"Xie-Shi"(Realism) in Art of Taiwan(1910-1954): Contextual Formation and Its History

• Main Authors: Wu, Yu-tang, 吳宇棠
• Other Authors: Lo, Kii-Ming
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/15579125115161503450

博士 === 輔仁大學 === 比較文學研究所 === 98 === This dissertation mainly investigates “Realism” and concepts of “Xie-Shi (realisms)” in art of Taiwan and its semantic constructions during the procedure of contextual formations. For the structure, the dissertation is divided into eight parts: the introduction, six chapters, and the conclusion. The Introduction deals with research backgrounds and relevant problem awareness, including the generation of researching ideas, mimesis and realism in Western Art, the regional climates under which the realistic context of art in Taiwan is formed, the translations of lexicon and the transitions of contexts. Research methodology, the periodization and structure of this dissertation are introduced as well. Chapter One starts from Gustave Courbet’s statement of “Realism” in 1855, exploring its reactionary intent against the artistic tradition in French Academia. The discussion is also extended to such relevant issues as mimesis in the art of Western Europe and the evolutionary “concepts of the reality” by the mid-nineteenth century, and the derivative interpretations and anachronous applications of the lexicon of Realism in the twentieth century. In addition, early interpretations of Courbet in Chinese-speaking world and some doubts on the categorization of realists today are probed as well. The focal points in Chapter Two are the artistic reformation in the late Ching and early Republic years, and the foundation phase of the context of the lexicon of “Xie-Shi (realisms).” Issues to be examined include the awareness of “formal resemblance in Western painting” in the late Ching, the traditional criticisms on “reflecting the real (實體) vs. imitating the imaginary (空摹),” the foundational effects of the contextual meaning of “Realism” in China, the reformtional claims of art generated under the anxiety of national survival, and the revolutionary art theory of “Realism.” Chapter Three analyzes four pragmatic appearances of “Xie-Shi (realisms)” in China during the years between two World Wars; Cai Yuanpei, Chen Shizeng, Lu Xun, and Xu Beihong, as representative figures, are discussed to elaborate interpretations and evaluations of “Realism” during the above-mentioned period. Chapters Four to Six mainly deal with the phenomena of multiple implantations of concepts of “Realism” in the art of Taiwan. In Chapter Four, semantic problems concerning concepts of realisms during the Japanese colonial period are investigated. The discussion also explores relationships between “sketch from nature” and “Xie-Shi (realisms)” in the art circle of modern Japan and their influences on Taiwan. Another analysis lies on how the procedure of pragmatic negotiations of “Realism” is used by the contemporary Taiwanese artists to resist the growing force of Japanese avant-garde art demonstrated in the art exhibition of Taiwan Governor-General Office. Chapter Five chiefly examines Nationalist Government’s art policies during the early years of its takeover of Taiwan, left-wing neo-realists’ coming to Taiwan to expand their impact, Taiwanese artists’ responses to the trend of “the fine art of populace,” Taiwanese artists’ “realistic styles” in Taiwan Provincial Fine Art Exhibition being criticized as sugar-coating the reality by woodcut artists, and the expansion and quick fadeaway of left-wing neo-realist art in Taiwan. Chapter Six focuses on the early years of Nationalist Government’s move to Taiwan, dealing with the problem of how the contemporary political atmosphere influenced the appearing frequency of the phrases of “Xian-Shi (現實; social realities)” and “Xie-Shi (realisms)” in the newspaper: appealing to the support from the U.S., Nationalist Government supported the modernist art movement on the island. Furthermore, the problem of how the lexicon of “Neo-realism” in this movement reflected influences of the modern art movement in Shanghai in the 1930s is also explicated. Finally, when the Korean War helped re-stabilize the status of Nationalist Government, the art movement of “realism of Three Principle of the People” was advocated by the Government to dismantle “socialist realism” of Chinese Communism. The action, nevertheless, further dissipated the possibility that “realistic” arts in Taiwan could have developed toward various social realities. Instead, the semantic aspect of “simulation of images” was the only thing that was left. The Conclusion generally evaluates the complexity and particularity in the history of the contextual formation of “Xie-Shi (realisms)” and its significance in art of Taiwan.