Art 266 - Module 2: China and Korea

Ren

"human-heartedness" compassion.

Tang Dynasty

(618-907 CE) The Chinese dynasty that was much like the Han, who used Confucianism. This dynasty had the equal-field system, a bureaucracy based on merit, and a Confucian education system.

Zhuangzi

A Chinese philosopher (369-286 B.C.E.) who spelled out the teachings of Daoism. Daoist sage, author of the Zhuangzi

Confucius

A Chinese philosopher and politician; (Kong Fuzi, or Master Kong, 551-479 bce) was born in the state of Lu (roughly equivalent to modern Shandong Province) to an aristocratic family that had fallen on hard times. From an early age, he showed a strong interest in the rites and ceremonies that helped unite people into an orderly society. As he grew older, he developed a deep concern for the suffering caused by the civil conflict of his day, and adopted a philosophy that he hoped would lead to order and stability.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

A gilded bronze statuette in San Francisco representing the historical Buddha bears an inscription giving its date as 338.

Warring States

A period from ca. 475-221 BCE, of war of authority between both the western and eastern Zhou kingdoms.

Daoism

A religion in China which emphasizes the removal from society and to become one with nature; Dao=way=fundamental operating system of the universe that governs all things in nature, including human nature. In art, this system is represented by nature imagery, mythological creatures, the spirit realm.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Above this artwork, 10 niches contain miniature statues of seated bodhisattvas and believers. All these figures face inward toward the 11-foot-tall statue of Shakyamuni, which dominates the chamber and faces the entrance.

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #4

According to kind, describe appearances [with color].

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Although remote in time and place from the Sarnath Buddha in India, this majestic image remains faithful to its iconographic prototype.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

Although some scholars have argued that the inscription is a later addition, many art historians accept the statuette as the earliest precisely datable Chinese image of the Buddha, created during the Later Zhao dynasty (319-351).

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Archaeologists found this T-shaped silk banner draped over the coffin of the marquise of Dai, who is shown at the center awaiting her ascent to immortality in Heaven, the realm of the red sun and silvery moon.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Art historians consider this Korean statue one of the finest images of the Buddha in East Asia.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

At that point, they carefully cut the mold in pieces, removed the pieces from the model, and baked the pieces in a kiln to form hard earthenware sections.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Based on this artwork, map and history help us understand the changes in style

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Based on this artwork, we can tell that these artists do not know the gandharan style

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Before the transformed caterpillars emerge as moths and badly damage the silk, the farmers kill them with steam or high heat. This artwork was produced by Silk;

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Behind each Buddha is a mandorla (flamelike almond-shaped nimbus). Both figures sit in the lalitasana pose—one leg folded and the other hanging down. This standard pose, which indicates relaxation, underscores the ease of communication between the two Buddhas.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Below the aspiration, in this artwork, is a scene of the Marquise in life. And below that is a scene from her funeral rite.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Between these two sections, from this artwork, are two intertwining dragons whose serpentine bodies cross through a bi disk. Their tails reach down to the Underworld and their heads point to Heaven, unifying the entire composition.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Both the bamboo and the inscriptions gave Wu Zhen the opportunity to display his proficiency with the brush. Which artwork does this description refer to?

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

By the Yuan period, Chinese potters had extended their mastery to fully developed porcelains, a technically demanding medium (see "Chinese Porcelain").

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Carved from a single block of granite, this artwork represents the Buddha as he touched the earth to call it to witness the realization of his enlightenment at Bodh Gaya.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

Castiglione was a Jesuit painter in Qing China who successfully combined European lighting techniques and three-dimensional volume with traditional Chinese literati subjects and compositions. This artwork is a representation of Castiglione's accomplishment.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Chan Buddhism has two major schools of thought. The Northern school holds that enlightenment comes only gradually after long meditation, but the Southern school believes that the breakthrough to enlightenment can be sudden and spontaneous. This artwork is a representation of this.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

China has a long and rich history of scholarship on painting, preserved today in copies of texts from as far back as the fourth century and in citations to even earlier sources. It is represented in this artwork.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Chinese ceramists often decorate porcelains with colored designs or pictures, working with finely ground minerals suspended in water and a binding agent (such as glue). This material was used for this artwork.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Context: Buddhism and Buddhist temples and monasteries served political purposes as well as religious. Many rulers believed the powers of Buddhism could be enlisted to protect the country from harm, natural disasters, as well as foreign invasion.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

Context: Buddhism was established in China, probably by the late Han Dynasty brought by traders and missionaries. The teachings of Buddhism clashed in some ways with established philosophies of Daoism and Confucianism, but succeeded in earning many converts, especially during times of trouble. The period of Disunity was one of those 3 times; foreign invaders occupied parts of north China and ruled as the Wei Dynasty; these rulers were fervent Buddhists and sponsored many large Buddhist monasteries and centers.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Context: Painting made within the proper activities of Chinese Zen monks.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Context: The Chinese bronze-age, of which the Shang represents an early mature period, was a time of high cultural sophistication, with writing systems, bronze-casting, multiple forms of arts and crafts supporting a stratified society with an elite at the top, ruled by a king/shaman. The technique, "piece-mold" (please explore fully) used in casting the "Shang bronzes" was indigenously developed in China, as evidenced by its uniqueness, and not imported from the west.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Context: The Han Dynasty was an extensive empire. The unification of the various states, which was first achieved by the Qin emperor in the early 3rd Century CE., included a large geographic area north/south, east/west, which brought it into contact with India and Central Asia and, through the trade route known as the Silk Road, with the West. Many features of Chinese culture, such as the civil-service examinations based on the Confucian Classics, and the bureaucracy, writing forms, etc., were established in the Han. Many rich cultural artifacts, mostly small-scale grave goods (as a repudiation of the excesses of Qin Shi Huangdi), ceramics, lacquer, textiles, bronzes, reveal the love of life, and even humor of the Han peoples.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Context: The Northern Song, like the Tang Dynasty, continued the social and political practices established during the Han: Imperial rule, government by highly educated bureaucracy, who achieved their status through an examination system. These men (no women) were equally cultivated and appreciated all the fine arts: music, poetry, calligraphy, and painting; they also collected beautiful objects of craft for their studies: jade vessels, ink-stones, precious rocks that looked like mountains, porcelain, everything that symbolized and cushioned the good life.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Context: The S. Song court was driven out of the northern capital by invaders and forced to relocate to the south, where it's power was much reduced, it lived in fear of being overrun again, which eventually happened in 1368 when the Mongols conquered China.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Context: The continuation of the literati's (members of the governing bureaucracy) involvement in the fine arts. A continuation of the philosophy of Song literati, who proclaimed painting as a legitimate form of personal expression in which "truth to nature" was relative and independent of realism.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Context: The elite world of literati painters continues; these artists often belonged to groups, coteries, in which they shared their work and socialized; although some did, out of financial necessity sell their work, the ideas was to remain an "amateur." This reveals, at the bottom, a strong sense of social class distinction.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Context: The establishment of an imperial porcelain factory at Jingdezhen signaled the power of the Emperor to control and monopolize the production of the finest wares destined for the court; also, the dedication of craftsmen to producing the most perfect and flawless pieces possible. These imperial artisans invented many secret chemical recipes for inimical colorful glazes, and decorative techniques.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Context: The evolution of Buddhist art in China; its reach and importance, signified by the costs of the material, gilt-bronze. This style is uniquely Chinese and has nothing borrowed from India. Temporarily this style will influence Korea, and from Korea, Japan, both of whom will lag behind China stylistically for about a century until the Tang Dynasty.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

Context: The inherent meaning is related to Confucian ideas of social duty, proper comportment, and formality among people. Confucius felt art's role was to instruct.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

Context: There were several other Jesuits at court as well, architects, draftsmen, sculptors, and engineers, all making European marvels, like fountains and clocks, to impress the Emperor and convince him to convert. The Jesuits had been in China beginning in the late Ming.

Laozi

Daoist sage, author of Daodejing (Classic of the Dao)

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Dated 518, this piece was probably a private devotional object in a domestic setting or a votive offering in a temple.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Despite its modest size, this artwork required substantial resources. Unlike the Chinese Buddhist caves at Yungang, Longmen, and Dunhuang, the interior wall surfaces and sculpture were not cut from the rock in the process of excavation. Instead, workers assembled hundreds of granite pieces of various shapes and sizes, attaching them with stone rivets instead of mortar.

On a Mountain Path in Spring

Details: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″

Guang

Details: Bronze, 6 ½″ high.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta

Details: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze,

Details: Gilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high.

Lady Feng and the Bear

Details: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″.

Lofty Mount Lu

Details: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ × 3′ 2 ⅝″.

Travelers Among Mountains

Details: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″.

Auspicous Objects

Details: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ × 5′ 1 ⅞″.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock

Details: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 11 ½″ × 1′ 4 ⅝″.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo

Details: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high.

Funeral Banner

Details: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3' ⅓″.

David Vases

Details: Pair of white porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze.

Shakyamuni Buddha (Stone)

Details: Stone, 11' 3 ½″ high.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Difference between early and late period of disunity is time and distance: later chronologically, and located in the southern part of the Norther Wei empire Gu, in Loyang. This is represented in this artwork.

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #5

Dividing and planning, positioning and arranging.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Dominating the rotunda is a huge statue depicting the Buddha at the moment of enlightenment. What is this artwork?

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #1

Engender a sense of movement through spirit consonance.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Event, from this artwork, is from the Lotus Sutra

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Eventually, the silkworms form cocoons out of very fine filaments they extrude as liquid from their bodies. The filaments soon solidify with exposure to air. This artwork was produced by Silk;

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Fan Kuan, a Daoist recluse, spent long days in the mountains studying the effects of light on rock formations and trees. He was one of the first masters at recording light, shade, distance, and texture. He is the artist of this painting.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Farmers today still raise silkworms from eggs, which they place in trays. The farmers also must grow mulberry trees or purchase mulberry leaves, the silkworms' only food source. This artwork was produced by Silk;

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

For Literati painters, painting was like music and poetry, a means of personal expression, done in their leisure. They did not paint for patrons or money. Aloof. This artwork represents this statement.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

For the face of the mountain within this artwork, for example, Fan employed small, pale brush marks, the kind of texture strokes the Chinese call "raindrop strokes."

Funeral Banner

Form: A T-shaped hanging banner with tasseled corners.

Lady Feng and the Bear

Form: A handscroll - a unique Chinese format, a long, horizontal strip of silk (or, paper) that is unrolled from right to left, following the way the Chinese language is written, from right to left. The form allows the artist to create discrete scenes, one after the other, with some break between them, or to create a continuously unfolding composition that shares space. The act of unrolling to view creates an early form of time-based art.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo

Form: Hanging scroll on paper.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock

Form: Hanging scroll on paper.

Auspicous Objects

Form: Large hanging scroll on silk.

Lofty Mount Lu

Form: Monumental hanging scroll on paper.

On a Mountain Path in Spring

Form: Silk album leaf (now), but shares features with a hand-scroll in the horizontality of the silk segment.

Travelers Among Mountains

Form: Silk hanging scroll - a living format invented by the Chinese and used for poetry, calligraphy, and painting, was exported to the East Asian countries, like Korea and Japan, who adopted it and continue to use it. The size can vary tremendously from a couple of feet to wall-height; but the shape is usually vertical and more narrow than wide. Several hanging scrolls can be placed side by side to cover a wall with one continuous composition. Monumental Landscape, a standard composition, is also a form. The vertical shape is generally used to create the illusion of a slice of nature dominated by a tall, single peak, or cluster of peaks in the background; the middle ground, is conceptually nearer and may contain small figure of human being going about their business; the foreground, at the bottom of the composition is the closest to the spectator.

David Vases

Form: Tall vases, pair; visual references to antique bronze and jade forms. Architectonic placement of painted décor: the shape of the profile suggests discreet areas, each of which has a design that "fits" it in scale and subject.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze,

Form: The Buddha is the conventional, universal, seated, yoga position. The small size suggests it might be a portable, private object of devotion.

Shakyamuni Buddha (Stone)

Form: The canonical form of a seated Buddha, raised on a large lotus platform. The scale is well over life size.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta

Form: Two Buddhas seated side by side; a small scale, gilt-bronze image, dated.

Guang

Form: an (animal shaped) pouring vessel with a large cover and a handle opposite the spout. In the mature form from the late-Shang dynasty, this common vessel has a hollow "foot" or base, a large, round belly to contain the contents, a large, wide pouring spout, sturdy handle, and a heavy lid, or cover.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

From this artwork, The main rotunda (circular area under a dome) measures about 21 feet in diameter.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Huineng achieved his "Chan moment" when he heard the sharp sound of a cutting blade strike a bamboo stick—the subject of an early-13th-century hanging scroll by the Southern Song painter Liang Kai. This artwork is a representation of this.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Huineng did not achieve enlightenment through meditation; instead, he achieves it by gathering firewood outside.

Mongols

In 1210, this army, led by Genghis Khan (1167-1230), invaded northern China from Central Asia and in 1215 destroyed the Jin dynasty's capital at Beijing. An attack on the Song dynasty followed, but the last Song emperor did not fall until 1279 at the hands of Genghis's grandson, Kublai Khan (1215-1294). Kublai proclaimed himself emperor of China and founded the Yuan dynasty (r. 1279-1294), opening a new era of Chinese history and art

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In Chan thought, the performance of even mundane tasks such as chopping bamboo has the potential to become a spiritual exercise. This artwork is a representation of this.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

In a later painting (FIG. 34-12A), Shen depicted himself as a poet on a mountaintop and included a poem he wrote, in this case reflecting on the beauty of music and landscape. This was after this specific artwork.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

In both style and iconography, this early Buddha resembles the prototype conceived and developed at Gandhara.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In contrast to Li and Fan, Ma reduced the landscape on this album leaf to a few elements and confined them to one part of the page.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In fact, this scene specifically depicts the patriarch's "Chan moment," when the sound of the blade striking the bamboo resonated within his spiritually attuned mind to propel him through the final doorway to enlightenment.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In his composition, as in those of his contemporary, Xia Gui (active ca. 1195-1230), in striking contrast to Fan Kuan's much larger Travelers among Mountains and Streams, Ma reduced the landscape to a few elements and confined the natural setting to the foreground and left side of the page within this artwork.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

In some ways, this artwork is not a "Chinese" painting. What artwork is this referring to.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In the heavenly realm, in this artwork, dragons and immortal beings appear between and below two orbs—the red sun and its symbol, the raven, on the right, and the silvery moon and its symbol, the toad, on the left.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this Monumental Landscape Painting, of which this is one of the earliest and best examples, celebrates the magnitude and the beauty of nature.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, At the very bottom is the Underworld.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, Below, the standing figure on the first white platform near the center of the vertical section is probably the marquise of Dai herself

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

In this artwork, Color is unnecessary

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

In this artwork, Dragons and phoenixes are the major painted motifs. They may be symbols of male and female energy, respectively.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this artwork, Fan, following Li's example, painted a vertical landscape of massive mountains rising from the distance.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

In this artwork, Ink is applied with a brush like calligraphy

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this artwork, Kuan showed some elements from level ground (for example, the great boulder in the foreground), and others obliquely from the top (the shrubbery on the highest cliff).

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, Most brushstrokes are pale and wet, ranging from the fine lines of Huineng's beard to the broad texture strokes of the tree. A few darker strokes, which define the vine growing around the tree and the patriarch's clothing, offer visual accents in the painting.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, Most of the vertical section below is the human realm.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this artwork, Numerous "texture strokes" help model massive forms and convey a sense of tactile surfaces.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, Scholars generally agree that the area within the cross at the top of the T represents Heaven.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

In this artwork, Shakyamuni sat beside him and continued to expound the Lotus Sutra's teachings.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

In this artwork, Shang artists perfected casting complex-shaped and densely decorated bronze vessels.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, Some scholars have suggested that the author of the two-line poem was Empress Yang, but the inscription is in Ningzong's hand.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

In this artwork, The animal forms, real and imaginary, and the taotie mask on this guang are probably connected with the world of spirits.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, The artist depicted a funeral nearer the bottom.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

In this artwork, 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.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this artwork, The shifting perspectives direct viewers' eyes on a vicarious journey through the mountains.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

In this artwork, The woman awaits her ascent to Heaven, where she can attain immortality.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

In this artwork, a horned animal forms the front of the lid, and at the rear is a horned head with a bird's beak. Another horned head appears on the handle.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, a large, solitary figure gazes out into the infinite distance. Framing him are the carefully placed diagonals of willow branches.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, a solitary figure gazes into the infinite distance.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

In this artwork, few of the first texts on painting survive, but later authors often quoted them, preserving parts of some important works for posterity. Thus, educated Chinese painters and their clients could steep themselves in a rich art historical tradition.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, near the upper right corner, a bird flies toward the couplet Ningzong added in ink, demonstrating his mastery of both poetry and calligraphy: "Brushed by his sleeves, wild flowers dance in the wind; Fleeing from him, hidden birds cut short their songs."

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

In this artwork, the Chinese sculptor misrepresented the canonical dhyana mudra, or meditation gesture. Here, the Buddha clasps his hands across his stomach. In South Asian art (for example), the Buddha turns his palms upward, with thumbs barely touching in front of his torso."

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

In this artwork, the bodies have elongated proportions, and the garment folds form sharp ridges.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

In this artwork, the figures' poses and fluttering drapery ribbons convey a clear quality of animation in concert with the individualized facial expressions. This style accords well with painting ideals expressed in texts of the time, when representing inner vitality and spirit took precedence over reproducing surface appearances (see "Xie He's Six Canons").

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

In this artwork, the folds of the garments drop like a waterfall from their shoulders to their knees and spill over onto the pedestal, where they form sharp ridges resembling the teeth of a saw.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

In this artwork, the rhythmic sweep and linear elegance of the folds recall the brushwork of contemporaneous Chinese painting.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

In this artwork, the subject is purely Chinese. The white eagle, the pine tree, the rocks, and the red mushroomlike plants (lingzhi) are traditional Chinese symbols. The eagle connotes imperial status, courage, and military achievement. The evergreen pines and the rocks connote long life, which, according to Chinese belief, eating lingzhi will promote. All are fitting motifs for a painting celebrating the birthday of an emperor.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

In this artwork, there are few buildings, and they are hard to find (in the middle ground at the right).

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, this kind of quick and seemingly casual execution of paintings has traditionally been interpreted as a sign of a painter's ability to produce compelling pictures spontaneously as a result of superior training and character, or, in the Chan setting, progress toward enlightenment.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

In this artwork, this person's courage and selflessness in risking her own life to save the emperor were perfect models of Confucian behavior. As in many early Chinese paintings, the artist set the figures against a blank background with only a minimal setting for the scene, although in other works, Gu provided landscape settings for his narratives.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

In this artwork, we see a scholar looking at a distant destination from his journey. We also see a boy with a wooden timber instrument.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Inscriptions and seals are essential elements in this hanging scroll, in which Shen used this area to express visually the grandeur of a beloved teacher's virtue and character.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Landscape paintings such as this one are perfect embodiments of the Chinese ideals of peace and unity with nature.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Later, the silk-workers twist several strands together to form a thicker yarn and then weave the yarn on a loom to produce silk cloth. Both the yarn and the cloth can be dyed, and the silk fabric can be decorated by weaving threads of different colors together in special patterns (brocades) or by stitching in threads of different colors (embroidery). Many Chinese artists painted directly on plain silk. This artwork was produced by Silk;

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Liang used a variety of brushstrokes in the execution of this deceptively simple picture.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

Like all Chinese handscrolls, this one was unrolled and read from right to left, with only a small section exposed for viewing at one time.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Literati painters belonged to the educated Chinese elite, known as the literati class; these men held the equivalent of PhD's in Chinese history and Confucian studies, hence the term "scholar-painters." This artwork represents this statement.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Literati painters were talented "amateurs," free to paint any way they liked and accountable to no one. This artwork represents this statement.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Literati painters worked as administrators and judges within the Chinese bureaucracy, from the Song through the Qing periods.

Guang

Location: Found in Anyang, China;

David Vases

Location: Found in Beijing, China (London);

Auspicous Objects

Location: Found in Beijing, China;

On a Mountain Path in Spring

Location: Found in Hangzhou, China;

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo

Location: Found in Hangzhou, China;

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta

Location: Found in Hebei (province in North China);

Shakyamuni Buddha (Bronze)

Location: Found in Hebei Province;

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock

Location: Found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, China;

Travelers Among Mountains

Location: Found in Kaifeng, China;

Lady Feng and the Bear

Location: Found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province;

Shakyamuni Buddha (Stone)

Location: Found in Seokguram, South Korea;

Lofty Mount Lu

Location: Found in Suzhou, China;

Funeral Banner

Location: Found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China;

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Ma Yuan (ca. 1160-1225) painted this artwork, a silk album leaf, for Ningzong in the early 13th century.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Meaning: As the text explains, this is an imaginary portrait of the famous Mt. Lu, made in homage to his teacher as a birthday present. A single small figure of a scholar looks out over the river in perfect contentment. Compare to photographs.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Meaning: Auspicious symbols of good luck, imperial dragons, an element of palace decoration. Exclusively created at the porcelain center, Jingdezhen, for the imperial court.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Meaning: Iconography - an incident from the canonical Life of the Buddha: after his enlightenment, Shakyamuni, aka. The historical Buddha was preaching when a stupa containing a Buddha of the Past, Prabhutaratna, appeared in the sky. Together, these two Buddhas expounded for the crowds the tenets of the Lotus Sutra, one of the most popular texts of Buddhism in Asia, with a large following even today. The unusual pose, which originates in India, indicates comfortable informality.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Meaning: Iconography - the mudra, which is canonical and universal, is called "calling the earth to witness." It relates an incident in the Life of the Buddha, when Shakyamuni was pursuing meditation as the route to enlightenment. Evil forces, personified by the demon king, Mara, and his beautiful daughter, attempted to distract and prevent him from this achievement. Shakyamuni touched his right hand to the earth beneath him to ask the earth to witness and support his endeavors. The earth roared in his defense and Mara and his illusions were vanquished.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Meaning: Intimate enjoyment of poetry and painting, and images of nature. Escapism: escape from reality into little, dreamy idyllic scenes. The historical/political situation suggests it.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

Meaning: It is command painting, not something creative or personally expressive; Castiglione is not telling us anything about himself beyond his incredible ability to adapt his style and still preserve his intention. It is a celebratory painting, one of many, made in honor of the Emperor's birthday.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Meaning: Painting can be a means through which an individual can express Buddhist/Zen truths: emptiness is form; form is emptiness; and especially the concept of non-duality, non-hierarchy; such paintings were handed down as icons equivalent to images of the Buddha, no less, no more.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

Meaning: The Buddha in meditation. This would have been an expensive object to produce and not owned by anyone but a person, or community of means.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Meaning: The meaning of the ritual vessel is clear: it was used to hold items of consumption (for spirits, and possibly also living persons) in elaborate ceremonies or rituals performed by the Shang King, presumably to honor the ancestors, and the recent dead.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Meaning: The monumental landscape painting is a visual poem to the beauties of nature and an acknowledgment of humanity's small place in it. As such it can be said to combine Daoist and Confucian values. For some the painting is a substitute for nature, or enjoyed as if it were actually nature. We might say it is objective.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

Meaning: The painting consists of a series of short textual passages followed by Gu's illustration of what that might look like in action, or how it was exemplified in the past.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Meaning: The painting is a kind of spiritual self-portrait. The rock and the bamboo are traditional symbols for Confucian virtue, survivors in all situations of adversity. Literati painters were especially austere in the Yuan Dynasty when they had to work for the Mongols, China's invaders, reflecting the political and social difficulties of the times. The World of Khubilai Khan: A Revolution in Painting will take you deeply into the symbolism of Yuan literati painting.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Meaning: This banner was found on the coffin of an aristocratic woman, known as the Marquise of Dai, discovered in 1972, along with numerous other grave offerings in a remarkably well-preserved tomb in south china. It may have been carried aloft in her funeral procession and then buried with her. It depicts an aspiration: to be received into a celestial sphere (the upper portion of the scene). Below this is a scene of the Marquise in life. And below that is a scene from her funeral rite.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

More immediately, this Korean statue draws on the robust, round-faced figures of Tang China, and its drapery is a more schematic version of the fluid type found in Tang sculpture. However, no close precedents exist for the figure's distinctly broad-shouldered dignity combined with harmonious proportions.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

Name

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Name

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Name

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Name

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

Name

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Name

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Name

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

Name

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Name

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Name

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Name

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Name

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Name

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

On the cylindrical base of this artwork is a motif common on Shang bronzes that originated in Neolithic China—a taotie mask, consisting of an abstract face with a pair of raised eyes.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

On this hanging scroll, Liang Kai, a renowned master of ink painting, depicted the Sixth Chan Patriarch's "Chan moment," when the chopping sound of his blade propelled the patriarch to enlightenment.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

On this vessel illustrated here the multiple designs and their fields of background spirals integrate so closely with this artwork's form that they are not merely an external embellishment but an integral part of the sculptural whole.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Once the mold cooled, they broke it apart, removed the new bronze vessel, and cleaned and polished it.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

One of the most important developments in East Asia was the development of Chan (Zen) Buddhism, which had reached a significant point of maturity by the Song Dynasty. According to legend, chan/dhyana/zen, the meditation sect of Buddhism, was brought to China by the Indian monk, Bodhidharma, who transmitted the doctrines to Chinese followers, known as the 6 Patriarchs. This painting by Liang Kai is an example of a new iconography of Buddhist art, and a new style of Chinese painting.

On a Mountain Path in Spring

Period: 1127 - 1279 CE;

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo

Period: 1127 - 1279 CE;

David Vases

Period: 1279 - 1368 CE;

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock

Period: 1279 - 1368 CE;

Lofty Mount Lu

Period: 1368 - 1644 CE;

Auspicous Objects

Period: 1644 - 1911 CE;

Funeral Banner

Period: 206 BCE - 220 CE;

Lady Feng and the Bear

Period: 220 - 581 CE;

Shakyamuni Buddha (Bronze)

Period: 319 - 351 CE;

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta

Period: 386 - 534 CE;

Shakyamuni Buddha (Stone)

Period: 668 - 935 CE;

Travelers Among Mountains

Period: 960 - 1127 CE;

Guang

Period: Shang Dynasty 1600 - 1050 BCE;

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #3

Responding to things, depict their forms.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Sculptors then carved the intricate details of the relief decoration into the inner surfaces of the piece molds.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Shen Zhou belonged to the ruling class elite by birth and education, but did not go into government service, but remained an amateur painter. He painted this artwork.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Shen Zhou was one of the most revered Literati painters of the Ming Dynasty; this is one of his masterpieces.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Shen had never seen this area but he stated that he chose the subject because he wished the lofty mountain peaks to express the grandeur of his teacher's virtue and character. This artwork is a representation of this.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

Style: A local variant of the Indian Gandharan-style imported from northern India/Pakistan.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

Style: A version of the Northern Song monumental landscape style of Fan Kuan and Li Cheng. Literati artist might stick to one personal style, or in homage to the great artists of the Chinese past, paint in the style of ancient great masters, as he has done here. However, it is not a "copy," but an homage "in the style of." And unlike N. Song monumental landscape painting is more personally expressive than objective.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Style: Although we can distinguish individual "hands," generally, the artists of the 10th - Century/Northern Song Dynasty, like Fan Kuan here, are aiming for truth to nature in terms of scale, space, and detail. They use combined techniques of outlines and texture strokes to create the feeling of depth, shadow and texture of rock, tree, and water, all with ink and no (or slight) color. Painters also take advantage of blank areas of the silk to indicate mist. Is there, as in Western painting, a single light source?

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Style: Both static and dynamic movement of dragons and clouds - ancient motifs, continuing in later times.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

Style: Combination of abstract, cloud form designs, and simple representations of fantastic animals, and human forms. Faces frontal, ¾ view, and profile. The space appears to be roughly divided into thirds, with different narrative scenes depicted in each space.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

Style: Gu's style

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

Style: Gu's style is mainly seen in his figure painting: long, willowy, narrow female bodies, covered in heavy layers of robes that trail on the ground around them, and diaphanous belts or scarves that are lifted in the air by the slightest movement. Elongated, narrow faces squared off at the forehead by their hair and rounded at the chin. The style is essentially linear, with the forms indicated by fine black outlines, then filled in with translucent colors. Space is not well defined; there is no "ground line;" space is indicated by position and overlap.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

Style: Hybrid - European and Chinese techniques; aiming for realism without relying on Western methods such as chiaroscuro and local color.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Style: Individual; sparse, dry, "amateurish" by design, minimalist, eccentric.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Style: Minimalist; a few rapid, judiciously placed strokes and lines suggest the figure in the landscape. Compare to both N and S Song painting. Expressive, something - the sense of a momentary experience (like the sudden realization of a truth heard in the sound of a knife striking bamboo) - captured with extreme brevity of means.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Style: Tang Style. This style is the direct result of the reintroduction of Indian influence in China. Under Indian influence, the sensuous Gupta style was borrowed and then exported to Korea and Japan. As a result, for a time, there was something of a universal style (India, China, Korea, Japan) in Asia during the 8-9th Century. The Chinese artists misunderstood the physical sensuousness of the Indian models and the concept of idealized forms from nature, concepts that were entirely alien to them. They "translated" the concept of prana, cosmic energy, inner life force, strength, into corpulence and massiveness.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Style: The style of Ma Yuan is the style of the S. Song Court academy: lyrical (literally, especially when, as here, it "illustrates" the lines of a poem). In opposition to the style of the Northern Song artists like Fan Kuan and Li Chen, the monumentality of nature is replaced by the intimacy of nature; notice how this composition might be a tiny detail blown up from a monumental landscape painting. The style of representation of rocks and trees depends less on texture strokes than on broad wet strokes of the brush, or washes of ink. Ma's tendency to compose his painting with a visual emphasis on one corner earned him a nickname "one-corner Ma." Also the presence of large amounts of "empty" space - again suggestive of mist and the unseen distance, and the large size of the figures increase the emotional, personal identification with the scene, or subjective.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Style: Zoomorphic: fanciful, abstract, animal-shaped forms, some from nature, some from the imagination (?), successfully integrated into an overall, coherent design characterized by symmetry. Individual "motifs"

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

Surviving works attributed to Liang include an ink painting. What was this painting?

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

The Chinese figure recalls its presumed South Asian models in the flat, relieflike handling of the robe's heavy concentric folds; the ushnisha (cranial bump) on the head; and the cross-legged position.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

The Chinese, while admiring the Europeans' technical virtuosity, found Western style unsatisfactory. Those Jesuit painters who were successful in China adapted their styles to Chinese tastes. This painting is related to this.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

The Jesuit painter's emphasis on a single source of light consistently cast shadows, and three-dimensional volume is unmistakably European stylistic concerns. But the impact of Chinese literati painting on the Italian artist is equally evident, especially in the composition of the branches and leaves of the overhanging pine tree and the rock formations in the lower half of the scroll. All of this is represented by this artwork.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

The Shang bronze-casters then added a final clay layer on the outside to hold everything together, leaving open ducts for pouring molten bronze into the space between the model and the mold and for venting gases.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

The Shang bronze-workers began the process by producing a solid clay model of the desired object.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The artist clearly differentiated the individual bamboo plants and revealed in the abstract patterns formed by the stalks and leaves. What artwork did this occur?

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The bamboo plants in his hanging scroll are perfect complements to the prominently featured black Chinese calligraphic characters. Which hanging scroll is this statement referring to?

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The bamboo stalks in his hanging scroll are perfect complements to the calligraphic beauty of the Chinese black characters and red seals so prominently featured on the scroll. Which hanging scroll is this statement referring to?

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

The basic procedures for silk probably have not changed much in almost 4,000 years. This artwork was created by silk.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

The bodies in this artwork have elongated proportions, and their smiling faces have sharp noses and almond eyes.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

The composition of this artwork owes a great deal to Fan Kuan (FIG. 16-23) and other early masters. But, characteristic of literati painting in general, the scroll is in the end a very personal conversation—in pictures and words—between the artist and the teacher it honors.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

The fabulous animal forms within this artwork, real and imaginary, are not purely decorative.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

The farmers soften the cocoons in hot water and unwind the filaments onto a reel. The filaments are so fine that workers generally unwind the threads from 5 to 10 cocoons together to bond into a single strand while the filaments are still soft and sticky. This artwork was produced by the silk produced by the filaments;

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The inscription within this artwork also says that the vases, together with an incense burner, formed an altar set donated to a Daoist temple by a man named Zhang Wenjin as a prayer for peace, protection, and prosperity for his sons and daughters. What were these vases?

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

The literati master suggested the immense scale of this area by placing a tiny figure at the bottom center of the painting, sketched in lightly and partly obscured by a rocky outcropping.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

The meaning of the design of this artwork is presumed to reflect the important role of animals in Shang society, but exactly what that purpose is, is not clear: one theory is that these are totem animals like those in Northwest Coast native American cultures.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

The meeting of the two Buddhas, in this artwork, symbolized the continuity of Buddhist thought across the ages.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

The most famous Song painters came from the Ma family, which began working for the Song dynasty during the Northern Song period. This artwork was developed around that time.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

The most prominent European artist at the Qing court was Giuseppe Castiglione (1688-1768), who went by the name Lang Shining in China. He is the artist who painted this specific painting.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The most stable and widely used coloring agents for porcelains are cobalt compounds, which emerge from the kiln as an intense blue. Rarely, ceramists use copper compounds to produce stunning reds by carefully manipulating the kiln's temperature and oxygen content. This material was used for this artwork.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

The multitude of shapes within this artwork suggest metamorphosis and may refer to the ability of the Shang kings and priests to communicate with the world of spirits.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

The nearly 7-foot-long silk hanging scroll cannot contain nature's grandeur, and the landscape continues in all directions beyond its borders.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

The oldest Chinese Buddhist texts describe the Buddha as golden and radiating light. This no doubt accounts for the choice of gilded bronze as the sculptor's medium.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

The painter was an Italian Jesuit priest, a trained European oil painter, and printmaker, whose goal in China was to convert the Emperor and his Court to Christianity. His tactic was to serve as a court painter to the Emperor and obtain his trust and admiration, which he did, although he did not succeed in converting him to Christianity. This artwork was used to the painter's plan

Junzi

The personality ideal in Confucianism; the noble person; "gentleman" self-control, self-perfection for the good of all

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

The porcelain minerals change color dramatically in the kiln. The painters apply some mineral colors to the clay surface before the main firing and then apply a clear glaze over them. This underglaze decoration fully bonds to the piece in the kiln, but because the raw materials must withstand intense heat, Yuan dynasty potters could fire only a few colors. This material was used for this artwork.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

The scruffy, caricature-like representation of the revered figure suggests that worldly matters, such as physical appearance or signs of social status, do not burden Huineng's mind. The scruffy, caricature-like representation is included in this artwork.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

The sculptor of this statuette transformed the Gandharaderived style of earlier Chinese Buddhist art (FIG. 16-12).

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

The section illustrated here in this artwork records a virtuous act of heroism—a lady saving her emperor's life by placing herself between her husband and a bear that had escaped from a circus.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

The stretch of time and distance is represented by the elongated figures in this artwork.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

The style of Gu Kaizhi's handscroll, which features an outline-and-color technique, accords well with Xie He's painting ideals, which emphasize the importance of representing inner vitality and spirit.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

The top part of the "T" represents the afterlife.

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

There is no distinction of sacred and non-sacred within this artwork.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

They next reassembled the mold around the model using bronze spacers to preserve a void between the model and the mold—a space equivalent to the layer of wax used in the lost-wax method (see " Hollow-Casting Life-Size Bronze Statues ").

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

This artwork are early examples of porcelain with cobalt-blue underglaze decoration.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

This artwork bears a long poem that Shen composed in the teacher's honor.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

This artwork can be dated exactly by the inscription citing the emperor's regnal year, equivalent to 1351 in the Western calendar.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork combines DAOIST (in illustration of myths) Heaven, Earth, Underworld. & CONFUCIAN (in illustration of social practices/funerary rituals)

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork consists of Tao-tie, a common element of Shang design: "animal-mask" a face organized by loosely reticulated shapes (ears, horns, open maws, bodies) around two large protruding "eyes." A repetitive, squared off spiral pattern defines the "negative" space.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork depicts a text written to instruct ladies in how to behave in their role as wives and concubines of the Emperor.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork depicts an aspiration: to be received into a celestial sphere (the upper portion of the scene).

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo: Hanging scroll, ink on paper, 2′ 5 ¼″ high. found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

This artwork encourages viewers to be aware of your mindfulness.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork features perhaps the most famous subject of later commentary is the set of six "canons" (laws) of painting that the art critic and painter Xie He (active ca. 500-530) formulated in the early sixth century.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork has been traditionally attributed to the historically renown, early Chinese painter, Gu Kaizhi.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork illustrates the source of changes in Chinese Buddhist Style from Gandharian style to Indigenous Chinese style.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork is Among the finest bronzes of the second millennium BCE are those that Shang artists created using piece molds.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork is a narrative, the artist would start from one scene, and change it as he continues.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

This artwork is an example of a work by an artist of the Literati School of Chinese painting.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

This artwork is an example of the unparalleled quality and techniques of Chinese porcelain, here an example of the use of underglaze cobalt painting combined with clear over glaze produces a class of wares called "blue and white."

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

This artwork is an example of yet another stylistic development in Buddhist art that took place in the 7th Century of the Chinese Tang Dynasty, and was transmitted to both Korea and Japan.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

This artwork is an oddity but also a masterpiece of hybridity: Western/Chinese.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This artwork is likely a copy of two-three hundred years later, it is thought to faithfully represent Gu's style and manner of painting.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork is made out of Silk. Silk is the finest natural fabric ever produced. It comes from the cocoons of caterpillars called silkworms.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork is one of the first portraits in Chinese art.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork is shaped like a covered gravy boat and used for pouring wine for libations.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork is unique, the only one found so far. It dates to the late Bronze Age, long after Shang.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

This artwork reflects the transformation of the Gandharan Style into a native Chinese style characterized by linearity, elongated forms, Chinese costumes. Comparable to Gu Kaizhi's painting style.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork represents someone going to heaven

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

This artwork represents the meeting of Shakyamuni Buddha (at the viewer's right) and Prabhutaratna, the Buddha who had achieved nirvana in the remote past, as recounted in the Lotus Sutra, an encyclopedic collection of Buddhist thought and poetry.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork represents the two philosophies: Daoism and Confusinism

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

This artwork shows Ma Yuan's personal appreciation for nature.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork shows a confusion element of The interactions between the people and the rituals they are preforming?

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork shows a funeral at the bottom.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

This artwork shows an accurate representation of form and texture.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

This artwork shows how the sculptors of the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534) transformed the Gandhara-derived style of earlier Buddhist art in China.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

This artwork shows phoenixes as a sign of good luck; Also, a 5-clawed dragon as a sign of power.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

This artwork shows sculpted images of bodhisattvas, lohans, and guardians line the lower zone of the wall.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork shows the noblewoman's journey to heaven

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork was buried with a ruler to continue to practice the rituals in the next world.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork was found within the Tomb of a Shang ruler.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This artwork was produced by Silk; The manufacture of silk was a well-established industry in China by the second millennium BCE, and early examples of painting on silk—for example, the Han silk banner of the marquise of Dai—have fortuitously been preserved.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

This artwork was used as a ritual sacrifice as part of the burial.

Auspicous Objects: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 7′ 11 ⅜″ x 5′ 1 ⅞″; found in Beijing, China; Qing Dynasty; 1644 CE - 1911 CE

This artwork, which Castiglione painted in 1724 in honor of the birthday of the third Qing ruler, the Yongzheng (Concord and Rectitude) emperor (r. 1723-1735), exemplifies his hybrid Italian-Chinese painting style.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

This earliest datable Chinese image of the Buddha is stylistically indebted to Gandharan prototypes (FIG. 15-12), but the sculptor, unfamiliar with Buddhist iconography, misrepresented the dhyana mudra.

Lofty Mount Lu: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 6′ 4 ¼″ x 3′ 2 ⅜″; found in Suzhou, China; Ming Dynasty; 1368 CE - 1644 CE

This hanging scroll, perhaps Shen's finest hanging scroll, was a birthday gift to one of his teachers.

Funeral Banner: Painted silk, 6′ 8 ¾″ x 3′ ⅓″; found in Tomb 1, tomb of the marquise of Dai, Mawangdui, China; Han Dynasty; 206 BCE - 220 CE

This is a rare, very early example of Chinese painting on silk.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

This is an excellent example of the abrupt change in the style of Buddhist art in China as the older Gandharan-style models were left behind in the north and artists adapted to the Court styles practiced in the south, exemplified by the elongated, linear style of Gu Kaizhi.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Guilded bronze, 1′ 3 ½″ high. found in Hebei Province; Later Zhao Dynasty; 319 CE - 351 CE

This is the earliest, extant, dated, gilt-bronze image of the Buddha, to have been found in China.

On a Mountain Path in Spring: Album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 10 ¾″ x 17″; found in Hangzhou, China; Southern Song Period; 1127 CE - 1279 CE

This painting of the Southern Song Dynasty marks a new aesthetic, as we see in this album leaf by the Court Painter, Ma Yuan.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This painting represents Gu's style with impractical long robes to provide lesure at court.

Lady Feng and the Bear: Handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 9 ¾″ x 11′ ½″; found in Loyang(Luoyang), western Henan Province; Period of Disunity; 220 CE- 581 CE

This painting represents Gu's style with rectangular heads, long columnar necks.

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

This very large, stone sculpture of the Buddha is on site in South Korea.

Guang

Timeline: 12TH OR 11TH CENTURY BCE;

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock

Timeline: CA. 1347 CE;

David Vases

Timeline: CA. 1351 CE;

Lofty Mount Lu

Timeline: CA. 1467 CE;

Funeral Banner

Timeline: CA. 168 BCE;

Auspicous Objects

Timeline: CA. 1724 CE;

Shakyamuni Buddha (Bronze)

Timeline: CA. 336 CE;

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta

Timeline: CA. 518 CE;

Shakyamuni Buddha (Stone)

Timeline: CA. 751 - 774 CE;

Travelers Among Mountains

Timeline: EARLY 11TH CENTURY;

On a Mountain Path in Spring

Timeline: EARLY 13TH CENTURY;

Sixth Chan Patriarch chopping bamboo

Timeline: EARLY 13TH CENTURY;

Lady Feng and the Bear

Timeline: LATE FOURTH CENTURY;

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

To appreciate the painted landscape fully within this artwork, observers must focus not only on the larger composition but also on intricate details and on the character of each brushstroke.

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #6

Transmitting and conveying earlier models through copying and transcribing.

David Vases: Pair of White porcelain vases with cobalt-blue underglaze; found in Beijing, China; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Two tall temple vases, who were named after the collector who acquired them, are the best surviving examples from the Jingdezhen kilns, which during the Ming dynasty became the official source of porcelains for the court. What were these vases?

Shakyamuni Buddha: Stone, 11′ 3 ½″ high. found in Seokguram, South Korea; Unified Silla Kingdom; 668 CE - 935 CE

Unlike rock-cut Chinese Buddhist shrines, this Korean cave temple was constructed of granite blocks. This artwork lives inside this Korean temple.

Xie Ho, 6 Canons of Painting #2

Use the brush with the bone method.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

Various animals—owls and elephants, for example—as well as more abstract composite creatures swarm over the surface of the upper part of this artwork.

Shakyamuni and Prabutaranta: Gilded bronze, 10 ¼″ high. found in Hebei Province, China; Northern Wei Dynasty; 386 - 534 CE

When Shakyamuni was preaching on Vulture Peak, Prabhutaratna's stupa miraculously appeared in the sky. Shakyamuni opened it and revealed Prabhutaratna himself, who had promised to be present whenever the Lotus Sutra was preached. This artwork is a representation of this

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

When the model dried to durable hardness, they pressed damp clay around it to form a mold that hardened but remained somewhat flexible.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

Whether the actual size of the painting is large or small, the concept behind the representation is one of nature is always is monumentality.

Stalks of Bamboo by a Rock: Hanging scroll, ink on paper 2′ 11 ½″ x 1′ 4 ⅜″; found in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province; Yuan Dynasty; 1279 CE - 1368 CE

Wu Shen was one of the leading Yuan literati (scholar-artists). He painted this artwork.

Anyang

a city in Honan Province, represents ancient Yin; In 1928, excavations at Anyang brought to light the last Shang capital. There, archaeologists found a large number of objects—turtle shells, animal bones, and bronze containers—inscribed in the earliest form of the Chinese language. These fragmentary records and the other finds at Anyang provide important information about the Shang kings and their affairs.

Piece-mold casting

a process for casting metal objects in which a mold is broken into several pieces that are then reassembled into a final sculpture

Bodhidharma

a semi legendary sixth-century Indian missionary. said to have meditated so long in a cave that his arms and legs withered away. Founder of Chan Buddhism.

Yang

active masculine energy

Monumental landscape painting

celebrates the magnitude and the beauty of nature

Chang-an (Xian)

cosmopolitan Tang capital

Texture strokes

modulated brushwork used to indicate texture of objects, especially rocks, in Sung landscape painting

Yin

passive feminine energy.

Qin Shi Huangdi

the "First Emperor of Qin"; brought an end to more than two centuries of political and social turmoil by conquering all rival states and uniting an area equal to about half of present-day China into an empire he ruled from 221 to 210 bce. Like many other powerful monarchs throughout history, during his lifetime China's First Emperor began construction of a tomb that would become his home in the eternal afterlife. For its construction, the first emperor conscripted more than 700,000 laborers. His burial mound at Lintong remains unexcavated, but Chinese archaeologists believe that it contains a vast treasure-filled underground funerary palace designed to match the fabulous palace the emperor occupied while alive. The historian Sima Qian (136-85 bce) described both palaces, but scholars did not take his account seriously until the discovery of pits around the tomb containing life-size painted terracotta statues (FIG. 16-1) of soldiers and horses, as well as bronze horses and chariots. The army of sculptures, which probably numbered 8,000 or more, served as the First Emperor's bodyguard deployed in perpetuity outside his tomb.

Guang: Bronze, 6 ½″ high. found in Anyang, China; Shang Dynasty; ca. 1600 BCE - 1050 BCE

the artists shaved the model to reduce its size to form a core for the piece mold.

Shang

the first great Chinese dynasty of the Bronze Age. The kings ruled from a series of royal capitals in the Yellow River valley and vied for power and territory with the rulers of neighboring states.

Travelers Among Mountains: Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 6′ 7 ¼″ x 3′ 4 ¼″; found in Kaifeng, China; Northern Song Period; 960 CE - 1127 CE

the overwhelming natural forms dwarf the few human and animal figures (for example, the mule train in the lower right corner), which the artist reduced to minute proportions.

Chan (Zen) Buddhism

this buddhism was founded by The First Chan Patriarch was Bodhidharma, a semilegendary sixth-century Indian missionary. By the time of the Sixth Chan Patriarch, Huineng, in the early Tang period, the religious forms and practices of the school were already well established. This buddhism believes the means of enlightenment lie within the individual, and direct personal experience with some ultimate reality is the necessary step to its achievement. Meditation is a critical practice. This artwork has two major schools of thought. The Northern school holds that enlightenment comes only gradually after long meditation, but the Southern school believes that the breakthrough to enlightenment can be sudden and spontaneous.