文徵明是中國文人文化在十六世紀獨立成形發展過程中的代表性人物。透過繪畫的製作、欣賞、投贈與交換等活動，文徵明不僅建立了所謂「吳派」文人畫的具體典範，而且形塑了文人這個菁英階層的特有生活風格，以使其有別於一般的庶民。文人文化除了試圖與大眾文化劃清界限外，同時也呈現了害怕為其同化的焦慮，這在伴隨著歲時禮俗而來的生活行事上，尤其如此。文徵明為新年而作的鍾馗圖便是一個有代表性的個案，可以藉之探討菁英文化與大眾文化間久被忽略的這層緊張關係。 現存國立故宮博物院的《寒林鍾馗》雖歸為文徵明之作，其實還有深入探究的必要。它的寒林背景確為文氏手筆，但是主角人物的鍾馗卻有著講究的姿勢、細緻的表情，顯示出畫者對人物畫科專業技巧的高超掌握，絕非文徵明所能為。它的作者應是與文氏素有交往的職業畫師仇英。然而，此鍾馗的特為文雅，又與仇英一般所作不同，顯示了文氏在背後的指授。 鍾馗畫的傳統起自唐代吳道子，後世迭有衍化。擊鬼式可能即是吳導子所創，稍晚則有祈福式的變體。兩者階屬如門神的辟邪圖象的演化，形式亦都採單幅立軸。另一種出行鍾馗則與儺戲的搬演有關，鍾馗通常沒有跨張的表現，戲劇的張力倒全置於可隨時添加的各段落鬼卒之上，而其形式則以手卷為主。但是，不論是辟邪或出行鍾馗，驅凶納福的功能性都很強。與此流行圖像相較，文仇合作的《寒林鍾馗》則以無所事事的文雅姿態，剝除了原有的神聖性與功能性。 文仇合作鍾馗形象的新意在於其臉上的微笑與輕揚的轉首。這個設計來自對明初詩人凌雲翰鍾馗詩中「明日春光萬餘里」的詮釋，意在將此形象的意涵由世俗的功利轉成對春天的單純期待。在此同時，畫的尺幅也被縮小，適於懸掛在私人性較高的文人畫齋之中。如此被移入書齋的鍾馗圖，其「無用性」特受強調，正是構築文人生活空間的要件。然而，「無用」的鍾馗在扮演著文人形塑其自生活風格之角色外，同時也透露出文人文化不願也不能完全與大眾文化隔絕的焦慮；為新年而創製的鍾馗圖的新模式，可謂針對這種焦慮的有效紓解。 文徵明所規劃的寒林鍾馗雖在當時的文人圈中頗受觀迎，但並不能真正地改變以驅邪納福為訴求的流行圖像。職業畫師李士達即曾將此無用的鍾馗重新賦予傳統的功能。這個現象意謂者文人文化面對大眾文化時，永遠揮對不去的焦慮之存在。

　　　　　Wen Zhengming was the instigator and leader of literati culture in its process of coalescing a distinct entity in the sixteenth-century China. Through the creation, appreciation, and exchange of paintings, he not only constructed the specific model for the so-called "Wu school" literati painting, but also defined a unique lifestyle, emblematic of and prized by the elite class. Along with elite class's wish to distinguish itself utterly from the commoners came the acute fear of assimilating in any way to popular culture. This proved especially true for customs that transcended social class, for example the celebration of Chinese New Year. Wen Zhengming's Zhong Kui painting is a representative case which can illustrate the underlying anxiety in the relationship between the elite class and popular culture. The hanging scroll entitile Zhong Kui in the Wintry Forest has traditionally been attributed to Wen Zhengming. However, its Zhong Kui figure is depicted in intricate detail and reveals the style of the professional painter Qiu Ying. It is further suggested that Qiu followed Wen's instruction to make the Zhong Kui figure an elegant image. Compared with the traditional imagery of Zhong Kui, this Wen-Qiu painting is significant for its absence of Zhong Kui's superhuman strengths and is reinterpreted in accordance with an early- Ming poem by Ling Yun-han, which reads, "Wishing for bright spring luminance across ten thousand miles." Zhong Kui in this painting is thus on longer a violent demon queller but a refined invocation to spring and the center of a tranquil painting suitable for a scholar's studio. The lack of auspicious functionality in this Zhong Kui painting imparts the distinctive qualities of the literati's lifestly, which Wen and his peers tried to construct through formulating an elegant pursuit in activities like interior designing and tea appreciation. However, the popularity of paintings such as Wen-Qiu's Zhong Kui remained quite limited. This reveals the impossibility of a complete separation between the literati and commoners. Moreover, it is this reality that confirms the continuing need to investigate the tensions that marked the relationship between the elite and popular cultures in Chian.