苗族“龙”造型工艺复述与文化的视觉表达

Retelling of the Miao People's Dragon Formative Technology and the Visual Expression of Culture

龙清晰造型成为中华民族的图腾崇拜,是在汉代形成的。在此后2000多年的延续中,无论哪个朝代的统治阶级,几乎都沿用了"龙"作为最高权力的象征。我国贵州中部方言区苗族在"龙"的造型工艺上存在多种复述,从其文化内涵延续、审美诉求和视角艺术来看,更古老、更丰富、更有冲击力、更具中国龙文化的原生意义。

The first time the explicit Chinese dragon image appeared was in the Hongshan Culture Site 8,000 years ago and Chinese didn＇t worship the dragon as a totem until the Han Dynasty. In the following 2,000 years dragon was symbolized as the superior power by nearly all ruling class in all dynasties. Song dynasty is the time when dragon was firstly precisely described as ＂head is like camel, horn is like deer, eye is like rabbit, ear is like ox, neck is like snake, belly is like clam, scale is like carp, claw is like eagle, palm is like tiger＂. Since then, only the authority of dragon is stressed while the original meaning is not ascertained. From anthropological perspective that a culture is born in a habitat, it seems that the cultural evidence of Han people＇s preference for dragon is not found. However, based on the form and connotation of the dragon worship of the Miao people in the central dialect area in Guizhou province, the original image and cultural meaning of dragon can be traced as： dragon is not a real existence, it is a spiritual worship for a long - shaped animal in the primitive agricultural times for a good harvest before the raining season. It is a symbol of fortunate harvest. Miao people have profound memory and the primitive symbols invented 4,000 to 5,000 years ago are still used in all tribes of Miao. In addition to the quatrefoil with ＋ mark and the mark, the worship and pattern of dragon and its cultural interpretation is in line with that in central Han culture. Miao people not only maintain many craft retelling of the dragon, such as the dragon image seen in wax - dyeing, embroidery and silverware making, they also have diverse descriptions of the shape and form of dragon. Even the Miao people connect the head of their ancestor to the neck of a dragon in the hope that their ancestor will act like a dragon to bless the prosperous life and good harvest of their community. Therefore, the dragon image in Miao＇s culture is not just a primitive cultural memory; it is also a visual artistic expression with exaggeration of form, combination of modeling, three - dimensional thinking, symbolism, random modeling, institutional modeling, concretization and abstract modeling and perfectionism. The aesthetical modeling is a cultural embodiment of a nation＇s philosophy, ideology, production method and life style, is also a way practiced for many years to express feelings and is a significant part of a cultural system. The visual expression is an important approach and method to decode this culture.