侯瀚如
Hou Hanru
胜天先生不仅对于华人艺术的肯定和推进抱有大刀阔斧的气势，并置诸开阔的世界视野之中。更加令人称奇和佩服的是，艺术家出身的他，与艺术家之间，永远保持着亲密无间的“私人”关系和关怀……
In his lifelong work as a curator, Shengtian Zheng has not only been a bold supporter and strident advocate of Chinese Contemporary art, but he has also endeavored to integrate it into various kinds of tolerant, and broad-minded global visions. But for those familiar with his practice, what arouses the most admiration, is that he has always maintained intimate relationships with the artists whose careers he has helped nurture, treating them with the utmost care and consideration.
这51位艺术家既有功成名就者，也有后生新进，既有从事传统绘画的“保守势力”，也有践行激进实验的“开路先锋”。当中不乏游弋于政治风浪或者商业大潮的弄潮儿，甚至兴风作浪者。同时，更多的是在自己的角落楼阁里面壁修炼，苦苦耕耘的“个体艺术家”。
Amongst these 51 artists, there exist several who have become famous along with some green and youthful new arrivals. There are some who constitute the “old guard,” engaged in traditional painting, alongside the trail-blazers carrying out “radical experiments.” Amongst these artists, we find those sailing through the troubled waters of politics and those braving the storms of the markets. There are even those who go so far as to stir the pot or fan the flames of disorder and rebellion. At the same time, a large proportion of these artists prefer a more hermetic lifestyle, remaining in their corner, pursuing an ascetic life cloistered in the walls of their studios; “individual practitioners,” spending their days grinding persistently away at their practice.
总而言之，他们的人生经历和艺术实践各不相同，但是都以各自的方式为“华人的”，以致“世界的”艺术风景加上了颜色迥异的因素，使之丰富多彩。胜天先生和他们的交往又往往超出专业的界限，深入到友朋情谊，甚至知己忘年的程度。
In brief, their life experiences and artistic practices are all quite distinct, and thus by employing their unique, individual methods, they contribute vastly different hues to the rich and varied tapestry of the Chinese/global art fabric. Shengtian Zheng in his interactions with these artists always goes beyond the limits of his professional duties, building deep bonds of friendship and forging deep relationships which transcend age and generational differences.
故而，在这本对谈集合里，我们读到的主要不是从“客观”的角度对于艺术问题的讨论，而更多的是透过对艺术家个人经历的挖掘而暗示他们的创作的前因后果。经常地，我们面对的是一些表面上无足轻重，其实背后大有文章的逸事或遭遇。就像黄永砅在对谈中提示的，在偶然中，艺术的创作去向和艺术家的生活道路的“必然性“得以显露和“解释”。更加意味深长的是，这些“意外事件”在时间和空间上累加起来，就会构成一幅近三个十年的华人艺术圈子和“全球艺术界”的重要历史图卷。而这三十年又是一个历史上难得的“大时代”，这本集子也应当被视为一种“小小的大叙事”，足以让我们从中窥见和感受到这个大时代的激扬和脉动。所谓领略大时代的风采是也。
Therefore, in this collection of dialogues, what we find is not an “objective” discussion of the issues surrounding art, but rather through the gaining an understanding of the artist’s experience, we can unearth some hints of the cause-and-effect relationships with have shaped their creative practice. Often we may encounter an anecdote or misfortune which may, on the surface, seem insignificant, but often there is more than meets the eye. Just as Huang Yongzhen has mentioned, these anecdotes can occasionally reveal or re-interpret the direction of the artist’s practice, as well as the inevitability of the artist’s personal life trajectory. But actually what is more meaningful or significant is that these “randomly-occurring events,” which accumulate through space and time, form an illustrative scroll painting which depicts not only the relevant historical events of Chinese art circles but also those of the international art world. Within the space of these thirty years, we can witness a rarely-encountered “great era” of artistic production, and in this view, we can see this anthology as a kind of “grand narrative” comprised of smaller individual narratives. These narratives are sufficient to provide a glimpse and a feeling of the energy which has pulsated through this great era—an era which is also understood as an era of grace and elegance.
胜天先生和艺术家们透过面对面的侃谈，于我，同时相信还有我的同代人，总有一种难以一下子说清楚的共通以致神通的感觉。这种“通”是建立于一种“同“之上的。这种”同“就是我们所共同经历过的一种极其普通的生活经历：在一个强权压制和讯息封闭的环境中，每一个有良知的家庭都会极尽所能让下一代通过对知识和想像的追求而获得精神自由，以在最困难的情形下尽量快乐地生存下去，并且敲打藩牢的门，以图最终拆毁那压迫的堡垒。艺术家都忘不了提及他们父母前辈在最困难的时刻对他们寻求知识和美的鼓励和支持。有了这种“家教传承”……选择做艺术家都或多或少是对于这种抗争的选择。阅读这些对谈，最让我着迷的往往是艺术家们在求学时期如何透过最不可思议又最简便易行的渠道而获得灵感和勇气，如反覆阅读一些翻译欠准，印刷粗糙的杂志书籍，斟酌品味那些颜色失真，剪裁无度的绘画复制品。正是这样的平淡无奇却有刻骨铭心的努力，是我们领悟到为了知识的丰富，表达的自由而“吃苦“是多末值得的事情。这让我们无论是面对政治强权的压制，还是金钱名望的诱惑，或是飘泊海外的寂寞，还有事业有成的喜悦，都会安稳镇定，平心静气地继续前行，并感受到无比的快乐。
2014年8月21日，三藩市
In terms of methodology, Shengtian Zheng employed face to face interviews—a method which I and others of my generation continue to adhere to because of the intangible, universal and almost magical feeling created through one-on-one conversation. This kind of “communication,” “tong” 通 helps construct an additional layer of “tong,” 同“ commonality”—a common connection or familiarity which is forged through shared ordinary life experiences. In an environment characterized by power and oppression and restricted flows of information, every socially-conscious family will do everything in their power to allow the next generation to achieve spiritual freedom through providing for their intellectual and creative needs. This generation strives to find contentment and joy in the most difficult of circumstances, to knock on the door of the prison, and eventually tear down the walls of the fortress. Artists should not ignore the efforts of the previous generation which, in the most difficult times, still managed to seek out, encourage and support the pursuit of knowledge and beauty. With this “family inheritance” or background, the choice to become an artist was more or less a question of taking a stand, choosing to engage in confrontation. Yet in reading these dialogues, what is most striking is how, during their studies, the artists, managed to extract inspiration and courage, often through the most rudimentary channels—through, for instance, reading and re-reading shoddily-printed magazines, and books or struggling through some less-than-accurate translations. They spent hours studiously deliberating over the distorted colors of the images or the excessively-cropped reproductions. This kind of prosaic, unpretentious, diligence leaves an indelible impression on us. Showing us how we come to grasp the deep richness of knowledge, to understand what a worthwhile endeavor it is to express our freedom to “chiku” or “suffer hardships.” Whether it is political repression or the insidious allure of money, or drifting around abroad, enduring a lonesome existence, or enjoying great professional success, all approach it with a calm demeanor. Unflappable, they move dispassionately forward, relishing existence in a state of incomparable happiness and undiluted joy.
August 21, 2014, San Francisco