Description 水天清曉 River at Dawn
釋文：獨起望山色，水雞鳴蓼洲，房星隨月曉，楚木向雲秋，曲岸疑江盡，平沙似浪浮，秦原在何處，澤國碧悠悠，小杜句。
款識：壬申夏，茮原江兆申遣暑。
鈐印：兆申之印（白文）、雙菩提樹盫（朱文）
Signed Chiang Chao-Shen in Chinese
With two seals of the artist
近代台灣水墨發展史上成就最為輝煌的藝術家當屬江兆申先生無異，江兆申一生沉浸於學術研究、醉心於水墨創作不倦;1965年江氏於台北中山堂舉辦個人首次展覽深獲好評，更得當時聞人葉公超與陳雪屏兩位薦舉進入國立故宮博物院任職副研究員，1972年陞任書畫處處長、1978年晉陞為副院長。1990年江兆申突患心疾，癒後便萌生退隱山林之意，1991年退職後即移居南投埔里，江氏取「揭涉園」為名，以倣王摩詰「行到水窮處，坐看雲起時」的境地。避世隱居後的江兆申，勉力於書畫創作，此時期作品風格樸厚、多有新貌。
此作《水天清曉》五尺全開，以倪元鎮「一河兩岸」的構圖，佈局平穩密實:畫幅上段淡墨清嵐，江氏以細筆墨線勾勒山巒輪廓與走勢，左方山壁直落而下、奇險嶔崎，中段山體盤桓厚實，施以破墨兼用側筆皴出山脈稜角及層次，右方壁面用乾墨皴出，遠山線條用簡、澹墨渲染出其深遠貌，畫間留白則取米芾雲山法作成清晨曉霧繚繞之姿;高拔的群山挾出深邃幽谷，和緩的丘壑與密林掩映中隱現房舍數棟，顯目的朱橋成為高山低水的連結，在水墨暈瀋中又可見其率筆寫景的一面。畫幅中段留白，除了作為廣袤的湖面意象外，又能與下方的景色銜接，江兆申以畫作上方的山體塊面作出高遠貌，近景則用密林羅列堆疊出山色浸潤的風貌，直取王原祁、龔賢筆意，觸筆生潤、雋永秀逸，先以澹墨為底，作出林葉氤氳於霧靄間，再施濃墨成樹，墨色凝重卻更顯山野幽僻的風貌，林蔭間草亭前後相踞，亭下文士對坐清談，表露出江兆申回歸山林、隱逸於野的心境，畫作通幅閒適恬淡，細細觀之更能體會畫中高深沉練的靜寂之情。
Chiang Chao-Shen was considered as one of the greatest artists in the modern Taiwan ink art scene. He had a rich scholar background with relentless passion towards ink art. His first solo exhibition was held in 1965 at the Zhongshan Hall in Taipei. Since then, he received recommendations from Yeh Gong-Chao and Chen Hsueh-Ping to work as a researcher at the National Palace Museum of Taiwan. He was promoted as the Head of Chinese Paintings Department in 1972 and Vice President of the National Palace Museum in 1978. Chiang Chao-Shen retired in 1990 after a heart injury and resided in Jieshe Yuan in the countryside of Puli, Nantou in 1991.
This work spreads up to 151cm in height and was composed in the style of Nin Yuan-Zhen with two shores separated by a river. Light and fine brush was used on the outline of the landscape, depicting steep hills on the left and a solid sturdy mountain in the middle. Splashed ink with slanted cun brushwork was used to depict the texture and layers of the hills, contrasting with the dry cun ink on the cliff on the right. Simple and saturated ink was used to depict distant hills, leaving blank spaces as mists, echoing with the style of Mi Fei. Lofty mountain ranges are juxtaposed with the depth of valleys. A few cottages emerge from the dense forest and knolls. A bridge in bright red connects the hills and valleys, providing a centerpiece for the humble landscape. Blank space at the center represents a still lake and acts as a connecting point with the landscape below. In contrast with the high and far perspective at the top, dense forest is depicted at the foreground.
Dimensions 151.5 x 84 cm
Artist or Maker CHIANG CHAO-SHEN (Taiwanese, 1925-1996)
Medium 水墨 設色 紙本 鏡框 Ink and colour on paper, framed
Date 1992
Exhibited 「江兆申書畫展」，台北市立美術館，台北，展期1992年10月31日起三個月； "Exhibition of Works by Chiang Chao-Shen", Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, 31 October, 1992, duration for 3 months
Literature 《江兆申作品集：詩文書畫篆刻（下）》，台北市立美術館，台北，1992年10月初版，頁 220-221；《名家翰墨 ─ 江兆申特集（下）》，翰墨軒出版，香港，1992，頁 128-129 Works of Chiang Chao-Shen: Poems, Calligraphy and Seals, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, October 1992, pp. 220-221; ; Han Mo: A Magazine of Chinese Brush Art, Han Mo Xuan Publishing. Co. Ltd., Hong Kong, 1992, pp. 128-129
