肖红于2000年前后决定作为一个职业艺术家来北京之后，所创作的第一批作品是《艳阳天》系列，在这批作品中，都没有对人物形象进行具体的面部细节特征的描绘。而恰恰相反的是，紧随其后，开始于2003年的《知识青年》系列，却又将巨大的人物脸部作为作品的表现主体。我想，对于肖红近作的解读，话题可以由此而展开。
Xiao Hong created his first works series of “Bright Sunny Skies” after he decided to come to Beijing as a professional artist around 2000. In this series, he did not specifically portray any detailed facial characteristics of image. On the contrary, he used huge human face as main representation in the following series of “Intellectual Youth” beginning at 2003. I think we can start from this topic to interpret Xiao Hong’s recent works.
“他”与“他们”
2005年之前的北京通州滨河小区聚集了很多各种类型的艺术家，他们的创作方式各异，性格、性情也各一，但是都以“当代艺术”为标榜，所以说，在那个时期，滨河小区确实有点像一个中国当代艺术界的“微缩生态景观”。此时的肖红，置身于这群草莽式的“当代”氛围中，原先的更多着眼于材料和语言的个人风格似乎受到了质疑，创作于这个时期的《艳阳天》系列，则是他尝试着进行图式研究的第一步。
“He” and “They”
Before 2005, various types of artists assembled in Binhe community, Tongzhou district, Beijing. They had distinct way of creation, diverse characters and personalities, but were all labeled with “Contemporary Art”. So at that time, Binhe community was indeed a kind of “miniature ecological landscape” of China contemporary art. Xiao Hong, at that point, was situated in the folksy “contemporary” atmosphere. His previous personal style which focused on materials and languages seemed to be questioned. The series of “Bright Sunny Skies” created at that period is his first step to attempt schemata exploration.
在此前的作品中，《再造供养人》系列是他于前中央工艺美术学院装饰艺术系研修壁画史之后的作品。在这批作品中，我们可以看到，除了对敦煌壁画的形象造型进行借鉴之外，肖红试图在有限的画面空间中营造出一种广阔的时空概念，一种穿越历史的文化对话。置身于“此时”的“我”是一个时空的基点，而在敦煌壁画漫长的营造史中作为“配角”出现的供养人，因为不受佛、菩萨等既定的样式化要求的限制，则可以视为在各个历史时空中出现的世俗生活的再现。肖红将他们并置在一个广阔的时空隧道中，与之进行着文化与生命本体的对话。在稍后的《大路朝天》系列中，他进一步摒弃了在前一个系列中以佛、菩萨为画面主体的隐喻方式，而将“人”的生老病死、劳作休憩作为了表现的主要内容。他们是谁、他们在干什么，这些都不重要，关键的是肖红在这个系列中试图传递出一种生命的延续和它的终极价值。
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In the preceding works, “To Rebuild Providers” series were created after his studying in the mural painting history in Department of Decoration Art Design, Central Academy of arts and design. From these works, we can figure out that besides of referring to the images of Dunhuang fresco, Xiao Hong endeavored to form a broad space-time concept in limited painting space, and a cultural conversation passing through history. “Here”, “I” am a basic spot in space-time. Yet, the provider, who appears as “supporting role” in the long history of Dunhuang fresco construction, can be considered as recurrence of secular life in each historical period, since it is not restricted by set patterns of Buddha and Bodhisattva and the like. Xiao Hong located them together in an extensive space-time tunnel, and had conversation with them regarding to culture and life noumenon. In the latter series of “A Broad Road toward Sky”, he further abandoned the metaphor method of using Buddha and Bodhisattva as the main portrait representation, instead, he utilized birth, age, sickness, and death, work and rest of “human” as key contents. It does not matter who they are, what they are doing, the essential point is Xiao Hong attempted to convey the message of life continuity and its ultimate value in this series.
总体而言，在肖红以上两个系列的作品中，他的历史视角还是“向后”的，是在对过往的人的生活、生命的一种历史文化关怀。而就绘画语言而言，这两个时期的作品的美学倾向基本上还是偏向于一种学院式的、较为收敛的语言探索。如果肖红的创作、生活没有太大的改变的话，也许他会一直持续着这种风格的发展，而成为一个在官方的沙龙式的美学趣味体系中的风格型画家。但是，置身于2000年前后的滨河小区的“前卫”氛围中，是他创作的一个转折点，醉心于历史情怀之中的文人式的油画语言趣味显然不符合弥漫于这里的“当代”逻辑。他自己也坦言这个时期是他的迷茫阶段，而出现于这个时期的《艳阳天》系列在他的创作历程中，也体现出了一种调整和转型的价值。
Generally speaking, Xiao Hong’s historic view is “backwards” in the two series above. It is a historical and cultural care for the past human life. Nevertheless, from the aspect of language of drawing, the aesthetic trend of works during these two periods fundamentally tends to be an academic and reserved language exploration. Xiao Hong might have been retained this style and become a stylish painter in official salon-like Aesthetic system, until his creation and life has changed significantly. However, situated in the ”Avant-garde” atmosphere in Binhe community around 2000, he encountered with a changing point of his creation. The intellectual painting language fascinating with historic affection obviously mismatched with the “contemporary” logic here. He frankly acknowledged that he was lost in confusion at that stage. The series of “Bright Sunny Skies” during this period, demonstrated the value of adjustment and transformation in his creation process.
在《艳阳天》系列中，作为叙事性因素的人物场景被高度概括，人物的面部特征也被进一步虚化，至此，以前出现在他的画面中的那些不同时代的芸芸众生被置换成一个凝练的符号，一个个具体的、个体的“他”被符号化为泛指的“他们”。从这一点而言，这个阶段的作品，对于肖红以后创作的意义就体现在人物形象不再拘泥于具体的生活场景和身份个性之中，而成为了一个高度凝练、概括的文化符号。所以，他的这个阶段的作品的价值就在于为以后的创作提供一种可能性。
In the series of “Bright Sunny Skies”, scenes of characters as narrative elements were highly generalized, and character’s facial features were further immaterialized. Till then, mortals in diverse generations appeared in his preceding paintings were replaced with a concise symbol. Each idiographic and individual “He” was symbolized to be a generic referenced “They”. From this standpoint, Xiao Hong’s works at this stage brought value for his future creation, which is character image would not adhere to specific life scene and figure personality, but become a highly condensed and summarized cultural symbol. Consequently, the value of his works at this point is to provide a possibility for his future.
“他们”与“它们”
如前所述，在创作《艳阳天》系列的过程中，正是肖红身处2000年前后的当代艺术氛围中，对于自己此前的艺术经验进行反思的过程，那么，在这个系列中出现的没有面部特征的儿童形象也可以解读为正是他自己内心迷茫、漂移过程的一种形象具体化。但是，如果以此为中间点，联系起他前后两个大阶段的创作风格来分析，肖红恰恰是以此为转折点，完成了他从一种直觉式的生命体验到反思式的文化批判的转型过程。
“They” and “Non-Life They”
As mentioned above, the creation process of “Bright Sunny Skies” series was the procedure of Xiao Hong reassessing his previous aesthetic experience in the ambiance of contemporary art around 2000. Therefore, the children’s image without facial trait in this series can be interpreted as a concreted image of his own confusion and shifting process. Nevertheless, if we integrate his previous and subsequent creation style using this moment as an intermediate point, and to make analysis, Xiao Hong precisely make use of it as turning point and completed his transformation from an intuitional life experience to introspective culture criticism.
在从2003年持续至今的《知识青年》的系列中，人物的面部形象被放大到占据了画面的全部空间，而与此同时，却弱化了他们的面部表情和神态特征，他们成为了一种既可以出现在历史的某一瞬间，也可以出现在当下的符号化的“他们”。在这个系列中，“他们”是一个载体、一个容器，而作为“第二表情”特征出现的则是另一种符号，是过往的各个历史瞬间中曾经出现过的那些文化碎片。由此，肖红也完成了他从一个文化缅怀者到一个文化批判者的主体身份的转型，这一点，也恰恰是他的作品由此而具备了当代艺术特质的重要特征。
In the “Intellectual Youth” series from 2003 till now, character’s facial image was magnified to occupy the entire space in portrait. In the mean time, their facial expression and countenance feature were weakened. They were converted into a symbolized “They” who could be found at any moment in history as well as appear in the present. In this series, “They” is a carrier and a container. While what appears as “secondary expression” feature is another symbol, which are those cultural fragments in the past historic moments. At that point, Xiao Hong accomplished his transformation from a person who cherished cultural memory to a cultural criticizer, which is exactly a significant indication that his works possessed contemporary art characteristics from then on.
我们知道，如果抛开官方的教科书式的历史说教，中国文明的历史是一个碎片化的过程，特别是近代以来，中国文化的历史因为政治的原因而出现了很多次人为的断裂。出生于上个世纪六十年代末的肖红在他自身的成长过程中，也应该是能够对于这种碎片式的文化历史感同身受。这样，这种断裂的文明碎片就成为了一种外在于生命主体的物化的“它们”。在这种文化历史观的逻辑中，人物主体空洞、茫然的眼神就成为了与之相对照的另一个参照系，更隐喻了一种文化历史的宿命感。
As we know that if we discard the historic preaching in official textbook, Chinese culture is a procedure of fragment, especially in the modern history, there are many factitious fragmentations in history of Chinese culture as a result of politics. Xiao Hong, who was born at the end of the 1960s, should be deeply affected by this fragmental culture and history during his own growth. In this way, these disintegrated cultural segments turn into a materialized “Non-Life They” out of life noumenon. In this cultural historism logic, the vacuous and vacant eyes of character become another frame of reference reflecting it, which furthermore insinuate a cultural and historical foreordination.
随着历史文化价值观的变化而变化的是画面形式和技法语言的调整。在这些近作中，人物的头部形象被处理成了更像一个透明的容器，以强化它的物质化的特征;而那些贴片式历史文化碎片也并没有简单地平涂在人物的面部体积上，而是处理成了一种似乎具备了液体的特征。这样，人便成为了一种文化的容器和载体，具体的“人”无法超越于自己的文化历史宿命。至此，肖红在早期的创作中所流露出来的壁画式的历史时空意识，也从一种平面的并置发展成为了多时空的交融。这样，他的油画技法语言便也从早期的更加注重材料物性特征的写意式涂抹，变成了注重多空间融合的渲染。这个时候，我们也可以发现，他早年在鲁迅美术学院参加法国画家克劳德·依维尔油画研修班的经历，只不过，在他最近的创作中，克劳德·依维尔对于物体的写实性的细节描绘的技法被他创造性地与以敦煌壁画为代表的中国传统壁画的表达方式结合在一起了。这样，我们在肖红的作品中便能看到线、面与体积的结合，写实与写意的结合，真实与虚拟的结合，细腻与粗犷的结合，这些，是肖红对于油画绘画语言的创造性发挥。
2010年4月4日 于北京通州
What revolutionized with the changes of historical and cultural value is the adjustment of painting form and techniques usage. In the recent works, image of characters’ head is treated as like a transparent container, to emphasis its materialized characteristics. Those chipped historical and cultural fragment are not simply painted on the character’s facial volume, but was treated as if they have liquid feature. By this means, people turn out to be a container and carrier for culture. Concrete “People” can not surpass their own cultural and historical destiny. Up till then, Xiao Hong’s historical time-space conscious with mural style expressed in his early creation, has developed from a plane layout to the merge of multi space-time. In that way, his painting techniques matured from freehand brushwork in the previous stage which emphasizes more on material properties, to highlighting glamorization of multi spaces blend. At this point, we can figure out his previous learning experience in French painter "Claude Yeevier" Oil Painting Class in Lu Xun Art Institute. Only that in his recent creation, Claude Yeevier’s techniques of painting realistic details is creatively combined with Chinese traditional mural expression represented by Dunhuang fresco. So we can see the combination of line, plane and volume, realism and impressionism, reality and imagination, delicateness and ruggedness in Xiao Hong’s works. These are Xiao Hong’s creative usage of painting language.
Apr 4, 2010, in Tongzhou District, Beijing
附加翻译：
肖红把现实场景和片段，当作人面部难于改变的皮肤印记---如痣，色斑，处理在人像上，他把留存在内心的现实场景和片段，和人的肖像融成一体，表达出一种“浮现在眼前”的感觉。希望您能莅临，共同体验肖红作品中的历史和现实的交融。
Xiao Hong interprets scenes and fragments of reality into the unchangeable skin marks on a human face, turns them to be moles or patches in portrait. He merged the reality scenes and fragments in the heart with the portrait, and conveys the feeling of “appearing before your eyes”. You are cordially invited to the exhibition of Xiao Hong to experience the integration of history and reality in his works.
【编辑：张瑜】
