love, a child of Beauty. What artists express is not ugly models or moral maxims, but a kind of beauty that makes our lives enjoyable. So, no matter what it is, in the eyes of the artist, as long as it is beautiful, then it is true and virtuous, it is the supreme creation. As is mentioned, the human figure has many beautiful features, thus the artistic value and the continuous emphasis of nude art is evident.

藝術不是粗魯頑強暴漢，更不是方正嚴肅的道學者流，乃是人間之愛的天使，美的歌童。藝術家所表現的，也不是醜惡的模型與道德的格言，乃是能引起我們生命愉快的美。所以不問什麼，只要是美的，在藝術家的眼裡，就是真，就是善，就是至高無上的創造。人體的美點既如上所述，則裸體藝術之為藝術家所重視與在藝術上之價值，可以不言而喻。

From ancient times, Western art always centered on the study of the human figure. Today, these studies are still being polished generation by generation, and thus, new expressions and technologies have been developed. Western art has become a majestic wonder. However, when Western art spread to the East, it could not adapt to the Eastern culture. In Buddhism, the human body is the root of all evil. In Confucianism, a reserved manner and wenshi (rhetoric 文飾)[6] is the highest state of xiuyang (self-cultivation 修養).[7]Here, most people think nude painting is like a demon that incites lewd customs, hinders jiaohua (moral refinement 教化) and corrupts social values.[8] To dispel these wrong ideas and misunderstandings, we do not have to argue if there exists a relationship between art and morality. We only need to question whether the old morality, which is the foothold common folks rely on, still has authority in today’s new era. The foundation of old morality has long been built upon sand. Those people have many wives and concubines, while they label others’ freedom to fall in love as being shameful behavior and an offense to public decency. They claim that the true feelings of others are ugly and shameless despite the fact that they veil corruption and accept licentious behavior. The words of the common folk have already lost credibility. The tide of the times trends forward overwhelmingly, and the present embraces the past and becomes a new era. All mass and potential energy, each taking on a new form and movement, sweep away with violent waves the wall of mud on the floating sand. Therefore, rather than engaging in an argument, we would do better instead to ascertain if nude art conflicts with the ethics advocated in current times. The new morality (xin daode 新道德), a set of contemporary social standards, is not only embodied by intense self-expression, but also aims to reveal genuine emotions in their primal state.[9] Accordingly, instead of conflicting with new morality, nude art shares the same spirit with such social morals. From another perspective, is it not true that currently all art movements have been restoring the spirit of the primeval times? We ought to admire the primitive people for travelling between mountains and plains completely naked, living an innocent and natural life free from worries to the utmost. Intelligence was gradually developed within nations of later ages, and people started covering themselves up hastily, having realized that it was disgraceful to wear no clothes, distinguishing themselves from the nations of barbarians. However, as knowledge was spread amid people, hypocrisy emerged as a trait and sanctimonious misbehaviors also arose during this process. We do not need to advocate restoring primeval practices to present society. Although, so we do not deviate from the true significance of art, which serves as the expression of life, it is necessary to adopt such a tendency. Ah! Shame on the gentry who consider themselves to be the descendants (zhou 胄) of gods from a state of propriety. Glamorous as your exteriors might be, you are rotten and decayed on the inside. What entitles you to criticize others when you should be occupied with introspection and guilt.

西方的藝術自古以來，即以人體為其研究之中心，迄於今日，則因其代相研究而更發現了新的表現,新的技巧，成為華美燦爛之偉觀。但是一流到東方，東方的佛教思想是以人體為一切罪惡之果；東方的儒教思想又以含蓄文飾為修養之極致；所以就根本的不能相容。他們大概視裸體畫提倡淫風，有礙教化，使社會人心墮落的惡魔。我們要根本打到這些謬誤的見解，姑不必從藝術與道德有無關係說起，我們只要向他們所恃為立足點的舊道德在今日的新時代是否還有權威存在。舊道德的根基本來早已築於浮沙之上，他們自己抱了三妻四妾而偏要說人家的自由戀愛為傷風敗俗，他們自己儘管藏污納穢而偏要說人家的赤裸裸的真情流露為醜惡無恥，他們的話語是早已失去了信用了。時代的潮流滾滾不息，現在囊括了過去，而成為一個新的時代，一切的質量和勢能，都各取一種新的形式與運動，浮沙上的泥牆早已被狂濤急浪衝去了。所以我們也不必和他們爭什麼是非，我們只要看新的道德和裸體藝術有沒有衝突的地方。新道德是以強烈的自我表現為本體，新道德又以赤裸裸的真情流露為歸依，所以裸體藝術非但與新道德沒有衝突的地方，而且更能取同一的精神。再從另一方面說，現在一切的藝術運動，不是都在復反於原始時代的精神么？ 原始時代的民族，赤身裸體，日趨山野，天真自然，歡樂無憂，這是我們所最應羨慕的地方。後世知識日開，人知無衣蔽體為恥，於是競相文飾遮掩，以別於野蠻之族；然而虛偽矯飾之情，外善內惡之行，也都由此而出，我們現在的生活，雖然不必以復反原始時代為創；然而為生命表白之藝術，正應取這一種的傾向才能不背真義。啊啊！你們自以為禮教之邦，神明之胄的大人先生們喲！你們雖然披了一身華美的外衣，你們的內心早已腐爛如敗絮了！你們當深目內疚之不暇，那裡還有攻擊他人的餘地呢？

I will also discuss models, a group of people who have close links with nude art, along with other arguments. Common folk believe that working as a model for an artists’ works is as despicable and obscene as being a prostitute. What nonsense! If we think it over more carefully, presenting the beauty of female bodies to the world as a model does deserve to be recognized as a matchless honor. Not to mention, since artists rely on the beauty of female bodies presented by models to create great works, models indirectly help with art production. We ought to praise models, for they have made immeasurable contribution to nude art. Modelling did not exist in China until three or four years ago. I have witnessed with my own eyes how this industry started to sprout, and how it is progressively expanding in this country. However, I always feel that most of the women who work as models are forced to make a living or are desperate for a good salary, choosing this work reluctantly. So, when they are models, they unconsciously show a depressed and restless attitude, creating many obstacles for researchers’ work. I believe that if we still want to pursue any progress in nude art, the women who work as models have to attain certain awareness. It is generally believed that artists do not pay much attention to models in the process of creation. I do not think this is the full picture. Artists rely entirely on strong emotion and feeling when they are working. These feelings are derived from their love for the subjects of their art. I think, far from not being interested in them, artists passionately love their models. This is not a spiritual love, but a love generated by souls and bodies. To some extent, this kind of love will come to an end, living on in imagination. With the help of this kind of love, artists can gain infinite inspiration and compose great works. Brilliant artists should agree with my opinions.

I have already talked a lot, so I will stop here. However, according to the context, there are some contradictions in my article. As I mentioned before, I wrote this article to offer explanations to those who typically misunderstand. Yet, what I said later is still coarse to readers. It cannot avoid causing misunderstandings, fuelling their hostility and condemnation. This is a fact that I cannot change. But now I think that I do not need to worry about their hostile and malicious attitude, because outside factors are stimulants that motivate us to work harder. They will be the most serious and intelligent judge. I believe that the old forces will soon be defeated and a promising future will finally arrive with the sun of the new era!

寫來不覺過多了，我將於此擱筆。然而回顧上文，覺得前後不免有自相矛盾的地方。前面我不是說起的嗎？我說做這篇文章的意思是想作為一般誤解者的解釋，但是後面所說的，卻仍是些不入耳之言，非但不能減少他們的誤解於絲毫，反更增他們的仇視與非難，這實是沒有辦法的事實。不過我現在反覺得他們的仇視與非難為不足慮，外界的刺激最是我們努力的興奮劑，那一個最嚴肅而明敏的裁判者，我相信陳舊的勢力不久定會淘汰，新的前途終會隨時代的陽光到來了！