萧散磊然，本真野逸
Unfettered and Lofty
文 / 许长锋（福建省书法家协会会员、泉州市书法家协会理事）
摘要：
许长锋从艺术家生平、学养与创作特点三个方面，阐释了曾锦德的艺术精神。他指出，曾锦德以文人画的理念为核心，追求心灵表达和自然率意，作品重气韵而轻华饰，兼具传统功力与个人性灵。他的山水、花鸟、人物等题材皆显野逸之趣，笔墨纵横、收放自然，墨色丰富而不滞，留白清光流丽，充分体现了“无墨求染”的艺术理念。评论强调曾锦德的作品与其人心性相通，观画如晤其人，真性情令人钦佩。
关键词：
曾锦德；文人画；气韵生动；野逸；率性
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曾锦德，惠安后曾人，萧散简远，磊然峭拔有古风。少负笈鹭岛，攻读中国陶瓷、中国绘画、中国美术史，师承张晓寒、杨夏林、石延陵、顾一尘、杨胜法诸多名师。学成后落足戴云瓷都，四十一载如一日，业界称誉有加。因山林供养日渐，性情野逸自长，清真见性。其所嗜者，仅饮酒、读书、作画、交友而已。
甲申赋闲温陵，于画尤勤。凡涉山水林木、花卉翎毛、蔬果香草、人物田舍，无不独运机杼，见诸性灵。夫文人画，不求形似，重传神；不求巧笔精丽，重快意淋漓；不求富贵徵象，重野逸之趣。曾锦德于画，心摹手追，本于斯，合于斯，变于斯。其画所重，全在气韵，不资华饰。每游心物外，景生胸臆，情归笔下，于笔墨恣肆中见法度，且本于生活而高于生活，合乎孔子所谓“从心所欲不逾矩”，亦如庄子所谓“猖狂妄行而蹈乎大方”。故一幅之中，往往景幽意深，而笔力奇崛收放自然，墨生五彩不粘不滞，其功力可知。
又喜其留白处清光流丽，知其“无墨求染”之法得矣。至若沉心思虑有感而发，酒酣肠热兴至而动，读书晤友意会而生，其作画皆任情所由，命笔纵横，乐亦可知。图成，辅以长跋或一题再题，一洗胸中块磊，故其情又可感。
曾锦德，貌奇、才奇、画奇，亦肝胆奇。读其画，如晤其人，快哉！
许长锋
丙戍正月 · 味石居
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English Translation | 英文版
Zeng Jinde, a native of Houzeng, Hui’an, exudes an air of unpretentious loftiness, a natural elegance reminiscent of antiquity. Educated on Gulangyu Island, he studied Chinese ceramics, painting, and art history under renowned masters such as Zhang Xiaohan, Yang Xialin, Shi Yanling, Gu Yichen, and Yang Shengfa. After completing his studies, he settled in the ceramic hub of Daiyun, dedicating forty-one years to his craft with consistent acclaim. Living in the mountains, he cultivated a self-reliant and free-spirited nature, enjoying primarily wine, reading, painting, and friendship.
During his retirement in Wenling in the year of Jia-shen, Zeng Jinde devoted himself diligently to painting. Whether landscapes, flora and fauna, fruits and herbs, or figures and rural scenes, he approached each subject with ingenuity, reflecting his inner temperament. As a literati painter, he prioritized conveying spirit over mere likeness, pursued expressive freedom over technical embellishment, and valued the untamed charm over symbols of wealth or status. In his works, heart and hand are in harmony, rooted in life yet transcending it, embodying Confucius’ principle of “following one’s desire without transgressing the rules” and Zhuangzi’s notion of “acting with abandon while conforming to the Great Way.” Within a single painting, one often finds profound scenery and deeply resonant meaning, with brushwork both vigorous and restrained, and ink producing multicolored effects that neither cling nor stagnate, showcasing his mastery.
He favored luminous and elegant blank spaces, exemplifying the technique of “seeking dye without ink.” When inspired through reflection, conviviality, or scholarly exchange, his painting flowed freely from the emotions, executed with unrestrained energy and evident joy. Completed works were often accompanied by lengthy inscriptions, repeatedly articulating his inner sentiments, allowing the viewer to feel his heartfelt expression.
Zeng Jinde is extraordinary in appearance, talent, artistry, and character. To view his painting is to meet the man himself — exhilarating indeed!
Xu Changfeng
First Month of Bing-shu Year · Weishi Residence