文圖時代的寫作與閱讀新景觀 The New Landscape of Writing and Reading in the Age of Text and Image

 

 

進入21世紀，我們的寫作方式和閱讀途徑正在發生深刻變化，喜愛寫作和閲讀的你，是否意識到了呢？傳統上，寫作被理解為文字的藝術，是文字的抒情與敘事。一本文圖並茂的書籍，除非是繪本圖畫書，裏面的圖像通常是作爲解釋和陪襯的插畫。

然而，當下的“文圖時代”（Age of Text and Image），文字與圖像、媒介與空間的關係日益緊密，寫作早已超越書頁，進入多模態（Multimodality）的文化景觀。我們在書本上讀到的文字，常常伴隨著圖像的召喚；我們在展覽、舞臺、公共空間遇見的藝術，又常常與文字互通。寫作不再是單一的文字，而是一種流動的存在。

寫作與閲讀的改變，取決於多模態的整合。“模態”（mode）是人類用來傳達和理解資訊的不同表現方式或符號系統。常見的模態包括：

1.         語言模態（文字、口語）

2.         視覺模態（圖像、顏色、排版、表情符號）

3.         聽覺模態（音樂、聲效、語音的節奏與高低）

4.         空間模態（舞臺調度、身體動作、手勢、佈局）

5.         觸覺模態（雕塑材質、互動裝置）

人的感知和反應本來就是多模態的，但是表現在寫作上，受限於語文思維、使用工具以及傳達能力，偏向語言模態。閱讀，通常被理解為眼睛在文字行間的遊走。我們把自己交給一段文字、一個故事、一種情感，彷彿整個世界都濃縮在書頁之中，也是偏向語言模態。當意義的輸出和建構不依賴單一模態，而是通過多種模態共同作用，便為文圖時代提供了技術支撐。

“文圖時代”是指用文字和圖像（包括影音）文本做為主要資訊來源，辨識，判斷，解讀，形成知識和文化生產的階段。在文圖時代，文字已不再是單一的知識載體，圖像也不再是附屬的裝飾，而是文字與圖像並置、互文共榮，結合構成意義。換句話說，我們不再只是“讀字”，而是“讀文圖”。

在文圖時代之前，人類文明在18世紀經歷的是啟蒙時代，因工業革命後續引發的哲學思辨探討。19世紀是新聞時代，人們主要依靠成熟的印刷出版技術，從報紙刊物獲取資訊。到了20世紀的圖像時代，電視和電影成爲傳播和娛樂的主要媒體，便捷的視聽享受使得大眾逐漸脫離過去的閲讀習慣。20世紀末以來，隨著互聯網和科技普及，催生了文圖時代。2020年代的人工智慧生成文本（AIGC）工具高速發展，文字和圖像可以交互生成，更是呈現“AIGC文圖時代”的隨機性。

我根據詞頻使用的大數據，檢索相關1800年起的英語字詞，包括text, image, poem, picture, literature, painting，發現文圖時代大約萌芽於1988年。那年使用text 和image 的頻率高於literature和 picture，此後沒有改變，符合文學和圖畫創作逐漸電子化、虛擬化的趨勢。1995年，Windows 95公諸於世，我們順著螢幕的游標點擊圖示（icon），加上互聯網，可以即時聯動自身以外的空間人群，於是確定圖像指引行爲，文字與圖像都作爲“文本”存在的時代到來。

文圖時代的特徵可以用4個英語單詞概括：

1.Production （生產）：使用電腦和智能手機生成大量文字影音圖像文本，人人都是文本生產者 。

2.Unlimited （無限）：生產工具和技術不再受限於物質材料，比如紙張、筆墨，電子文本源源不絕。

3.Spread （傳播）：生活中實存的人際網+虛擬社交互聯網，傳播迅速，人人都是接收者、詮譯者、傳播者。

4.Hyperlink （超連結/鏈接）：文字和圖像的界限模糊，跨媒介順勢而生。互聯網的去中心形態和@#等標注/標籤的方式，形成我們傾向發散思維和既定指涉的認知。

摘取這4個英語單詞的第一個字母，便是PUSH，我們自願或被動，時代的洪流推促我們前進。

因應文圖時代的變化，我在2014年提出了文圖學（Text and Image Studies）的語詞和觀點,並且在2017年於新加坡註冊成立文圖學會（Text and Image Studies Society），從學術創新和知識服務雙方面推廣研究和分享心得。

文圖學是一門跨學科的人文學科，研究以圖像形態被觀看或感知的文本，以及文圖之間的交互關係。“文”指廣義的文本（Text），涵蓋表達、溝通、記錄的符號形式；“圖”指廣義的圖像（Image），包括視覺再現、想像形態與文化意象。文圖學主張“萬物皆文本”，從詩文、繪畫、書法、影音到數位媒體與AI生成內容，都可納入考察，掘發文本的內涵意義。文圖學也研究文本的生成、使用、傳播、接受、轉化、變異等外部脈絡。目的在於提供一種觀看世界的方法，體察生活之細微，品味人生之意趣，探索文化與世界之深層意義。

因此，文圖學既是一種理論框架，也是一種實踐方式。將文圖學用於寫作，交織文字、圖像、聲音，達到身歷其境的效果。用於閱讀，則結合形式媒介與環境空間，全方位的體驗。

以我的作品爲例，文圖學式的寫作表現在多模態、跨媒介和場域氛圍等層面。《星洲創意：文本．傳媒．圖像新加坡》獲選新加坡建國60周年的60本推薦優秀中文書，我將7篇文章設計成7個展廳，每個展廳一個主題，搭配合適的音樂歌曲，營造沉浸其間的感官情味。我不僅是作者，還是策展人和導覽員，陪同讀者順著我的文章思路和敘述，來一趟視聽享受，時空穿行之旅。

細心的讀者已經體會出我的文圖學式寫作情思，評論2024年上海書展暢銷書《第一次遇見蘇東坡》道：

淡而有味的書寫，東坡與著者之間的生命交集得以真實不虛地吐露，即便其間橫亙千年時空的巨浸洪流，一切悲歡離合、陰晴圓缺都彷彿似曾相識。書中十則故事如園林佳構，徜徉其間，可知一步一景，作者筆端的情思勾勒出迤邐回環的小徑，將讀者引入花木掩映的朱閣綺戶，與不眠的東坡月下相逢。

至於文圖學式閲讀，可與傳統文學閱讀比較，一目瞭然：

傳統文學閱讀 vs. 文圖學式閱讀

比較面向	傳統文學閱讀	文圖學式閱讀
對象觀	把文學作品視為文字藝術，重在語言、修辭、情節、人物	把文學作品視為“文本”，包括文字、圖像、聲音、排版、符號等多模態資訊
方法重點	注重解讀作家的意圖與作品的主題思想	注重文本與圖像、讀者、媒介的互動，強調意義在過程中的“生成”
感知方式	主要通過線性文字閱讀與理解	強調視覺、聽覺、空間感、身體感等多重感知
跨學科維度	以文學研究、語言學為主	涉及藝術史、視覺文化、傳播學、設計學、數位人文等
形式	以書本、紙本文學為主要研究物件	兼顧傳統文獻（詩、畫、碑刻）與數位文學（電子書、網路文學、AI生成文本）
目標	追求作品的“解釋”和“再現意義”	探索文本與圖像結合的表達機制，研究意義的“生成”和“再創造”
適用性	偏重古典文本的語言解讀與文學史定位	適合古典與現代結合，特別是數位時代與AIGC語境下的新文學研究

 

如果你的寫作和閲讀遇到瓶頸和疲乏，深嘆力不從心，何不試試文圖學式的新思路和新方法？或許就能和我一樣，享受文圖時代的舒暢自由。

 

參考資料

衣若芬《春光秋波：看見文圖學》。南京大學出版社，2020年

衣若芬《星洲創意：文本．傳媒．圖像新加坡》。新加坡八方文化創作室，2023年

衣若芬《第一次遇見蘇東坡》。上海人民出版社，2024年

衣若芬《AIGC文圖學：人類3.0時代的生產力》。北京中國社會科學出版社，2024年

衣若芬《文圖時代的高效閲讀》2021年新加坡大專閱讀節開幕演講。2021年11月6日（https://youtu.be/CD-f6dAMxNE）

The New Landscape of Writing and Reading in the Age of Text and Image

I Lo-fen

As we enter the twenty-first century, our ways of writing and reading are undergoing profound changes. Those who love writing and reading—have you noticed this? Traditionally, writing has been understood as the art of words, focusing on lyrical expression and narrative through language. In books that combine text and images, unless they are picture books or illustrated albums, images usually serve merely as explanatory or decorative illustrations.

However, in today’s Age of Text and Image, the relationship between words and images, media and space has become increasingly close. Writing has long transcended the printed page and entered a multimodal cultural landscape. The words we read in books are often accompanied by the call of images; the art we encounter in exhibitions, on stages, and in public spaces frequently communicates with text. Writing is no longer singularly textual, but a fluid form of existence.

Changes in writing and reading depend on multimodal integration. A “mode” refers to different representational forms or symbolic systems humans use to convey and understand information. Common modes include:

· Linguistic mode (written and spoken language)

· Visual mode (images, color, layout, emojis)

· Auditory mode (music, sound effects, rhythm and pitch of speech)

· Spatial mode (stage arrangement, body movement, gestures, spatial layout)

· Tactile mode (materials of sculpture, interactive installations)

Human perception and response are inherently multimodal. Yet in writing, due to linguistic thinking, tools, and expressive limitations, language mode has long dominated. Reading has usually been understood as the eyes moving between lines of text. We entrust ourselves to a passage, a story, an emotion, as if the whole world were condensed on the page—again privileging language mode. When meaning is no longer produced and constructed through a single mode, but through the combined action of multiple modes, technological support for the Age of Text and Image emerges.

The Age of Text and Image refers to a stage in which text and images (including audio and video) serve as the primary sources of information for recognition, judgment, interpretation, and the formation of knowledge and cultural production. In this age, text is no longer the sole carrier of knowledge, and images are no longer subsidiary decorations. Instead, text and image coexist, interact, and flourish together to construct meaning. In other words, we no longer simply “read words,” but “read text-and-image.”

Before the Age of Text and Image, human civilization experienced the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century, driven by philosophical reflection following the Industrial Revolution. The nineteenth century was the age of news, in which people relied primarily on mature printing and publishing technologies to obtain information from newspapers and periodicals. The twentieth century became the age of images, with television and film as major media of communication and entertainment; convenient audiovisual enjoyment gradually distanced the public from earlier reading habits. Since the late twentieth century, the spread of the internet and technology has given rise to the Age of Text and Image. In the 2020s, the rapid development of AI-generated content (AIGC) tools, enabling the interactive generation of text and images, has further revealed the randomness of an AIGC Text-and-Image Age.

Based on big data from word-frequency usage, I examined English terms from around 1800 onward, including text, image, poem, picture, literature, and painting. I found that the Age of Text and Image began to emerge around 1988. That year, the frequency of text and image surpassed that of literature and picture, and this trend has continued ever since—aligning with the gradual digitization and virtualization of literary and visual creation. In 1995, Windows 95 was released. By clicking icons on screens and connecting via the internet, individuals could instantly interact with people beyond their immediate space. Thus arrived an era in which images guide action, and both words and images exist as “texts.”

The characteristics of the Age of Text and Image can be summarized in four English words:

1.     Production: Using computers and smartphones to generate vast amounts of textual, audiovisual, and visual content—everyone becomes a content producer.

2.     Unlimited: Tools and technologies are no longer limited by physical materials such as paper and ink; electronic texts flow endlessly.

3.     Spread: Real-life social networks combined with virtual online networks enable rapid dissemination—everyone is a receiver, interpreter, and transmitter.

4.     Hyperlink: The boundary between text and image blurs, giving rise to cross-media forms. The internet’s decentralized structure and tagging systems such as @ and # shape our tendency toward associative thinking and fixed references.

Taking the first letters of these four words spells PUSH. Whether voluntarily or passively, we are propelled forward by the torrent of our times.

In response to the changes of the Age of Text and Image, I proposed the concept and perspective of Text and Image Studies in 2014, and in 2017 registered the Text and Image Studies Society in Singapore, promoting research and knowledge-sharing through both academic innovation and public service.

Text and Image Studies is an interdisciplinary humanities field that examines texts perceived or viewed in visual form, as well as the interactive relationships between text and image. “Text” refers broadly to symbolic forms of expression, communication, and record; “Image” refers broadly to visual representations, imaginative forms, and cultural imagery. Text and Image Studies advocates that “everything is a text”: poetry, painting, calligraphy, audiovisual media, digital media, and AI-generated content can all be included for analysis to uncover textual meanings. It also studies the external contexts of textual production, use, dissemination, reception, transformation, and variation. Its aim is to offer a way of seeing the world—perceiving the subtleties of life, savoring the meanings of existence, and exploring the deeper significance of culture and the world.

Thus, Text and Image Studies is both a theoretical framework and a mode of practice. Applied to writing, it interweaves words, images, and sounds to create immersive experiences. Applied to reading, it integrates media forms and environmental space to achieve a holistic experience.

Taking my own works as examples, text-and-image–oriented writing manifests in multimodality, cross-media approaches, and spatial atmospheres. Creative Singapore: Text, Media, Image Singapore was selected as one of the sixty recommended outstanding Chinese books for Singapore’s 60th anniversary. I designed its seven essays as seven exhibition halls, each with a theme and accompanying music, creating an immersive sensory experience. I am not only the author, but also the curator and guide, accompanying readers along my narrative paths on a journey of audiovisual pleasure and temporal-spatial travel.

Attentive readers have already perceived the sensibility of my text-and-image approach. A review of the 2024 Shanghai Book Fair bestseller The First Encounter with Su Dongpo observes:

With writing that is淡而有味—light yet rich—the life intersections between Su Dongpo and the author are revealed with genuine clarity. Even across a thousand years of historical distance, all joys and sorrows, partings and reunions, waxing and waning seem uncannily familiar. The book’s ten stories resemble a classical garden; as one strolls through it, each step reveals a new view. The author’s emotions trace winding paths that lead readers into vermilion pavilions shaded by flowers and trees, where they meet the sleepless moon of Dongpo.

As for text-and-image–oriented reading, its contrast with traditional literary reading is immediately apparent:

Traditional Literary Reading vs. Text and Image Studies Reading

· View of the object
Traditional: Literature as the art of words, focusing on language, rhetoric, plot, and character.
Text-and-image: Literature as “text,” including words, images, sounds, layout, and symbols.

· Methodological focus
Traditional: Interpreting authorial intent and thematic meaning.
Text-and-image: Emphasizing interaction among text, image, reader, and medium; meaning as processual generation.

· Mode of perception
Traditional: Linear reading and comprehension of text.
Text-and-image: Multiple senses—visual, auditory, spatial, bodily.

· Interdisciplinary scope
Traditional: Literary studies and linguistics.
Text-and-image: Art history, visual culture, communication studies, design, digital humanities.

· Form
Traditional: Books and printed literature.
Text-and-image: Traditional documents (poetry, painting, inscriptions) alongside digital literature (e-books, online literature, AI-generated texts).

· Goal
Traditional: Explanation and representational meaning.
Text-and-image: Exploring expressive mechanisms of text-image integration; studying meaning generation and re-creation.

· Applicability
Traditional: Classical textual interpretation and literary-historical positioning.
Text-and-image: Integrating classical and modern contexts, especially suited to the digital and AIGC era.

If your writing and reading have reached a bottleneck, leaving you fatigued and sighing at your limitations, why not try the new perspectives and methods of Text and Image Studies? You may find, as I have, the ease and freedom of the Age of Text and Image.

References

· I Lo-fen, Spring Light and Autumn Waves: Seeing Text and Image Studies. Nanjing University Press, 2020.

· I Lo-fen, Creative Singapore: Text, Media, Image Singapore. Bafang Culture Creative Studio, Singapore, 2023.

· I Lo-fen, The First Encounter with Su Dongpo. Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2024.

· I Lo-fen, AIGC Text and Image Studies: Productivity in the Human 3.0 Era. China Social Sciences Press, Beijing, 2024.

· I Lo-fen, Efficient Reading in the Age of Text and Image, Opening Lecture of the Singapore Tertiary Reading Festival, November 6, 2021.

 

姓郭桥的大旗手 The Flag Bearer from Koay Jetty

 

“只是好玩罢了！”

我问他怎么想到参加槟城大旗鼓游行表演，他说，那时1980年代，没有什么娱乐，邻居在玩练习大旗，自己也就跟着玩。

反正有的是时间。

还有精力。

住在姓郭桥，家里养猪，放学回家就和小伙伴们跳进海里游泳。

“猪粪不就在水里？”我问。

他哈哈大笑，说：“管得了那么多啊！”

那么，练习大旗哪里好玩？最难的是什么？旗子很重吗？

“没有很重啦！”他摇摇头，自顾自地说：“就在街上玩啊。每年跟很会的人去走。”

边走边表演？

一年一度的槟城大旗鼓游行在2025年12月20日和27日分别在乔治市和北海举行，我参加的是乔治市的活动。

我想起那天傍晚6点跟着游行队伍从柑仔园布朗操场 (Padang Brown)，走了将近4.7公里，途经槟榔律（Jalan Penang）、车水路（Jalan Burma）、琼花路（Jalan Sri Bahari）、牛干冬（Lebuh Chulia）、椰角街（Pitt Street，现官方名称为Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling），莱特街（Lebuh Light），最终抵达旧关仔角（Padang Kota Lama）时，已经10点多了。

好奇又兴奋，完全忘了腿酸口渴肚子饿。

总共有42个大旗鼓和舞龙舞狮等队伍参加。很有缘的，我前前后后比较接近观看的是首次应邀参加的新加坡队伍，联合了17个组织，老、中、青、少，有男有女，80多人浩浩荡荡。

在广福宫（观音亭），狮子列队向庙里的观音菩萨行三鞠躬礼。槟州旅游及创意经济事务委员会主席黄汉伟先生小时候在“香港酒吧”前骑楼看游行，老店依旧。《南洋风华》书中，我研究的崔大地挥毫“仰生皮料行”匾额已经撤下，此地成了西方旅客出入的旅店。其中一位双臂布满纹身，来自德国的少女问我：“今天是什么日子？在庆祝什么啊？”

不像马来西亚新山柔佛古庙带有华族五帮融合意味的游神；也不同于新加坡面向推广观光的表演盛宴妆艺大游行，槟城的大旗鼓游行是个跨民族的技艺同乐会，除了华人节目，还有马来和印度族歌舞—庆祝什么？旁边的伦敦青年说：“是圣诞节吗？”

很荣幸参与莫家浩博士的学术团队，执行《新加坡与马来西亚的多元文化妆艺游行：初始.源流与遗产价值》（Multicultural Chingay in Singapore and Malaysia: Origins, Sources, and Heritage Value）的研究计划，为支持新马两国联合以“Chingay”的名义申遗略尽绵力。

用文图学的视角观察大旗鼓游行，首先吸引眼球的必然是大旗。将数米竹竿撑起的鲜艳大旗边走边抛往天空，然后因应风向快步用头或是用口顶住接着，这是依靠身体速度和平衡训练的技术传承。大旗并非传统的装饰或宗教载体，而是构成游行意义核心，将身体实践转译为公共可见的文化文本的视觉装置。

观众或随行随看；或定点观赏，和能否接住大旗一样，存在机会变数。于是每一次抛举都是立即的验证，无论种族性别，面对的是重复/复数地被看见。成功、失败，也都是暂时的，观众为成就鼓掌叫好；为失手加油打气，大旗鼓游行的集体“乐在其中”，令人欢心感动。

即使如今，姓郭桥拆除了，姓郭桥大旗手成了出租车司机。在机场下车前，他说：“明年还有大旗鼓游行，再来玩啊！我带你去吃大碗又便宜的海鲜！”

我这才正面看清他黝黑方正的脸，那曾经多少年为了迎接大旗朝向太阳的脸。

 

2026年1月17日,新加坡《联合早报》“上善若水”专栏

“Just for fun!”

When I asked how he came to take part in the Penang Big Flag and Drum Parade, he said that back in the 1980s there was hardly any entertainment. Neighbors were practicing big-flag routines, so he simply joined in.

After all, there was plenty of time.

And plenty of energy.

Living at Koay Jetty, his family raised pigs. After school, he and his friends would jump straight into the sea to swim.

“Aren’t there pig droppings in the water?” I asked.

He burst out laughing. “Who cares about that!”

So what was fun about practicing the big flag? What was the hardest part? Was the flag heavy?

“Not that heavy!” He shook his head and continued casually. “We just played with it in the streets. Every year we’d walk along with people who were really good at it.”

Walking and performing at the same time?

The annual Penang Big Flag and Drum Parade was held on December 20 and 27, 2025, in George Town and Butterworth respectively. I took part in the George Town event.

I recalled following the procession from Padang Brown at 6 p.m. that evening, walking nearly 4.7 kilometers. We passed Jalan Penang, Jalan Burma, Jalan Sri Bahari, Lebuh Chulia, Pitt Street (now officially Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling), and Lebuh Light. By the time we reached Padang Kota Lama, it was already past 10 p.m.

Curious and excited, I completely forgot about sore legs, thirst, or hunger.

A total of forty-two groups took part, including big flag and drum troupes as well as dragon and lion dance teams. By a fortunate coincidence, the group I watched most closely before and after was a Singapore team participating for the first time. It brought together seventeen organizations—elderly, middle-aged, youth, and children, men and women alike—more than eighty people marching in impressive formation.

At Guangfu Temple (the Guanyin Shrine), the lions lined up and bowed three times to the Bodhisattva Guanyin inside the temple. Mr. Wong Hon Wai, Chairman of the Penang State Tourism and Creative Economy Committee, recalled watching parades as a child under the five-foot way in front of the old “Hong Kong Bar.” The old shops were still there. In Nanyang Style and Splendor, I had studied Cui Dadi’s calligraphy for the plaque of “Yangsheng Leather Shop,” which has since been removed; the site has now become a hotel frequented by Western travelers. One young German girl, her arms covered in tattoos, asked me, “What day is it today? What are you celebrating?”

Unlike the Johor Bahru Ancient Temple procession, which emphasizes the integration of the five Chinese dialect groups, and unlike Singapore’s Chingay Parade, staged as a grand spectacle to promote tourism, the Penang Big Flag and Drum Parade is a cross-ethnic gathering of shared skills and joy. In addition to Chinese performances, there are also Malay and Indian songs and dances. Celebrating what? A young man from London standing nearby asked, “Is it Christmas?”

I felt honored to participate in Dr. Moh Kah Hoh’s academic research team, working on the project Multicultural Chingay in Singapore and Malaysia: Origins, Sources, and Heritage Value, contributing in a small way to the joint effort by Singapore and Malaysia to apply for UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage status under the name “Chingay.”

Viewed through the lens of Text and Image Studies, what first catches the eye in the Big Flag and Drum Parade is, of course, the big flag itself. A brightly colored flag mounted on a bamboo pole several meters long is tossed into the air while moving forward, then swiftly caught—using the head or even the mouth—depending on the direction of the wind. This is a form of embodied skill transmission that relies on speed and balance training. The big flag is not a traditional decorative or religious object; rather, it forms the core meaning of the parade—a visual device that translates bodily practice into a publicly visible cultural text.

Spectators may follow along as they watch, or stop at fixed points. Just like catching the flag, chance and uncertainty are always present. Every toss becomes an immediate test. Regardless of race or gender, participants face being seen again and again. Success and failure are both temporary: the audience applauds achievements and cheers on missteps. The collective “joy of participation” in the Big Flag and Drum Parade is deeply heartwarming.

Even today, Koay Jetty has been demolished, and the flag bearer from Koay Jetty has become a taxi driver. Before I got out of the car at the airport, he said, “There’ll be another Big Flag and Drum Parade next year—come again! I’ll take you to eat seafood that’s cheap and served in huge bowls!”

Only then did I clearly see his dark, square face—the face that, for so many years, had been lifted toward the sun to迎接 the flying flag.

January 17, 2026
“Shangshan Ruoshui” Column, Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore

 

宋四家与天下第三行书之谜 The Four Great Calligraphers of the Song Dynasty and the Mystery of the “Third Best Running Script Under Heaven”

 

和台北故宫博物院萧宗煌院长，余佩瑾副院长等师长友人在三希堂人文空间用过午餐，稍微恢复上午导览后耗尽的精力。离下午演讲还有三十分钟，我想到地下一楼的储物柜整理整理图册书籍。

演讲厅就在储物柜对面，一边找着钥匙，看见观众陆续进场。

我站在演讲厅门口瞄了一眼，哇！已经快要坐满了！

讲座司仪蔡君彝博士让出她的座位，指引观众入座。临时多加后排折叠椅子，会场两侧的走道也水泄不通。星期四下午，那么多热爱文化艺术的朋友们，来听我谈《千年宋韵．风月共食：跟着苏轼和黄庭坚神游书法文图学之旅》。

我串讲了苏轼《赤壁赋》、《寒食帖》诗和黄庭坚题跋，以及黄庭坚的《松风阁》诗卷，放映我拍摄湖北黄冈和鄂州的风景照片，穿梭古今。大家全神贯注，一同观想千年。

“知识的厚度，跨学科的广度，更有人文学科的温度”，一位观众告诉我他“如沐春风”的感觉。我回答现场提问，关于苏轼《寒食帖》被称誉为“天下第三行书”的理由。

一般认为这是元代鲜于枢的观点，其实，鲜于枢只在颜真卿《祭侄文稿》题跋 “天下行书第二” 。那么，谁的什么作品是第一呢？宋代米芾跋唐褚遂良摹王羲之《兰亭序》说这是“天下法书第一”。元代护都沓儿则说王羲之《快雪时晴帖》才是“天下法书第一”。总之，第一是王羲之；第二是颜真卿，至于第三，我想是出于后人对于苏轼的景仰和爱戴。我在导览台北故宫博物院《千年神遇》和《甲子万年》特展时，也有美国来看展的观众问我是否赞成北宋书法四大家“苏黄米蔡”的排名顺序？

是啊，好像我们都接受了“苏黄米蔡”的讲法，还相信明代人提出的观点，说“蔡”是指蔡京，以为这是按照年龄顺序。如果按照年龄顺序，应该是“苏黄蔡米”才对，蔡京出生于1047年；米芾出生于1051年。或者认为“蔡”是指蔡襄，“苏黄米蔡”的顺序是基于汉语四声的音韵和谐，这就颇有编造的意味了。

回溯典籍，“苏黄米蔡”并列之前，是“苏黄米薛”，“薛”是指薛绍彭，他比米芾年纪小，曾经收藏《定武兰亭》刻石，书法学王羲之。南宋高宗的《思陵翰墨志》归纳了北宋的书法发展：

本朝承五季之后，无复字画可称。至太宗皇帝始搜罗法书，备尽求访。当时以李建中字形瘦健，姑得时誉，犹恨绝无秀异。至熙丰以后，蔡襄、李时雍体制方入格律，欲度骅骝，终以駸駸不为绝赏。继苏、黄、米、薛，笔势澜翻，各有趣向。然家鸡野鹄，识者自有优劣，犹胜泯然与草木俱腐者。

这段叙述也见于孙应时（1154-1206年）《烛湖集》、陈鹄（活动于南宋孝宗、宁宗时期，1162-1224年）《西塘集耆旧续闻》、董史《皇宋书录》（理宗淳祐二年1242自序）等书。意思是宋太宗时欣赏的是瘦硬刚健的李建中书法。神宗朝蔡襄、李时雍崭露头角。之后苏轼、黄庭坚、米芾和薛绍彭各有特色。

网上流传的“最早宋四家”记载，所谓“王存跋蔡襄《洮河石砚铭》”，作者应该是王芝，他也是李公麟《五马图》的收藏者。现存辽宁省博物馆的蔡襄《洮河石砚铭》是后人伪作，署名王芝的书风和颜真卿《刘中使帖》后的王芝题跋差别很大。清代胡敬《西清札记》收录了蔡襄《洮河石砚铭》王芝跋文，提到蔡襄、苏轼、黄庭坚、米芾“位置为四家”。

另一则较为可靠的文献，是宇文公谅（1292-?）跋蔡襄《寒蝉赋》写的：“先朝评书者，称苏子瞻、蔡君谟、黄鲁直、米元章为四大家。”可知南宋的“苏黄米薛”到了元代被替换成“苏蔡黄米”。

无论是“苏黄米薛”，还是“苏蔡黄米”，即使排名未必显示书艺的高下，苏轼总是拔得头筹！

凭什么呢？

苏轼自己说“我书意造本无法，点画信手烦推求” 。我们这样孜孜矻矻地研究宋四家与天下第三行书，或许就像黄庭坚跋《寒食帖》说的，东坡先生会笑我们“于无佛处称尊”哪！

 

2026年1月3日，新加坡《联合早报》“上善若水”专栏

The Four Great Calligraphers of the Song Dynasty and the Mystery of the “Third Best Running Script Under Heaven”

 

I Lo-fen

I had lunch with Director Xiao Zonghuang of the Taipei National Palace Museum, Deputy Director Yu Peijin, and other respected teachers and friends at the Sanxitang Humanities Space, regaining a bit of the energy depleted by the morning guided tour. With thirty minutes to go before my afternoon lecture, I went down to the basement storage lockers to reorganize my albums and books.

The lecture hall was directly opposite the lockers. While looking for my key, I saw audience members steadily entering.

I glanced into the hall from the doorway—wow! It was almost full!

The moderator, Dr. Tsai Chun-yi, gave up her seat and guided the audience to theirs. Extra folding chairs were temporarily added at the back, and the aisles on both sides of the venue were completely packed. On a Thursday afternoon, so many friends who love culture and the arts came to hear me speak on A Millennium of Song Elegance · Sharing Wind and Moon: A Journey through Calligraphic Text and Image Studies with Su Shi and Huang Tingjian.

I wove together Su Shi’s Rhapsody on the Red Cliff and Cold Food Observance poem, Huang Tingjian’s colophons, and Huang Tingjian’s Pine Wind Pavilion poetry scroll, while projecting landscape photographs I had taken in Huanggang and Ezhou, Hubei—moving back and forth between past and present. Everyone listened with full concentration, collectively envisioning a millennium.

“One feels the depth of knowledge, the breadth of interdisciplinarity, and, above all, the warmth of the humanities,” one audience member told me, describing the experience as “like being bathed in a spring breeze.” I then answered questions from the floor, including why Su Shi’s Cold Food Observance (Hanshi Tie) is praised as the “third best running script under heaven.”

It is generally believed that this view comes from the Yuan-dynasty calligrapher Xianyu Shu. In fact, Xianyu Shu only described Yan Zhenqing’s Draft of a Eulogy for My Nephew as “the second best running script under heaven.” So whose work is first? In the Song dynasty, Mi Fu wrote in a colophon to a Tang copy by Chu Suiliang of Wang Xizhi’s Preface to the Orchid Pavilion that it was “the finest model of calligraphy under heaven.” In the Yuan dynasty, Huduta’er argued instead that Wang Xizhi’s Quick Snow, Clearing Weather was the true “number one under heaven.” In short, first place belongs to Wang Xizhi; second to Yan Zhenqing; as for third, I believe it stems from later generations’ admiration and affection for Su Shi. When I guided tours of the National Palace Museum exhibitions A Thousand-Year Spiritual Encounter and Sixty Years, Ten Thousand Ages, American visitors also asked whether I agreed with the ranking of the Four Great Calligraphers of the Northern Song as “Su, Huang, Mi, Cai.”

Indeed, it seems we have all accepted the formula “Su, Huang, Mi, Cai,” and even believed a Ming-dynasty claim that “Cai” refers to Cai Jing, assuming the order follows age. But if ranked by age, it should be “Su, Huang, Cai, Mi,” since Cai Jing was born in 1047 and Mi Fu in 1051. Others argue that “Cai” refers to Cai Xiang, and that the order “Su, Huang, Mi, Cai” is based on the tonal harmony of the four Mandarin tones—an explanation that feels rather contrived.

Tracing the textual record further back, before “Su, Huang, Mi, Cai” there was “Su, Huang, Mi, Xue,” with “Xue” referring to Xue Shaopeng. Younger than Mi Fu, Xue once collected the Dingwu Orchid Pavilion stone inscription and modeled his calligraphy on Wang Xizhi. Emperor Gaozong of the Southern Song summarized the development of Northern Song calligraphy in Records of Imperial Mausoleum Calligraphy:

“After the Five Dynasties, our dynasty had no calligraphy worth mentioning. It was only under Emperor Taizong that model works were widely sought and collected. At that time, Li Jianzhong was praised for his lean and vigorous style, though it still lacked true elegance. After the Xifeng era, Cai Xiang and Li Shiyong began to conform to proper standards, aspiring to gallop like fine steeds, yet ultimately fell short of supreme admiration. Then came Su, Huang, Mi, and Xue, whose brushwork surged and turned, each with distinctive interests. As for which surpasses the others, discerning eyes will judge—yet all are far superior to those who faded away with grass and trees.”

This account also appears in Sun Yingshi’s Collected Works of Zhuhu, Chen Hu’s Supplementary Anecdotes of Elders from Xitang, and Dong Shi’s Records of Calligraphy of the Imperial Song. The meaning is clear: during Emperor Taizong’s reign, appreciation favored Li Jianzhong’s lean, firm style; under Emperor Shenzong, Cai Xiang and Li Shiyong emerged; afterward, Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, Mi Fu, and Xue Shaopeng each developed their own distinctive characteristics.

Online claims about the “earliest record of the Four Great Song Masters,” supposedly from “Wang Cun’s colophon on Cai Xiang’s Inscription on a Tao River Inkstone,” are problematic. The author should be Wang Zhi, who was also a collector of Li Gonglin’s Five Horses. The extant Inscription on a Tao River Inkstone attributed to Cai Xiang in the Liaoning Provincial Museum is a later forgery, and the calligraphic style of the signature “Wang Zhi” differs greatly from Wang Zhi’s colophon following Yan Zhenqing’s Letter to the Eunuch Liu. In the Qing dynasty, Hu Jing’s Notes from the Xiqing Studio included Wang Zhi’s colophon on Cai Xiang’s Inscription on a Tao River Inkstone, mentioning Cai Xiang, Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, and Mi Fu as “positioned as the Four Masters.”

Another, more reliable source is a colophon by Yuwen Gongliang (1292–?) on Cai Xiang’s Rhapsody on the Cicada, which states: “Those who judged calligraphy in the former dynasty called Su Zizhan, Cai Junmo, Huang Luzhi, and Mi Yuanzhang the Four Great Masters.” This shows that the Southern Song formula “Su, Huang, Mi, Xue” was replaced in the Yuan dynasty by “Su, Cai, Huang, Mi.”

Whether it is “Su, Huang, Mi, Xue” or “Su, Cai, Huang, Mi,” even if ranking does not necessarily indicate artistic superiority, Su Shi always takes first place.

Why?

Su Shi himself said: “My calligraphy follows the intent of creation and originally has no fixed method; the dots and strokes flow freely, without painstaking pursuit.” Our diligent research into the Four Great Song Masters and the “third best running script under heaven” may well be what Huang Tingjian joked about in his colophon to Cold Food Observance—that Master Dongpo would laugh at us for “claiming supremacy where there is no Buddha at all.”

January 3, 2026
‘Shangshan Ruoshui’ Column, Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore

 

衣若芬的2025年 I Lo-fen in 2025

 

衣若芬的2025年 I Lo-fen in 2025

 

您好!我是衣若芬。2025年，您過得好嗎？

我的2025年，延續2024年的活力澎湃，向更寬廣的方向好奇發展。開始探索全球永續發展、數字傳媒、文化IP、新加坡和馬來西亞的聯合國世界文化遺產，在逐漸成熟的文圖學理論基礎上，開發新的模型架構。

今年出版了兩本書，上海人民出版社出版的全新增訂版《陪你去看蘇東坡》，增加了10篇最新的文章，包括我去年終於完成長久夙願，前往河南郟縣三蘇墳，參拜東坡先生和子由先生的感懷。以及我觀覽蘇東坡的好友畫家李公麟的傳世可能唯一真跡《五馬圖》的心情。幸運的是，今年4月有機會再訪海南儋州，踏查東坡先生登臨海南島的通潮閣遺址，以及修建的東坡先生故居桄榔庵紀念館。12月，第6次造訪東坡先生的故鄉四川眉山，在三蘇祠看到我的書中内容和我的談話兩度被引用呈現在展板上，十分榮幸！我的名字，在出版了幾本書，包括：《蘇軾題畫文學研究》《赤壁漫游與西園雅集─蘇軾研究論集》《書藝東坡》《陪你去看蘇東坡》（臺北版，北京版，上海版）《倍萬自愛：學著蘇東坡愛自己，享受快意人生》《自愛自在：蘇東坡的生活哲學》《第一次遇見蘇東坡》，以及合著的《蘇軾研究史》等等之後，和東坡先生聯繫在一起了！

今年出版的第二本書，是對於故宮博物院百年風華的致敬。10年前，故宮博物院90周年時，我應邀在兩岸故宮參加研討會，在學刊上發表論文。本想今年百年大慶，或許會有盛會，便準備好了學術論文，靜待通知。結果，應邀投稿的文章被要求刪減，改投月刊。也沒有參與研討會。

臺北故宮博物院的百年特展主題之一是“西園雅集”，我是第一個研究寫作“西園雅集”中文書的作者。兩件難得向東京國立博物館借展的李公麟《五馬圖》和南宋李生《瀟湘臥遊圖》，剛好我也都研究論述過，或許能夠幫助觀衆瞭解展覽的精義。於是，重新整理舊作，收集了11篇論文和8篇散文，編輯出版《千年宋韻.世紀故宮：衣若芬詩畫文圖學論文集》電子書，并且在10月10日故宮博物院百歲生日當晚舉行綫上直播發佈會。

因應讀者需求，我在11月21日以《夢幻組合：西園雅集與李公麟》為題，以及11月27日以《山水禪心：赤壁與瀟湘》為題，分別提供了兩場臺北故宮博物院的導覽。導覽報名在開放3天之内便額滿，參與導覽的文圖學會會員和團友們來自台灣各地、新加坡、香港、美國，個個準時守紀，在濃郁的文化藝術氛圍中聽我娓娓道來，真是高素質的同好！我將一小段導覽現場錄影分享在我的YouTube頻道，不到一個星期便已經超過1萬播放量，令我驚喜。

11月27日下午，應臺北故宮博物院邀請，我主講了《千年宋韻．風月共食：跟著蘇軾和黃庭堅神遊書法文圖學之旅》。在開場30分鐘之前，便已經座無虛席，之後加了臨時座位，走道上也坐滿了觀衆。東坡先生和山谷先生仿佛俯視著我們，頷首含笑。

今年發表了10篇 研討會論文，演講和導覽總共30場。兩次飛香港；兩次飛杭州。珍惜和感恩每一個智識交會，啓發頓悟的瞬間！

中研院出版的《觀看.敘述.審美--唐宋題畫文學論集》，修訂補充，原訂今年在大陸更名為《大美之言--唐宋題畫文圖學》出版，推遲到明年。《千年宋韻.世紀故宮：衣若芬詩畫文圖學論文集》已經簽訂紙本書合同。《蘇軾題畫文學研究》絕版多年，多方垂詢，也將修訂重新出版。

一直心心念念希望親臨的重慶大足石刻、敦煌石窟，今年終於機緣完美，順利成行！由衷感謝促成機緣的四川美術學院、西北師範大學師長，以及旅途中關照我的好友們。這些點滴的回憶，是我人生中極爲可貴的寶藏。

許多預言都繪聲繪影警示未來兩年的“赤馬紅羊”，清掃無謂焦慮的言論時有所聞。自從去年開設“AIGC文圖學”課程，培養了第一批專業應用人工智能生成内容的學生，今年有3位主修AI的同學加入課程，不但讓我更清晰人工智能的“能”與“不能”，更使得我對於飛速研發的科技保持“與時俱進”、“維護人性”的平常心。如同我今年在《聯合早報》專欄的第一篇文章《2025小學生AI元年》，勢力洶洶的AI銳不可擋。明年在AIGC領域還有很多值得期待和慎思的層面。

送給大家我在日本石垣島的留戀風景。走著走著，小樹叢的空隙間露出了一灣碧海和白色的沙灘。你是解開繩索，乘小船破浪前行？還是坐在沙灘上看海吹風？又或者，你擔心那小樹叢下土溼路滑，就站在那有如心型的空隙外觀望？

迎接2026年，願你我都能夠在變動中尋得一方安生立命的空間，在不確定中靜心樂觀。我是衣若芬，祝福大家。

 

I Lo-fen’s 2025

Hello! I am I Lo-fen. How has your 2025 been?

My 2025 continues the vibrant momentum of 2024, moving forward with curiosity toward broader horizons. I have begun exploring global sustainable development, digital media, cultural IP, and UNESCO World Heritage sites in Singapore and Malaysia. Building on the increasingly mature theoretical foundation of Text and Image Studies, I am also developing new model frameworks.

This year, I published two books. The Shanghai People’s Publishing House released a newly expanded and revised edition of Accompanying You Through the Journey of Su Dongpo, which includes ten new essays. Among them are reflections on finally fulfilling a long-cherished wish last year—to travel to Jia County in Henan to visit the Tombs of the Three Sus and pay homage to Master Dongpo and Ziyou—as well as my feelings upon viewing what may be the only surviving authentic masterpiece, Five Horses, by Su Dongpo’s close friend, the painter Li Gonglin. I was also fortunate to revisit Danzhou in Hainan this April, to explore the site of Tongchao Pavilion where Dongpo once ascended after arriving on Hainan Island, as well as the newly built Tongpo’s Former Residence, the Areca Palm Hermitage Memorial Hall. In December, I made my sixth visit to Meishan, Sichuan—Dongpo’s hometown—and was deeply honored to see the content of my books and quotations from my talks cited twice on exhibition panels at the Three Su Shrine. After publishing several books—including Su Shi’s Painting Inscriptions: A Literary Study, Wandering at Red Cliff and the Elegant Gathering at Xiyuan, Book Art of Dongpo, multiple editions of Accompanying You Through the Journey of Su Dongpo (Taipei, Beijing, and Shanghai editions), Loving Yourself a Million Times, Self-Love and Freedom, The First Encounter with Su Dongpo, as well as the co-authored Research History of Su Shi—my name has now become closely associated with Master Dongpo.

The second book published this year is a tribute to the centennial splendor of the Palace Museum. Ten years ago, at the 90th anniversary of the Palace Museum, I was invited to participate in academic conferences at the Palace Museums on both sides of the Strait and published papers in scholarly journals. Anticipating grand commemorations for the centenary this year, I prepared new academic papers and waited quietly for an invitation. In the end, the invited submission was required to be shortened and redirected to a monthly journal, and I did not participate in a conference.

One of the themes of the National Palace Museum in Taipei’s centennial exhibition was “The Elegant Gathering at Xiyuan.” I am the first scholar to author a Chinese monograph on this subject. Two rare works on loan from the Tokyo National Museum—Li Gonglin’s Five Horses and Li Sheng’s Southern Song dynasty Reclining Journey through Xiao and Xiang Rivers—are also works I have studied and written about, which may help visitors better understand the essence of the exhibition. I therefore reorganized earlier writings, compiling eleven academic papers and eight essays into the e-book A Millennium of Song Elegance, A Century of the Palace Museum: Text and Image Studies in Poetry and Painting by I Lo-fen, and held an online live-streamed book launch on the evening of October 10, the Palace Museum’s 100th birthday.

In response to readers’ requests, I led two guided tours at the National Palace Museum in Taipei: “A Dreamlike Combination: The Elegant Gathering at Xiyuan and Li Gonglin” on November 21, and “Landscape and Zen Mind: Red Cliff and Xiao–Xiang” on November 27. Registration filled up within three days. Participants—members of the Text and Image Studies Society and tour groups—from across Taiwan, as well as Singapore, Hong Kong, and the United States, all arrived punctually and listened attentively as I spoke in a rich cultural and artistic atmosphere. They were truly a high-caliber community of kindred spirits. I shared a short clip of the guided tour on my YouTube channel, and in less than a week it surpassed 10,000 views, to my delight.

On the afternoon of November 27, at the invitation of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, I delivered a lecture titled A Millennium of Song Elegance: Sharing Wind and Moon—A Calligraphic and Text-and-Image Journey with Su Shi and Huang Tingjian. Thirty minutes before the lecture began, the hall was already full; additional seating was added, and even the aisles were occupied. It felt as if Master Dongpo and Master Shangu were looking down upon us, nodding with gentle smiles.

This year, I presented ten conference papers and gave a total of thirty lectures and guided tours. I flew to Hong Kong twice and to Hangzhou twice. I cherish and am grateful for every moment of intellectual encounter and sudden enlightenment.

The Academia Sinica publication Seeing, Narrating, Aesthetics: Essays on Tang–Song Painting Inscriptions, revised and expanded, was originally scheduled to be published on the mainland this year under the new title The Aesthetic Power of Words: Text and Image Studies on Painting Inscriptions in the Tang and Song Dynasties, but has been postponed to next year. The print edition contract for A Millennium of Song Elegance, A Century of the Palace Museum has already been signed. Su Shi’s Painting Inscriptions: A Literary Study, long out of print and frequently inquired about, will also be revised and republished.

I had long hoped to visit the Dazu Rock Carvings in Chongqing and the Dunhuang Grottoes, and this year the timing was finally perfect. I am deeply grateful to the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, Northwest Normal University, and the friends who cared for me along the journey. These fragments of memory are among the most precious treasures of my life.

Many vivid predictions have warned of the “Red Horse and Red Goat” of the coming two years, and voices urging the clearing away of unnecessary anxiety are often heard. Since launching the “Text and Image Studies on AIGC” course last year and training the first cohort of students in professional applications of AI-generated content, three students majoring in AI joined the course this year. This has helped me better understand both the capabilities and limitations of artificial intelligence, and enabled me to maintain a calm mindset of “keeping pace with the times” while “safeguarding humanity” amid rapid technological development. As I wrote in my first Lianhe Zaobao column article of the year, 2025: The First Year of AI for Elementary School Students, the force of AI is unstoppable. There will be many aspects in the AIGC field next year that are worth both anticipation and careful reflection.

I would like to share with you a scene I cherish from Ishigaki Island in Japan. As I walked along, through a gap in a small grove of trees, a curve of turquoise sea and white sand suddenly appeared. Would you untie the ropes and set off in a small boat, cutting through the waves? Or sit on the beach, gazing at the sea and feeling the breeze? Or perhaps, worried that the ground beneath the grove is damp and slippery, you choose to stand outside that heart-shaped opening and look on from afar?

As we welcome 2026, may we all find a place to settle and stand firm amid change, and remain calm and optimistic in uncertainty.
I am I Lo-fen, and I send my blessings to you all.

 cover photo credit: Yulan Chou

我在故宫当导览 I worked as a tour guide at the Palace Museum

 

“风生赤壁心无住，云过潇湘意自闲”。

用两句诗结束11月27日我在台北故宫博物院的导览，掌声中我回望了李公麟《归去来辞图》卷首的陶渊明一眼，大功告成！

文图学会主办的两场导览，这一场的主题是《山水禅心：赤壁与潇湘》，和11月21日的《梦幻组合：西园雅集与李公麟》，概括了百年院庆的《甲子万年》和《千年神遇—北宋西园雅集传奇》特展。

当初也曾经设想要将《皕宋—故宫宋版图书观止》特展加入，介绍富有历史意义的苏辙《古史》和苏轼的《苏文忠公奏议》。《古史》是1925年《故宫物品点查报告》登录的第一部宋版书；《苏文忠公奏议》则是举世罕见的残本，就在苏轼的老家四川眉山刊印。转来转去，考量了展场空间和出入动线，最后只得放弃。

精彩稀有的展品琳琅满目，在有限的时间里，除了解说赏析，还要贯串连结，归纳整理知识点，加上我的研究发现，提出我的“衣家之言”。我准备了分发给每一位导览团友文图学会的贴纸、纪念品、文字讲义，带了平板电脑，适时补充图像，显示展品没有打开的部分，比如李公麟《丽人行》图卷前面引首，张文渊的“丽人行”三个大字。或是比对相近的作品，比如《丽人行》和辽宁博物馆藏《摹张萱虢国夫人游春图》的类似形式。还要提点重要细节，经由放大画面，指出容易被忽略甚至看错的部分。

尽量周全，我提着两个大布袋，8点20分下出租车，站在故宫博物院地下一楼门口等着开门。9点半开始导览，我估算8点50分入场，先去寄存布袋，然后去一楼排队进展厅。门票已经上网买好了，我打开手机，滑出门票的二维码。可以有10分钟浏览一下苏轼的《寒食帖》，然后回地下一楼迎接团友们。

完美！

除了刚进展厅时差点儿被奔跑的观众撞到！原来台北也有“故宫跑”！之前北京故宫是“奔向《清明上河图》”，这一回是“奔向《黄州寒食帖》”。《寒食帖》在105室，有的人急冲冲三两步跳上往二楼的楼梯，被同行的人叫住，又连忙下楼。工作人员见状，赶紧制止他们，挥着手说：“小心！小心！不要跑！不要摔跤！”

我顾不得笑，走向排队的尾端。

“不能拍照！”“请不要拍照！”工作人员温柔劝阻，中文、英语、日语轮着说。

5分钟了，见队伍一直没有移动前进，我请工作人员指挥一下。

眼前終於出现乾隆皇帝的“雪堂余韵”题字，那金线描的海棠花，被火熏黑的印渍，我强忍住几乎夺眶而出的泪水，心里说着：“好久不见！”

匆匆向随行的学生讲述《寒食帖》的数则题跋，我调整好情绪，回到导览团体的集合处。来自台北、新竹、台中、香港、新加坡、美国的同好们，大家签名报到，领取资料和耳机。守时有礼，秩序井然。

我的导览用文图学方法，特色是强调将展品视为整体的“文本”（text）,重视生产环境（时地人，因缘）、物质条件（笔墨纸绢）、流通传播（题写，改装，复制临摹）等面向。从文字和图像的互文，阐述发掘展品的历史意义和艺术价值。因此，不只是看创作的主体，还包括装裱、形制、印章、题跋。

“既然网上已经有高清的图像，为什么我们还要到现场亲眼观看？”

“既然已经有语音导览可以租借，为什么各位还要听我讲解？”

我说：因为，越是虚拟素材容易取得，实际的肉身体验越是珍贵。图录未必呈现得出展品的质感，比如黄庭坚《松风阁》诗卷的砑花罗纹纸，我请团友拿手机拍摄任何一个角落，放大观察。再凑近细看纸上吸墨不均匀的笔画，形成书法线条的随机效果。面对展品，直观的尺寸让我们明白视觉的冲击。更别说领会历经火患水灭的沧桑。

一百年前，在北京故宫刚刚开放，展览的宋徽宗《文会图》、郭熙《早春图》、武元直（当时著录为朱锐）《赤壁图》，今天我们都能再看到。我站在团友的身后，让他们隔着玻璃围观，耳机里传出我的声音。《寒食帖》的海棠依旧，我们是为文化续命的传灯人。

 

2025年12月20日，新加坡《联合早报》“上善若水”专栏