彌勒緣

也許是一種緣分，2000年10月底，我在杭州張蒟林女士家里第一次與中國(guó)美院教授孔仲起先生通電話，就同他很講得來(lái)。聽言談，我覺得他是一位淳厚長(zhǎng)者、謙謙君子。半個(gè)月后，張女士同孔先生夫婦到衢州，我在火車站一見到孔先生那一副彌勒佛相，便證實(shí)了我的“先見之明”。

與孔先生相識(shí)相交十二個(gè)年頭，對(duì)他的治學(xué)和為人，實(shí)在敬佩?？紫壬谄渌囆g(shù)隨筆《尊受居畫談》中，開頭即夫子自道:“樂(lè)天吾所求。父母賜我一副喜歡菩薩相，謬受諸好稱道。常言:自得其樂(lè)、知足常樂(lè)、助人為樂(lè)!‘知足常樂(lè)’似乎成了我的人生信條!”

提籃丹青

孔仲起1934年生于上海，出身丹青之門家境卻清寒。1948年，他只讀了半年初中就失學(xué)，帶弟妹，做家務(wù)，還提籃小賣。

1951年，孔仲起進(jìn)廠當(dāng)工人。工余時(shí)間，他喜歡作畫，特別是漫畫，得到過(guò)漫畫大師米谷和版畫界前輩楊可揚(yáng)的指導(dǎo)。

1955年秋，全國(guó)總工會(huì)保送孔仲起進(jìn)中央美院華東分院深造。

1957年，美院國(guó)畫系擬以人物、山水、花鳥分科辦班。暑假期間，孔仲起回上海征求父親的意見。那天，他父親正好與錢瘦鐵、唐云在家里小酌。唐云主張他學(xué)人物畫;錢瘦鐵則認(rèn)為他應(yīng)當(dāng)學(xué)山水，因?yàn)樯剿嬘兄袊?guó)畫中最富傳統(tǒng)的學(xué)問(wèn)，且是筆墨間最能飽含感情價(jià)值和精神內(nèi)涵的畫種。錢瘦鐵當(dāng)場(chǎng)拿來(lái)紙筆畫了兩幅給他作示范，唐云也畫了一幅山水畫給他，以示鼓勵(lì)。就這樣，孔仲起師從顧坤伯，一頭撲進(jìn)了山水畫的學(xué)習(xí)和創(chuàng)作中。1959年，他創(chuàng)作了《建設(shè)中的新安江》等三幅畫。嗣后，他與姚耕云以“西湖十景”為題材創(chuàng)作了十幅冊(cè)頁(yè)。他在山水畫范疇初次顯露出才氣。

1960年，孔仲起畢業(yè)，留校執(zhí)教。1964年，他的成名作《浙江潮》及《日日升》問(wèn)世。

云水情

懂畫的朋友看孔先生的《浙江潮》，會(huì)想到宋代畫家李嵩的《觀潮圖》?？紫壬鷮?duì)《觀潮圖》雖有借鑒，但又修正了李嵩的圖式;畫面的主題充分體現(xiàn)出20世紀(jì)中國(guó)人開闊的胸懷和鮮明的時(shí)代精神。

孔先生喜畫云與水，如是說(shuō):“我愛行云流水。愛其生氣流動(dòng)，無(wú)塞無(wú)慮，無(wú)礙無(wú)際。”他專門有一種《孔仲起云水》畫冊(cè)，所選36幅作品中，直接和間接畫錢江潮水的就有13幅之多。我與孔先生開玩笑，是不是因?yàn)閻酆幖拮佣鴲酆幊彼?。孔先生笑?“我畫海寧潮時(shí)，還未曾與她認(rèn)識(shí)。但我1964年畫《浙江潮》，倒是在她工作的療養(yǎng)院;不久認(rèn)識(shí)了她，是緣分?！笨紫壬嬖V我，畫潮水的起因，是當(dāng)年老師帶著他們同學(xué)到海寧蹲點(diǎn)體驗(yàn)生活，日日夜夜看潮、聽潮，他便深深愛上了錢江潮水摧枯拉朽的氣概和一往無(wú)前的精神，潮水成了他創(chuàng)作的重要題材?？紫壬鴮懴挛淖?“我愛畫水!”孔先生有一幅表現(xiàn)大海的作品《觀無(wú)涯》，“氣勢(shì)浩大”，展現(xiàn)“光明前景，激勵(lì)人民去開拓……”我想，這就是前人所說(shuō)的“品其味，全其意，明其志”吧。

圓合佳事

讀孔仲起的畫，我的直觀印象是:剛則剛，柔則柔。

孔先生也有剛?cè)岵?jì)的大作，譬如《黃山攬勝圖》。寫作黃山，可謂是中國(guó)山水畫中的一個(gè)“永恒主題”。孔先生此圖突破舊囿，力求用現(xiàn)代觀念全方位、多角度地表現(xiàn)黃山。這幅42厘米×700厘米的長(zhǎng)卷，將黃山的諸多名勝盡收筆底。陸儼少在卷尾題曰“仲起兄曾六上黃山，山中景物因能熟記而默識(shí)之矣。今拓為長(zhǎng)卷筆墨又足以發(fā)之……”雋秀與壯麗“一色”“齊飛”!

1999年，孔先生做了一件有意義的事。

元代畫家黃公望的《富春山居圖》“一分為二”，殘卷分藏臺(tái)灣故宮博物院與浙江省博物館。7月中旬，大陸方面以中國(guó)美院為主干、由孔仲起教授為主導(dǎo)，臺(tái)灣方面以中華藝文交流協(xié)會(huì)為主干、由史元?dú)J會(huì)長(zhǎng)為主導(dǎo)，“圓合”該畫?？捉淌诳傮w策劃設(shè)計(jì)出小構(gòu)圖后，畫家們一起合臨了五幅《富春山居圖》，分藏海峽兩岸。這成就了我國(guó)繪畫史上的一件佳事。

一大兩小

孔先生作品數(shù)以千計(jì)，優(yōu)秀作品上百件，得獎(jiǎng)的、捐贈(zèng)的、被收藏的，也記不太清。有三幅作品值得一提，我稱其為“一大兩小”?！按蟆钡囊环饔?982年，是孔仲起與父親孔小瑜、哥哥孔伯容、女兒孔貽奮，在杭州九蓮村書齋里合作的《瑞花圖》。老爺子畫紅梅白梅，仲起兄弟畫壽石、牡丹，貽奮則添小竹一枝。祖孫三代四人合作的這幅畫，不僅洋溢著自家人的天倫之樂(lè)，而且成為滬杭書畫界的美談趣聞。

“小”的兩幅，一是作于1990年的《醉仙》。那年，溫嶺畫家郭修琳偶拾一塊花崗石，樣子極像孔先生模樣，便相贈(zèng)。孔先生即興寥寥幾筆，將其狀畫了下來(lái)，并題款:“妙哉得吾形神……大凡富于想象之藝人，每每放意相物，見物見人。郭兄味像取石，念友之情，心物相印，得千里神馳之妙?！?/p>

另一幅小品是書法，作于2000年11月19日傍晚，是受他的同宗族孫、孔氏南宗家廟管委會(huì)主任孔祥楷(孔仲起大名孔慶福，孔子73世孫，故也是祥楷的族長(zhǎng))“啟發(fā)”而即興寫在《孔仲起畫集》的扉頁(yè)上，且蓋了七枚印章。題記全文如下:“庚辰十月上浣薄游衢州登爛柯山不慎遺包石梁歸孔府中途始覺誤事尤為惶恐者一盒印章亦在其中幸衢州民風(fēng)淳樸且得族棣祥楷張羅尋覓抑先祖有蔭須臾復(fù)得喜甚喜甚萬(wàn)幸萬(wàn)幸茲蓋失而復(fù)得之印其左孔仲起”。這本扉頁(yè)上有作者特殊經(jīng)歷題記的畫冊(cè)，已被視作孔氏南宗家廟當(dāng)代的“鎮(zhèn)廟之寶”之一。

贈(zèng)餅贈(zèng)書

2004年9月28日，衢州孔氏南宗家廟恢復(fù)中止了半個(gè)多世紀(jì)的祭孔典禮。孔先生是孔子73世孫，應(yīng)邀來(lái)衢州參加祭祀。27日，我們又一次相聚，孔先生還特意贈(zèng)我一盒有“錦江月”三字的月餅。

“這盒月餅，非你莊月江莫屬?！笨紫壬f(shuō)，“上海一位朋友昨天特快專遞寄到杭州，素芬嫂子拆開一看，有你名字，我們今天帶來(lái)，正好給你家里過(guò)中秋。這就叫緣分?！蔽倚拇娓心睢?/p>

2008年，孔先生又出三種畫集，來(lái)衢州時(shí)帶了兩大箱，囑我分贈(zèng)與他相識(shí)的衢州畫家和一些熟人。我照辦。

2010年9月，衢州圖書館辦農(nóng)村書屋。我考慮到喜歡學(xué)畫的農(nóng)村青年難有機(jī)會(huì)接觸到高雅精致的山水畫作品，于是將尚存的110冊(cè)畫集悉數(shù)捐出。我寫信給孔先生陳述代為捐書之由，孔先生電話回話:“創(chuàng)造藝術(shù)的最終目的是和大眾共享其成，同游其間，為之怡情，為之陶冶，這自然既要有有效的藝術(shù)感染力，又要有明確的公眾群體意識(shí)?！?/p>

(本文照片由作者提供)

My Friendship with Master Kong Zhongqi

By Zhuang Yuejiang

Probably it was my destiny to know Master Kong Zhongqi， a professor with China Academy of Art in Hangzhou. Our first contact was a phone call at the home of a mutual friend. It was toward the end of October 2000. We spoke on the phone and we hit off immediately. I felt he was a graceful man with a big heart. Half a month later Kong and his wife came to Quzhou where I live and work. As soon as I saw Kong， I thought I had been right about what kind of man Kong was. He looks like Maitreya， or the fat laughing Buddha that hundreds of millions of Chinese people worship.

I have come to admire the man for his art and for the way he deals with the world and people since we met on the platform of Quzhou Railway Station twelve years ago.

Kong Zhongqi was born into a family of artists in 1934. He dropped out of middle school in 1948 after spending only a semester there. He took care of younger siblings， did house chores， and even worked as a street peddler for a while. In 1949， he began to work in a factory. All these years he managed to find time for art. In the autumn of 1955， the 21-year-old Kong was enrolled into East China Academy， a branch of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Two years later， Kong， a major of traditional Chinese art， was supposed to choose a focus for further studies. Was he to choose landscape， or figure painting， or flower and birds? In the summer vacation， he came back to Shanghai and consulted his father. Kong Zhongqi and his father went to meet Qian Shoutie and Tang Yun， two prominent artists based in Shanghai. The two artists differed in their opinion. Kong Zhongqi was finally advised to take landscape， because， it was explained to him， landscape was one of the best subjects in traditional Chinese painting and it allowed the artist to unleash imagination and explore all kinds of possibilities in brushstrokes and ink techniques and explore the spirituality shared by nature and man. Qian and Tang demonstrated by creating paintings on the spot.

Kong Zhongqi took landscape as his career direction. This decision has proven to be right. In 1959， he created three landscape paintings， which were highly appreciated. Afterwards， he painted ten must-see scenic spots of the West Lake in partnership with Yao Gengyun. Kong made his initial reputation as a good landscape artist.

Upon his graduation， he became a teacher at his alma mater. In 1964， he painted Tides of Qiantang River， which catapulted him to national fame.

Kong loves painting clouds and waters because he loves the movement of clouds and waters. They go in a carefree and liberating manner and nothing can stop them.

He has published a collection of 36 paintings of clouds and waters. Thirteen are about the tides of Qianjiang River， a subject that repeats itself frequently in Kong’s dream and art.

“Tides of Qiantang River” was the result of field studies he and his classmates did in Haining， a vantage spot near Hangzhou to watch the spectacular river tides. Under the guidance of a teacher， the young students went to watch the tides and listen to their roaring noises every night. The experience of watching and hearing the tides changed him forever. He created the painting in a sanatorium in 1964 where he met his future wife. She happened to be a native of Haining. This is a favorite topic that frequently pops up when it comes to destiny.

Kong is a 73rd-generation descendant of Confucius. By the family pedigree， he is a granduncle of Kong Xiangkai， director of the management committee of the Confucius Temple in the South. On November 19， 2000， Kong Zhongqi wrote an 89-word inscription on the title page of a copy of his art collection. He printed seven private stamps beside the inscription. This album with the inscription is now considered a treasure in the collection of the temple.

On September 28， 2004， Kong Zhongqi came to attend a memorial service at the temple. The ceremony resumed after a hiatus of more than 50 years. Kong and I met again a day before the ceremony. Master Kong presented me with a box of moon cakes. It was the moon festival and the moon cake box carried the two characters that happen to be part of my name. Kong said it was destiny.

Kong Zhongqi has created several thousands of paintings and he considers about 100 as his best. He does not remember exactly how many awards he has won， how many artworks he has donated to charity undertakings， and how many of his masterpieces are in the collection of various institutions and private collectors.

In 2008， Kong published three collections of paintings and brought two large cartons of his books to Quzhou. He asked me to give the copies away to fellow artists and friends in Quzhou. I did. In September 2010， Quzhou Library started a project to set up village libraries. At that time I still had 110 copies of Kong’s albums. Thinking that rural artists rarely had an opportunity to view masterpieces， I made a decision and donated all the books on behalf of Master Kong. Later I wrote him a letter reporting the donation and explaining my decision. He called me and said i made a good decision. He said that the ulterior purpose of art was for people to enjoy， share， and make themselves better.