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Art Appreciation 2014 - 2015
A Trip Around the World
February 2015
China
Art Appreciation - A Trip Around the World
5th Stop: CHINA
#4: Russia
Charlotte, NC
Mediterranean
Sea
#3: Mediterranean
#2: Africa
#1: Latin America
#5: China
Chinese Art
Calligraphy
Four Anecdotes, c 1310
Zhao Mengfu
Handscroll, ink on paper
MET, New York
• Calligraphy was seen as the highest of all art forms in traditional China
• Chinese has no alphabet; instead made up of “characters” that stand for individual
syllables or words
• Over 50,000 Chinese characters exist; the average literate Chinese person knows
around 3,000
• The author of this piece was considered to be the most skilled in all of China at the
time and highly favored by Chinese Emperor Renzong
Chinese Art
Calligraphy
Wang Xizhi Watching Geese, c 1295
Qian Xuan
Handscroll; ink, color, and gold on paper
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
• When viewing this piece, the Chinese focus mainly on the calligraphy; the colorful
painting and the poem expressed by the calligraphy are afterthoughts
• This was created by a highly skilled calligrapher in 1295 to honor another calligrapher,
Wang Xizhi. Wang was born in 303 AD and is regarded as one of the most talented
calligraphers in all of Chinese history
• Wang was said to have learned to gracefully move his wrist while writing by observing the
neck movements of the geese he raised
Chinese Art
Modern Calligraphy
• Calligraphy continues to be highly
valued in China but modern
influences can be seen as well
• This scroll combines the
traditional(calligraphy and the use
of only ink and brush) and the
modern (horse drawn with quick
strokes highlighting areas of light
and dark similar to impressionism)
• In 1919 Xu Beihong became the
first Chinese government-sponsored
student to go to Europe to study art
Grazing Horse, 1932
Xu Beihong
Hanging scroll; ink on bark paper
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Chinese Art
Sculpture - Buddhism
• Buddhists believe that all human
existence is suffering, that the
cause of suffering is desire, that
freedom from suffering is
nirvana, which frees a person
for the endless cycle of death
and rebirth
• Buddhism first came to China
during the Han Dynasty (206
BC – 220 AD) and has helped
shape Chinese culture ever since
Bodhisattva Manjushri
c 1403-1424 (Ming dynasty)
Gilt brass
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
• Buddhist statues vary greatly in
size and materials used but all
pay homage to Buddha (one
who has reached nirvana) or
Bodhisattva (one who is able to
reach nirvana but delays doing
so to help others)
Buddha, likely Amitabha
Early
century (Tang Dynasty)
Dry lacquer with gilt and pigment
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
7th
Chinese Art
Sculpture – Terracotta Army
• Sculpture has been part of Chinese
art tradition for over 5,000 years
• This massive collection of
sculptures was created for the burial
site of Qin Shi Huang, the First
Emperor of China, to protect him in
the afterlife
• The site contains over 9,000 individual
sculptures including soldiers, chariots &
horses
Terracotta Army, Late 3rd Century BC
Approx. 700,000 unknown Chinese workmen
Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
Lintong District, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
Chinese Art
Sculpture – Terracotta Army
• The statues were created during the late
3rd century BC – over 1,700 years ago
• The site was buried with the emperor
and forgotten; it was rediscovered in
1974 by farmers drilling a well
• The site now hosts over 2 million
visitors a year
• Note how the faces of these two soldiers
differ from each other. Each statue was
constructed to be unique
Chinese Art
Painting
• Traditional Chinese painting involves many of the
same techniques as calligraphy and is done with a
brush dipped in black or colored ink; oil paints are
not used
• Artists had no desire to depict “changeable”
characteristics such as light and shadow; color was
often avoided and seen as a distraction
• Hanging scrolls such as this one are common with
the foreground at the bottom of the scroll while the
middle and far distances are at the middle and top
respectively
• The traditional craft involved in creating a blank
hanging scroll is considered an art in itself
Listening to the Wind, c. 1246
Ma Lin
India ink on silk
National Palace Museum, Taipei City, Taiwan
Chinese Art
Painting
Early Autumn, 13th century
Qian Xuan
Ink and colors on paper
Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, MI
• Landscape painting has
always been (and continues
to be) the most highly
prized type of painting in
China
Narcissus, c 1199
Zhao Mengjian
Handscroll; ink on paper
Met Museum, New York
Chinese Art
Folding Screen (Pingfeng)
Armorial Screen,
Qing dynasty, 1720–1730
Wood, lacquer, gold
Peabody Essex Museum,
Salem, MA
• Often beautifully decorated, the folding screen originated in China in the 7th century
• Originally created to block cold drafts in homes - Chinese name: píng (屏 "screen; blocking")
and feng (風 "breeze, wind")
• By the 17th century Europeans were importing screens from China to decorate their homes;
a practice that continues worldwide today
Chinese Art
Folding Screen (Pingfeng)
Modern Chinese Folding Screen
Guimet Museum of Asian Art, Paris
Art Appreciation - A Trip Around the World
Next Stop: India
#4: Russia
Charlotte, NC
Mediterranean
Sea
#3: Mediterranean
#2: Africa
#1: Latin America
#5: China
#6:
India