“Six Persimmons”
The Revolutionary painting by the Chan Monk Muxi (1127–1229)
The world of Chinese painting has long been characterized by its adherence to tradition and the profound influence of Confucianism. However, amidst this backdrop of conformity, one figure stood out as a revolutionary: Chan monk Muxi. Muxi’s famous painting, “Six Persimmons,” defied the contemporary literati and scholar painters of his time, who found his subject choice vulgar and his approach to art decidedly crude and unorthodox.
During the time of Chan monk Muxi in the 13th century, the Chinese art world was firmly rooted in Confucian principles. The orthodox school of Chinese painting upheld the Confucian theory of “formalized” experiences. According to Confucius, the purpose of art was to convey moral and intellectual values, and paintings were meant to be appreciated through intellectual and literary inferences. The traditional Chinese paintings were often laden with symbolism, requiring viewers to interpret the hidden meanings and allegories within them. It was a cerebral experience, where the viewer engaged with the painting through their intellect rather than their emotions.
Muxi, however, took an entirely different path. His masterpiece, “Six Persimmons,” was a radical departure from the norm. The painting featured six persimmons, simple and unadorned, against a plain background. The composition was stark and minimalistic, devoid of the intricate details and symbolic references that were the hallmark of traditional Chinese art. This apparent simplicity left the contemporary literati and scholar painters aghast, viewing Muxi’s work as vulgar and lacking in sophistication.
What made Muxi’s work truly groundbreaking was its approach to the viewer’s experience. While the orthodox school of painting encouraged an intellectual and detached appreciation of art, Muxi’s “Six Persimmons” sought to immerse the viewer in a different realm. Instead of presenting a formalized experience that required interpretation, Muxi’s work aimed to create a direct and unmediated connection between the viewer and the object.
In Muxi’s world, the viewer was not a separate individual observing the painting from a distance; they were an integral part of a continuum that included the objects depicted. His painting invited the viewer to engage on a visceral level, bypassing the intellect and the need for literary inferences. It was an invitation to experience the persimmons directly, to feel their presence, and to connect with them in an intimate way.
Muxi’s approach aligned with the core tenets of Chan Buddhism, emphasizing direct experience and the breaking down of intellectual barriers. In the world of Chan, enlightenment was not achieved through intellectual understanding but through direct, unmediated perception. Similarly, Muxi’s “Six Persimmons” aimed to provide viewers with a direct, unfiltered encounter with the persimmons, free from the intrusion of the artist’s interpretation or style.
However, Muxi’s revolutionary approach did not find favor among the traditional literati and scholar painters, who held considerable sway in the Chinese art establishment. They dismissed his work as crude and lacking in the refined elegance they valued. Muxi’s paintings were deemed unfit to be included in the canon of Chinese art.
Fortunately, Muxi’s legacy was not entirely lost to history. It was Japanese monks who recognized the significance of his work and brought it back from China to Japan. In Japan, Muxi’s paintings found a more receptive audience. Japanese Zen Buddhism shared the philosophical underpinnings of Chan Buddhism, and Muxi’s art resonated with the Japanese sensibility.
Muxi’s work gradually gained recognition and appreciation in Japan, where it played a pivotal role in shaping what we now call Zen art. The Zen artists, much like Muxi, aimed to present a direct and unmediated perception of the object, stripping away the layers of artistic interpretation and style. Zen painting sought to capture the essence of the subject, be it a landscape, a flower, or a simple persimmon, in its purest, most intimate form.
Muxi’s influence on Zen painting was indirect but profound. He laid the foundation for a new way of seeing and experiencing art, one that transcended intellectual analysis and tapped into the viewer’s inner consciousness. In Zen painting, as in Muxi’s work, the artist’s role was minimized, and the focus shifted to the immediate encounter between the viewer and the object.
Muxi’s legacy endures as a testament to the power of art to challenge conventions and offer new ways of seeing and experiencing the world. Recently the “Six Persimmons” have been called the “Zen Mona Lisa.” How is it that this 800 year old painting can be so profound?
How is it that this rather simple, minimalist painting can be so surprisingly provocative? It is something you need to see/experience for yourself…
