Ch. 33: China + Korea

Character

An elaborate Chinese sign that by itself can represent several words.

Hand scroll

In Asian art, a horizontal painted scroll that is unrolled right to left, section by section, and often used to present illustrated religious texts or landscapes.

Hanging scroll

In Asian art, a vertical scroll hung on a wall with pictures mounted or painted directly on it.

Seal

In Asian painting, a stamp affixed to a painting to identify the artist, the calligrapher, or the owner. See also cylinder seals.

Overglaze (enamels)

In porcelain decoration, the technique of applying mineral colors over the glaze after the work has been fired. The overglaze colors, or enamels, fuse to the glazed surface in a second firing at a much lower temperature than the main firing. See also underglaze.

Glaze/underglaze

In porcelain decoration, the technique of applying mineral colors to the surface before the main firing, followed by an application of clear glaze. See also overglaze.

HUANG GONGWANG, Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, Yuan dynasty, 1347-1350.

In this Yuan handscroll, Huang built up the textured mountains with richly layered wet and dry brushstrokes and ink-wash accents, capturing the landscape's inner structure and momentum.

Forbidden City

Known since 1576 as the Forbidden City because of the highly restricted access to the inner compound, the palace provided the perfect setting for the elaborate ritual of the Ming court. The entrance gateway to the complex, the Noon Gate, has 5 portals. Only the emperor could walk through the central doorway. The 2 entrances to its left and right were reserved for the imperial family and high officials. Others had to use the outermost passageways. Entrance to the Forbidden City proper was through the nearly 40-yard-tall triple-passageway Meridian Gate, through which only the Son of Heaven and his retinue and foreign ambassadors who had been granted an official audience could pass.

Chan (Zen) Buddhism

Northern Chan Buddhists were "gradualists" and believed that enlightenment could be achieved only after long training. The Southern Chan Buddhists believed that enlightenment could come suddenly. Dong's Northern School therefore comprised professional, highly trained court painters. The leading painters of the Southern School were the literati, whose freer and more expressive style Dong judged to be far superior.

Porcelain

Porcelain objects are fired in a kiln at an extremely high temperature until the clay fully fuses into a dense, hard substance resembling stone or glass. Unlike stoneware, however, ceramists create porcelain from a fine white clay called kaolin mixed with ground petuntse (a type of feldspar). True porcelain is translucent and rings when struck. Its rich, shiny surface resembles jade, a luxurious natural material that the Chinese treasured from very early times

Daoism

Taoism (also called Daoism) is a religious or philosophical tradition of Chinese origin that emphasizes living in harmony with the Tao (also romanized as Dao). The term Tao means "way", "path", or "principle", and can also be found in Chinese philosophies and religions other than Taoism.

Ming Dynasty

The Ming emperors who succeeded the Yuan as rulers of China were, like many other powerful dynasts throughout history, great builders. The grandest Ming architectural project was the Forbidden City.

Yin Yang

The dragon also may represent yang, the Chinese principle of active masculine energy, while the phoenix may represent yin, the principle of passive feminine energy.

Literati

The literati were men and women from prominent families who painted primarily for a small audience of their social peers. Highly educated and steeped in traditional Chinese culture, they cultivated calligraphy, poetry, painting, and other arts as a sign of social status and refined taste. Literati art is usually personal in nature and often shows nostalgia for the past. (Song)

SHANG XI, Guan Yu Captures General Pang De, Ming dynasty, ca. 1430.

The official painters of the Ming court lived in the Forbidden City and specialized in portraiture and history painting. This very large hanging scroll celebrates a famed general of the third century.

Symbolism of Bamboo

The plant was a popular subject because it was a symbol of the ideal Chinese gentleman, who bends in adversity but does not break, and because depicting bamboo branches and leaves approximated the cherished art of calligraphy. (Guan Daosheng)

Calligraphy

Throughout history, the Chinese have held calligraphy (Greek, "beautiful writing") in high esteem—higher, in fact, than painting. Inscriptions appear almost everywhere in China—on buildings and in gardens, on furniture and sculpture. Chinese calligraphy and painting have always been closely connected. Even the primary implements and materials for writing and painting are the same: a round tapered brush, soot-based ink, and paper or silk.