"The full name of the painting academy is 'Hanlin Painting Academy', and the initial formation can be traced back to the five dynasties, and in our current era, it can be regarded as a kind of system in the palace. In the past, although the painters held official positions such as 'Hanlin' and 'Waiting for the Edict', to be honest, their status was not too high. On the contrary, it is in our official generation that the status of painters has gradually improved. ”

After dinner, Mr. Wen Duan brought a pot of tea in his hand, and under the window of Xiaoxuan, he said slowly to Chu Feng.

Regarding Chu Feng's drunkenness and prostitution, Mr. Wen Duan was still slightly annoyed. But the old gentleman is not that kind of irresponsible person, after hearing the meaning of Lord Liu at the banquet, he suddenly realized, and naturally explained it to Chu Feng in detail.

The taste of the spring bamboo shoots and bacon remaining in the mouth was gradually diluted by a light of tea.

The faint chirping outside the window from time to time suddenly dimmed, as if to herald the approach of summer.

The windows in the room were already closed, and only occasionally when the wind moved, the latticework would be blown softly, making a soft noise. At this time, the flame of the oil lamp may also shake, and the figures on the wall will also sway, reflecting a bit of ethereal and nothingness.

It is also a pleasure to have a long candle tour in the quiet night, and to have a long talk.

"If that Liu Zhenghong and Lord Liu don't say it, I will also forget a little, there is such a thing. The old man remembered that in the early years of the official family's accession to the throne, there was a **** of painters in the world, and there were more than 3,000 people who should be announced, and it was also a grand occasion at that time. In the years that followed, artists were occasionally selected to join the academy, but the scale was much smaller. According to Lord Liu's meaning, it should be that the official family wants to choose someone again. ”

Mr. Wen Duan recalled the past and nodded: "Back then, Zhang Zeduan, Wang Ximeng and others were all selected that year, and the official family personally adjusted, taught, and corrected, so that they have today's achievements." I have to say that through the ages, the emperor who can reach such a state in calligraphy and painting is probably the first official. ”

"That's nature." Chu Feng immediately responded, thinking in his heart that Song Huizong's artistic attainments were only unprecedented, and had already reached the point where there was no one to come.

Mr. Wen Duan continued: "Therefore, the painters who can be selected into the Xuanhe Painting Academy can be said to be extraordinary. It is said that the examination of the art academy is often screened and judged by the officials themselves, and only those who can get into the official family will be selected. For all painters, this is not only an honor, but also a kind of appreciation and affirmation, so those who learn to paint are proud of it, and even take it as their goal. ”

"What does Mr. mean is that in addition to screening in places like Lord Liu, if you want to be admitted to the hospital, you still need to take an exam?" Chu Feng asked.

"That's right, Lord Liu's screening is only the first step. This so-called fellow villager tried to come from a background, in fact, he unilaterally affirmed your skills in Danqing, and felt that you had a chance to enter the art academy. If the old man remembers correctly, the examination of the painting academy should be held in the autumn, and then it will be like the imperial examination, and you will have your own public opinion on how good your ability is. ”

Chu Feng thought to himself, this is actually similar to the art examination of later generations. You can take the entrance exam at each school, but after that, you also have to participate in the ordinary college entrance examination cultural class, and designate a score line. Double screening can finally determine the next quota. It's just that the examination of the art academy is more like a two-tier screening, and the first level of "fellow villagers test background" is probably based on the examiner's familiarity with the candidates.

If it weren't for Liu Zhenghong, Lord Liu and his master Cheng Yuan were familiar with each other, I am afraid that this matter would not have happened to him.

Mr. Wen Duan looked at his expression, as if he guessed what he was thinking, and said with a smile: "You don't have to estimate too much, the so-called quality of the painting, to be honest, after the pen power reaches a certain level, it is difficult for a layman to distinguish." I'm not an insider in Danqing myself, and that Liu Zhenghong and Lord Liu are the same. The title of chief examiner of the imperial examination, the old man also used to do it, but at that time, there was no imperial court order to select painters. However, if you put yourself in your shoes, even if you really want to choose, you can only choose according to the reputation and reputation of the local Danqing community. Although Hangzhou is a place with outstanding people, there are indeed very few truly famous painters except for Cheng Yuan. You just made a name for yourself at the Ink Painting Conference a few days ago, and you are Cheng Yuan's apprentice, even if Lord Liu Zhenghong has no friendship with Cheng Yuan, he will give priority to you. So, don't worry too much about it. Besides, your enthusiasm for Danqing, the old man also sees it in his eyes. Such a good opportunity, you must not be able to ask for it, so why think too much about it. Young people, the key is to do what comes to mind, probably so that you don't waste your youth. ”

Chu Feng responded with a smile, and then remembered other things: "Sir, if you really go to the painting academy to be a painter, what do you have to do?" Zhang Zeduan's "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" and Wang Ximeng's "Thousands of Miles of Rivers and Mountains" were all completed in the art academy, right? If someone like me with mediocre qualifications goes, can I paint like this? ”

"It's okay to paint, but whether it's casual or not, to be honest, the old man hasn't experienced it, he can only talk about what he's heard." Mr. Wen Duan said, "It stands to reason that the first task of the painters of the academy is to paint for the princes and nobles, and the most of them are portraits. But although there are many nobles in the capital, there are already a few, and no one can paint a portrait every day, so this is just one of the small things. Another important thing is to make copies of famous paintings. Many paintings and calligraphy have been handed down for hundreds of years to this day, and even many, many have been lost. The painting institute is also an important place to take care of the royal Danqing collection, of course, preservation, framing and other things have a special person to deal with, but Danqing calligraphy has always been a unique book, once there is any damage and loss, it is not only the pain of our generation, but also the sorrow of future generations. Therefore, the painters should make copies of the famous paintings as much as possible, and try to preserve the appearance of the original works as much as possible in order to preserve them. ”

Chu Feng suddenly nodded when he heard this: "I understand, it is similar to the first book in the world, the "Lanting Collection Preface", there are many copies handed down in the court during the Tang Dynasty, Feng Chengsu's Shenlong book, Ouyang Xun's Dingwu book, according to legend, Tang Gaozong ordered them to copy, so now, we can get a glimpse of the face of the real work from all kinds of facsimiles when the real work is lost." ”

"That's true." Mr. Wen Duan shook his head, "It's not real enough, but it's better than nothing at all." Moreover, each person's facsimile has different characteristics, and it can also exude different aesthetics, which is the meaning of facsimile. ”

Chu Feng said in his heart: In this era, there is no way to photocopy and no photos, and it is already the best thing that can be done to find everyone to copy and preserve. To be reasonable, technology is the real good thing, if photo technology was born earlier, the various paintings on "Xuanhe Pictorial" would no longer need future generations to guess the meaning from between the lines.

As soon as he thought of this, Chu Feng couldn't help but be slightly stunned, remembered something, and asked: "By the way, sir, in addition to painting for dignitaries and making facsimiles for famous paintings, does the academy also need to help sort out the Danqing collection in the palace?" ”

"It's natural." Mr. Wen Duan said with a smile, "The official family loves Danqing very much, and they are very willing to work hard in this regard, so there are a lot of Danqing collections in the palace, and so many things naturally need to be sorted out." You're right. ”

Chu Feng nodded and said: "In this way, the painters of the painting academy mainly do three things, painting, making copies, and sorting out paintings. ”

"What Chu Lang said is very true." Mr. Wen Duan smiled and nodded, "These things may seem a little boring to others, but for you Chu Lang, I'm afraid they are extremely attractive things." ”

Chu Feng also smiled when he heard this: "Mr. knows me, I don't have too much ambition in my life, I just want to visit the famous Danqing and paint a few paintings that can catch the eye." ”

Mr. Wen Duan laughed and said, "'Visiting the famous Danqing', this alone is already a grand ambition that ordinary people can't do." As for painting a few paintings that can catch the eye, why should Chu Lang be humble, with your qualifications, if you study carefully and study the truth, one day after all, you will be able to enter everyone's ranks. ”

Chu Feng naturally didn't dare to be, he thought about Zhang Zeduan, thinking about Wang Ximeng, and always felt that he was just a fine dust compared to them, the light of the stars, where did he dare to compete with the sun and the moon? Becoming a famous person in history and the like, he didn't dare to think about it. It's just that if you can look through the Danqing painting scrolls in the art academy...... This matter, just secretly thinking about it like that, was enough to make Chu Feng's heart beat faster. What's more, he still remembered what the teacher had said to him before he came here...... Now that he can no longer fulfill his dream of being admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts for his teacher, can he go to the Xuanhe Academy of Fine Arts instead of the teacher to see the scenery through the dust of thousands of years?

His heart was beating a little faster, and Chu Feng took a deep breath, but he still couldn't stop his hands from trembling slightly in his sleeves.

"Actually, the person you should ask about these things the most is not me, but Cheng Yuan." Mr. Wen Duan drank the last sip of tea in the cup, and said with a smile, "Cheng Yuan is the most accomplished person in Danqing, and listen to you, your senior brother also serves in the painting academy?" This is also the first month near the water, and you should ask the teacher more for details. ”

At the mention of this, Chu Feng couldn't help but smile slightly bitterly.

"Sir, I won't tell you, Mr. Cheng Yuan...... In fact, he had already told me about something. ”

"What's the matter?" Mr. Wen Duan was slightly stunned.

"Uh......" Chu Feng scratched his head, "Similarly, people who devote themselves to studying Danqing should not enter the academy or something." ”