Four Admonishments by Cheng Yi
2005
A contemporary calligrapher, Son Man-jin transcribed the famous annotations to a Confucian proverb composed by Chinese philosopher Cheng Yi (1033-1107), a contributor to the establishment of Neo-Confucianism. Admonitions on looking, listening, speaking and movement (from left to right scroll) were the ethics and practices essential to perfect virtue, along with relevant visual arts, which induced the people to live a self-controlled and humble life.
A large ideogram expressing these four concepts is rendered in abstract splashes of ink, while Cheng Yi's interpretation appears in small characters. It vividly reinforces the Choson people's cultural identity, and may well serve as a contemporary reminder of restraint to the consumer society of today.
Master Cheng said, "I caution myself with these admonitions":
The admonition on looking says:
The mind-and-heart is originally unprejudiced, responding to things without trace. There is an essence to holding it fast, which may be found in the example of looking. Clouded by contact with the outside, what is within changes. Regulate it in its dealing with the external in order to still it internally. Subdue the self and return to ritual, and in time one will become true to one's nature.
Ink on paper
Overall h. (mounting & endknobs & hanging cord): 111 x 36 5/8 in. (282 x 93 cm)
Image h. (calligraphy only): 84 1/8 x 30 3/8 in. (213.7 x 77.2 cm)
Gift of Frank S. Bayley III, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum
2007.93.1
Provenance: Donor purchased from the artist
Photo: Susan Cole
