文/邓平祥
在十八世纪法国的伟大启蒙主义运动之后，法国画坛产生了一批具有新的审美思想的风景画作品，其中科罗和卢梭的作品最为耀眼。艺术史在评论二位大师时，将科罗的作品定义为“诗意的风景”，将卢梭的作品定义为“史诗的风景”。
在美学品格上，徐晓燕的没画风景就具有有卢梭的意味，显现出了可辨的史诗性品格。由于这种可贵的史诗性，徐晓燕的油画在当代油画风景体裁的作品就独树一帜，显示出了很大的精神张力和艺术感染力。
风景画何以有史诗性？——诗史作为一个文学概念，是文学的一种形式或方法。系指文学中（诗歌）那些结构宏在，反映有重大意义的历史事件、传说、人物的长篇叙事诗。而史诗性则是对具有意义的其他文艺作品的美学评价。
在人类精神文化史上，史诗性作品丰富的内容、深远的意蕴、悲壮地精神，画家在风景作品中表达的并不是一般风景的自然母题，而是以风景为载体，来表达人在历史性活动中精神和情感，是人的精神和情感在对应物上下的象征和隐寓。
徐晓燕的《秋季风景系列》、《原》、《野》，以及《乐土系列》等作品，作为她的风景主题的代表性作品，都不是表达一般美学意义（例如自然美学等）的风景画。人们在她的作品中主要感受不是一般自然风光的怡然感觉，而是一各精神的震憾、一种情感的升华，甚至是一种痛感，徐晓燕作品这中审感受和精神冲击，使人感到画家在抗拒流俗，赞美它，并给予它以意义，因此，面对一个“价值失衡”“情感沙化”以及人的精神平面化的世象，人们在徐晓燕的艺术中感觉到了一种久违了的崇高走向，一种久违了的壮美。在徐晓燕的作品人们可以读出历史，读出信念，读出苦难、读出坚毅。
徐晓燕作品中的美学意义和精神力量，使人意识到精神的慰藉，精神的寄寓，精神的幸福和精神的追求，仍然是 匀所生存的世界中一种更为崇高的价值。
在徐晓燕的作品中并置着两大母题，即历史母题和处然母题。
对于历史母题的表达，徐晓燕是通过形象的崇高和深沉来象征的。我们的现实世界是一有关深度的价值就被不断贬低，而有关平面价值不断被抬高的世界。所谓深度的价值，它的内含是，历史、精神、信念、理想等， 以及它相关的慨念。“找不到北”是时下很流行的口头禅，它反映了当代人普遍的精神盲然，为什么出现这种状况？ 这是因为人们的为精神座标中失去了一个纵坐标，而纵坐标是与人的深度价值相关联的，这样人的行为就失去了精神的引导和激劢，而只有欲望成为人们的导盲犬。
通过作品，我们可以感油印到徐晓燕的精神中有一咱深度的历史情绪和历史感悟的形式投向，因此从这个意义上说，徐晓燕是一个很有自觉历史承担的人。
徐晓燕的自然母题，是她的艺术的感生表达的前提，这也是一个象征的母题，它的内涵是：记忆、母土、亲情等。徐晓燕通过象征自然母题的最典型的感性符号：秋天、收获后的玉米地，秸秆、土地，来实现她的艺术表达，但她的表达成功地使上述感性材料都具有形象意义和价值，这样玉米地、秸秆不再寻常的感觉对应物，而是画家精神的象征物，它们成为了人、成为历史、成为诗。
众学术上说，徐晓燕好简单地归入一般地女性艺术之列。然而在她的作品中“自然母题”以及相关的“大地”，“原野”的内涵中，我深刻地感觉到了一种“母性”和“生命”的主题，它表达得如此地充盈、如此地深沉，使我意识到这一定是女性表达另一方式的投射，它不是流行的“小女人”式的，徐晓燕采取的是与男性平等对话，相视而立的方式。她的女性慨念首是博大和坚忍，否则她们何以承担女性生命的自然使命和社会使命。在这个时候你就会发现徐晓燕体现绘画中“女丈夫”气概。从表达方式的角度说，徐晓燕的艺术是可以归类于表现主义的。但好决非表现主义的样式化。将她的世随机应变放在当代油画艺术的背景上比较，就可以清梦地意识到，徐晓燕的油画的本土化特征和个人性特征。 从主题表达到语言方式，徐晓燕的油画都实现了超越和转换，从而有了独特的个人价值。
还需强调的是，在徐晓燕的语言表达中，红和黑的基调，以及红和黑的丰富组合和变奏（通过沉郁、坚实的笔法），不但成就了她的艺术主题，也实现了她的史诗性。
AN EPIC OF LANDSCAPES----ON THE EPIC QU ALITY OF XU XAIOYAN，S OIL PAINTINGS
In the wake of the Enlightenment in France in the 18¢ury, there appeared a number of landscape paintings distinguished by their original, fresh aesthetics, the most outstanding of which were the works of John-Baptiste-Camille Corot(1796-1875)and Theodore Rousseau(1812-1867). In the history of art, Corot’s paintings are described as “lyric landscapes”, while Rousseau’s as “epic landscapes”.
In terms of aesthetic significance, the landscapes in oil by Xu Xiaoyan, which unfailingly display and epic quality, remind us of the style of Theodore Rousseau. It is the valuable epic quality that sets Xu Xiaoyan,s works apart from all other landscapes in oil and demonstrates overwhelming spiritual tension and artistic infectiousness.
How can a landscape painting have the quality of an epic? Epic is a literary term, defined as a long narrative poem with a grand structure that tells about significant historical events, legends, and heroes. But epic quality is an aesthetic term that is used for describing other literary and artistic compositions that have the essential features of and epic poem.
In the spiritual and cultural history of humanity, works with epic quality, with their rich subject matter, broab and far-reaching significance, and tragic mood, often become the symbol of an etynic group or a nation’s spiritual and emotional history, exerting an everlasting influence on human souls like what the Holy Bible had done to the Western world.
The expression of epic quality in landscape paintings first comes in the poetic and historical significance of the images. What the painter is trying to express is not necessarily the conventional motif of natural scenery; instead, the view is being used as a medium to display the human spirit and emotion about certain historical activity, What genuinely matters is the symbolism and metaphor of human spirit and emotion reflected through certain elements in the imagery.
Of the major representative works of Xu Xiaoyan, like the “Autumn Scenery” series , “Origin”, “Wilderness”, and “Paradise” series, none are landscapes of ordinary aesthetic significance( i.e.a mere depiction of a natural spectacle). What the audience gets out of her paintings is not the pleasantness afforded by some ordinary natural spectacles, but a kind of spiritual shock, an emotional sublimation, and even something painful. Such aesthetic experience and spiritual shock make spectators see the artist’s efforts at repelling vulgarity and seeking transcendence. Xu Xiaoyan warns the world: material desires will lead to denegeration of humanity and we must pay attention to the spiritual ojfe, which should be celebrated and clearly defined. Therefore, in a world plagued by “unbalanced values”, “scarcity of genuine emotions”, and spiritual barrenness by viewing Xu Xiaoyan,s paintings, which are laden with history, conviction, misery, and fortitude.
The aesthetic significance and spiritual power of Xu Xiaoyan,s paintings hve enlightened as that the consolation, sustenance, happiness, and pursuit of the spirit are still a loftier value in the world where we live.
In Xu Xiaoyan,s paintings ,the two parallel motifs are history and nature.
In expressing the motif of history, Xu Xiaoyan resorts to the symbolism of the loftiness and profundity of her imagery. In this world, the values of profundity suffer constant deprecation while the values of flatness are gaining currency. The so-called values of profundity include history, spirit, conviction, ideals, among others. “Disoriented”, which is a popular catchphrase in China these days, reflects a widespread spiritual vacuum in people’s hearts. The reason is that a vertical axis is missing in people’s spiritual coordinated. Without the values of profundity as that vertical axis, humanity will lose their spiritual bearings and has no alternative but to follow the seeing-eye bag of material desires.
In Xu Xiaoyan,s paintings, we can feel that there is a kind of profound historical sentiment and enlightenment in her spiritual world. In this sense, she is an artist conscious of and burdened by history.
The motif of nature is a premise of the sensory expression in Xu Xiaoyan,s works. This motif, again one of symbolism, connotes memory, motherland, and family love. In realizing her artistic expression, Xu Xiaoyan has turned to the most typical sensory symbols of nature,like the autumn,corn fields after the harvest, bare crop stalks, and the earth. Her expression, however, succeeds in bestowing metaphysical significance and worth to the above sensory symbols. The corn fields and crop stalks are no longer the ordinary parallels of senses, but the symbols of the artist’s spirit. In the paintings, they have become human beings, history, and poetry.
Academically, it is simplistic and indiscriminate to categorize the art of XU Xiaoyan into the common genre of women’s art. In the motif of nature and related connotations like “the earth” and “wilderness”, I have frequently perceived the themes of “maternity” and “life”. There themes are conveyed in such a full, profound manner theat I’m convinced it is an alternative way of women’s expression. It is not the popular “little women” style; instead, Xu Xiaoyan is communicating with the male world as an equal. Her idea of femininity is dominated by a profound fortitude, which has enabled women to take up all the natural and social missions. It is here that you perceive the “masculine femininity” in Xu Xiaoyan’s paintings. While Xu’s works can be categorized as expressionism in terms of her methods of expression, they are definitely not the mere imitation of expressionism. Putting Xu’s art against the big picture of contemporary oil painting in China, we will see the distinct locality and individuality in her works. From the expression of themes to the styling of her artistic vocabulary, Xu Xiaoyan’s oil paintings have gained a unique individual value through constant transcending and shifting.
At last, if must be emphasized that, in Xu Xiaoyan’s artistic expression, the fundamental colors of red and black and their diverse combinations and variations in the calm, firm brushwork have not only effectively convey the thems of her art, but created the very epic quality in her paintings as well.