Choose any three of the following questions and answer each in a brief paragraph. Use your own words. As always I will be reading your answers for accuracy, depth, and clarity. Answers are due at class time on Wednesday, April 4.
1. The Soldiers from the First Emperor's Tomb: what were they made of? how were they made? what's interesting about that?
2. Night-Shining White: what is this painting for? what message does it send?
3. Night-Shining White: why do you paint something white using black ink?
4. Calligraphy: what's the relationship between painting and calligraphy in Chinese art?
5. Travelers Amid Mountains & Streams: why is there no focal point in this painting?
6. Sunflower Seeds: why sunflower seeds? why not real sunflower seeds?
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Friday, March 30, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Chinese Painting III
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| Fan Kuan. "Travelers amid Mountains & Streams" |
- Fan Kuan at Wikipedia
- Page on Fan Kuan & "Travelers" at the Epoch Times
- another article on Fan Kuan & "Travelers"
The Song Dynasty; Northern Song Painting
Chinese Painting II
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| Zang Zeduan Detail: "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" (Song dynasty): Bridge |
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| Zang Zeduan "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" (Song dynasty) [Please click HERE to examine the entire scroll] |
Article on this painting at Wikipedia HERE
To "read" a Chinese painting is to enter into a dialogue with the past; the act of unrolling a scroll or leafing through an album provides a further, physical connection to the work. An intimate experience, it is one that has been shared and repeated over the centuries. And it is through such readings, enjoyed alone or in the company of friends, that meaning is gradually revealed.
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| Liang Kai: Poet Strolling by a Marshy Bank |
Monday, February 27, 2012
Chinese Painting I: Night-Shining White
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| Han Gan. Night-Shining White. Tang Dynasty . ca. 750 |
Useful pages at the Met's Timeline of Art History
- Chinese Painting
- Painting Formats in East Asian Art
- Chinese Handscrolls
- Landscape Painting in Chinese Art
- Scholar-Officials (makers and connoisseurs of art)
- Chinese Calligraphy
Also:
- Chinese Panting in Context (Asia Society)
- Six Principles (Wikipedia stub)
Friday, February 24, 2012
Ancient Chinese Art: the First Emperor's Tomb
- Chinese Dynasty Guide at Minneapolis Institute of the Arts
- Terracotta Army -- article at Wikipedia
- Qin Shi Huang -- article at Wikipedia
- Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor -- at Unesco (source of video above)
- Explore the Necropolis -- Discovery Channel
- Early Imperial Archaeology: More About the Tomb of the First Emperor (National Gallery of Art)
- Photosynth image of the Warriors
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Buddhist Religious Architecture: Pagodas
Wikipedia article: Pagoda LINK
Wikipedia article: Architecture of the Song Dynasty: LINK
Wikipedia article: Pagoda of Fogong Temple LINK
Wikipedia article: Ancient Chinese Wooden Architecture LINK
"The Eight-Sided Pagoda of Foguang Si at Yingxian" by Kate Erickson LINK
Wikimedia page: Pagodas in China LINK
Horyu-Ji at Great Buildings Online LINK
Monday, February 13, 2012
Schedule Weeks 5 and 6
Week 5: Indian Art: Representations of Shiva
M: Shiva Trimurti (Mahadeva) (1-18)
W: Shiva Linga and Mahayogi
F: Shiva Nataraja (1-17 and 1-25)
Week 4: Asian Religious Architecture
M: Buddhist Stupas
W: Hindu Temples
F: Pagodas
M: Buddhist Stupas
W: Hindu Temples
F: Pagodas
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Chinese Painting IV
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| Walking on Path in Spring by Ma Yuan (马远 c.1190 - 1279年） |
Three Chinese Landscape Paintings:
1. Ma Yuan. On a Mountain Path in Spring. Southern Song. Book p. 66.
Chinese Painting III
|
| Zang Zeduan Detail: "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" (Song dynasty): Bridge |
|
| Zang Zeduan "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" (Song dynasty) [Please click on the image directly above to examine the entire scroll] |
Article on this painting at Wikipedia HERE
To "read" a Chinese painting is to enter into a dialogue with the past; the act of unrolling a scroll or leafing through an album provides a further, physical connection to the work. An intimate experience, it is one that has been shared and repeated over the centuries. And it is through such readings, enjoyed alone or in the company of friends, that meaning is gradually revealed.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Chinese Painting II (Wed 16 March)
Fan Kuan & Northern Song dynasty Landscape painting
Article on Fan Kuan at Wikipedia
and this page from Columbia University is excellent & extensive
and a brief article on the Fan Kuan painting above here
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Chinese Painting I (Mon 14 March)
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| Han Gan: "Night-Shining White" ca 750 (Tang dynasty) |
China at the Heibrunn Timeline of Art History INDEX PAGE
- “Chinese Painting” HERE
- “Landscape Painting in Chinese Art” HERE
- “Scholar-Officials” HERE
- “Chinese Calligraphy” HERE
“A Look at Chinese Painting” (Metropolitan Museum) HERE
“Anatomy of a Masterpiece: How to Read Chinese Paintings” HERE
Chinese Panting in Context (Asia Society) HERE
Key points:
- Chinese paintings are not usually in the Western format (framed, hung on wall as false window); they can appear on handscrolls, wall scrolls, fans, and in many other formats
- Chinese paintings typically include written as well as visual content
- Chinese paintings often are marked with stamps that provide information on ownership of the painting
- Some beginning ideas on the Chinese aesthetic:
- unification & balance between opposites: object / concept; visual / written; figure / ground; etc.
- less emphasis on originality & uniqueness; more on conformity & collaboration
(Also: the “Six Principles of Chinese Painting” stub at Wikipedia)
Friday, March 4, 2011
Chinese Calligraphy
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| Four Anecdotes from the Life of Wang Xizhi, ca. 1310 Zhao Mengfu (Chinese, 1254–1322) Source:Zhao Mengfu: Four Anecdotes from the Life of Wang Xizhi (1989.363.30) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art |
Chinese Character Classification -- at Wikipedia
Chinese Calligraphy -- Timeline of Art History
China's Calligraphic Arts -- at the Freer/Sackler
Two videos that demonstrate basics in Chinese calligraphy.
The videos below are properly Japanese rather than Chinese, but the principles still apply. The first begins a series on calligraphy by discussing brushes. The second is a lengthy but excellent demonstration of calligraphy in several styles.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Chinese art: purposes, patrons, and public
"Art served several purposes in China, functioning as magical objects, emblems of authority, signs of superior cultural refinement, mechanisms for the preservation of information, and vehicles for self-expression. As the worlds first art historian, Zhang Yan Yuan (847), stated succinctly, art helped human relations and explored the mysteries of the universe. Art, he wrote, completes culture. Patrons included members of the imperial court, noble families, high-ranking bureaucrats, and Buddhist and Daoist monasteries. However, the percentage of the population having access to visual imagery was small, not to mention the miniscule number of people who commissioned or owned works of art."--- Mackenzie, Lynn. Non-Western Art: A Brief Guide. 2nd edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 2001. (86)
Monday, February 28, 2011
Chinese Jades, Bronzes, Ceramics
So much material, so little time . . . please, browse your way through some of these resources. We'll primarily discuss Chinese jade bi discs and the Ming dynasty vases known as the David vases, both shown below.
Chinese Dynasty Guide (Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
China page at The Asia Society's webpage -- links to many specific subject pages
China page at the Freer/Sackler museum
Ancient Chinese Jades and Bronzes (Freer/Sackler)
Chinese Jades: bi (Freer/Sackler)
bi Disk with Dragons (Nelson-Atkins) [3-5]
Guide to Chinese Ceramics (Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
Page on the Chinese Ceramics in Room 95 at the British Museum
Percival David Foundation Collection
The David Vases (British Museum)
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| bi discs at the Freer/Sackler |
Chinese Dynasty Guide (Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
China page at The Asia Society's webpage -- links to many specific subject pages
China page at the Freer/Sackler museum
Ancient Chinese Jades and Bronzes (Freer/Sackler)
Chinese Jades: bi (Freer/Sackler)
bi Disk with Dragons (Nelson-Atkins) [3-5]
Guide to Chinese Ceramics (Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
Page on the Chinese Ceramics in Room 95 at the British Museum
Percival David Foundation Collection
The David Vases (British Museum)
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| The David vases |
Schedule: Weeks 7 & 8
Week 7: Chinese art I: concepts & materials
M: First Emperor's Tomb (3-6)
W: Chinese jades (3-5) and ceramics (4-5)
F: Chinese calligraphy
W: Chinese jades (3-5) and ceramics (4-5)
F: Chinese calligraphy
SPRING BREAK
Week 8: Chinese art II: landscape painting
Sunday, February 27, 2011
The First Emperor's Tomb
- Terracotta Army -- article at Wikipedia
- Qin Shi Huang -- article at Wikipedia
- Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor -- at Unesco (source of video above)
- China's Warrior King -- National Geographic
- Explore the Necropolis -- Discovery Channel
- Early Imperial Archaeology: More About the Tomb of the First Emperor (National Gallery of Art)
- Photosynth image of the Warriors
Friday, February 18, 2011
Daily Schedule for Weeks 6 & 7
Week 6: representations of Hindu deities: Shiva / Hindu temples
M: Shiva 1: Shiva as lingam & as Mahadeva (Elephanta temple [1-18])
W: Hindu temple: concepts & forms: (1-22 & 1-24)
F: Shiva 2: Shiva Nataraja (1-25)
W: Hindu temple: concepts & forms: (1-22 & 1-24)
F: Shiva 2: Shiva Nataraja (1-25)
Week 7: Chinese art I: concepts & materials
M: First Emperor's Tomb (3-6)
W: Chinese bronzes (3-3) & jades (3-5)
F: Chinese textiles (3-7) and ceramics (4-5)
W: Chinese bronzes (3-3) & jades (3-5)
F: Chinese textiles (3-7) and ceramics (4-5)
SPRING BREAK
Week 8: Chinese Landscape Painting
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Stupa to Pagoda 5: Fogang Si Pagoda (3-23)
Useful cultural background: The Song Dynasty in China (Columbia University) LINK
Wikipedia article: Pagoda LINK
Wikipedia article: Architecture of the Song Dynasty: LINK
Wikipedia article: Pagoda of Fogong Temple LINK
Wikipedia article: Ancient Chinese Wooden Architecture LINK"The Eight-Sided Pagoda of Foguang Si at Yingxian" by Kate Erickson LINK
Wikimedia page: Pagodas in China LINK