Reconsider Truth and Beauty (Part 1)

As an artist, maybe I shouldn’t consider so many philosophical and aesthetic issues. Yet with the forgotten and lost contemporary aesthetics, the extremely confused beauty and ugliness in the contemporary cultural and art circles, it seems indeed necessary to analyze and explore ourselves. As the sole higher animal on earth, humans are blessed with the aesthetic experience and ability, the gift from God. However, such a wonderful blossom is not accessible to all. It’s offered to the observant only. It’s like a skylight. Once opened, you would find an infinitely wonderful second world through it, and thus your life enriches. There are numerous amazing melodies, masterpieces and exotic plants, a vast ocean of music, literature and art where you can immerse yourself in an infinite journey. No wonder Confucius forgot the flavor of meat for three months after hearing a melody. And Plato, a sage in the remote Occident, once said “Such observation of beauty itself is the most worthwhile life realm of a person, incomparable by anything else. Once you’re in such a living state, anything else that infatuates you and many others to such an extent as watching and protecting continually without eating or sleep, like your gold, fancy dress, lovely and pretty youngsters, would seem nothing.” They both valued the aesthetic realm awfully.

Beauty itself inspires, enlightens and delights people, which benefits their mental and physical health significantly. It’s also widely acknowledged that beauty can please the mind and encourage the return of goodness. Chuang Tzu in ancient China said, “There’s great yet indescribable beauty in nature.” Obviously, it has been long since our ancestors knew the beauty of nature. The most diversified beauty exists in the boundless universe, which is most valuable for humans who have a taste of aesthetics. Hence their emotions are enriched and nourished, to the extent of aesthetic realm. We can also have mutual spiritual communications through the aesthetic awareness.

Beauty cannot exist independently without concrete objects. Without vigorous and colorful entities, the beauty weakens itself. The wider distance in between, the weaker appeal beauty has. Like the moonlight shadow, it always feels misty and vague, so that people never trust it. Likewise, however gorgeous, the clothes and accessories on a beauty could never be as beautiful as the beauty herself. The beauty of Xi Shi is greater than that of clouds in the sky. Smiling or crying, or even drenched in the river, Xi Shi looks all the more beautiful! So is Venus, whose beauty is reproduced by the texts of myths and fantastic sculptures. With the mere abstract name Venus, it seems unnecessary to take the trouble to call on the goddess in the basement of Louvre... The truth and beauty in their images always attract the attention of the vast public, and raise our inner waves like a stone cast to the sea to arise successive huge waves. Therefore, beauty must be embodied in real existence.

Indeed, both abstract and concrete beauty exist as a phenomenon in nature. And it has been almost a century since artists expressed themselves in abstract paintings. Abstract thoughts differ from abstract beauty, in that the latter is visible. Even if it’s in your mind, it exists in a certain form, like a color, a shape, even certain gas or air. It has a reference substance in the world or the universe, an epitome or a bit of subtle feelings. Yet it has such disadvantages as uncertainty, ambiguity, vagueness and paradox. In fact, there is a simple general truth for life: we can’t live in illusory mist forever; we need to live in a more certain, simple and clear world. First of all, we need to know about the reality. Only in this way can we approach the fact and seek a way to the truth. Leading a pleasant life is the fundamental goal. We know about beauty through truth, thereof stimulate the discovery of beauty and encourage the return of goodness, thus have a more sophisticated realm of aesthetics, which is our luck. So we should grasp the eternal values of beauty fully.

All photos are painted by Mr. Lam.