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Travelers among Mountains and Streams, Fan Kuan

- 1000 CE - China FORM - Ink on silk hanging scroll - Fan Kuan's landscape epitomizes the early Northern Song monumental style of landscape painting. - The mountain form accurately captures the geological traits of southern Shaanxi and northwestern Henan provinces-thick vegetation grows only at the top of the bare steep-sided cliffs in thick layers of fine-grained soil known as loess. - The mountains are triangular with deep crevices. - In the painting they are conceived frontally and additively. - To model the mountains, Fan Kuan used incisive thickening-and-thinning contour strokes, texture dots and ink wash. Strong, sharp brushstrokes depict the knotted trunks of the large trees. - foliage and fir trees silhouetted along the upper edge of the ledge in the middle distance - To convey the sheer size of the landscape depicted, Fan Kuan relied on suggestion rather than description. - The gaps between the three distances act as breaks between changing views. The additive images do not physically connect; they are comprehended separately. - Fan Kuan's landscape shows how the use of scale can dramatically heighten the sense of vastness and space. -Diminutive figures are made visually even smaller in comparison to the enormous trees and soaring peaks. They are overwhelmed by their surroundings. Fan Kuan's signature is hidden among the leaves of one of the trees in the lower right corner. FUNCTION - the hanging scroll composition presents universal creation in its totality, and does so with the most economic of means - look at context CONTENT - Immense boulders occupy the foreground and are presented to the viewer at eye level. - beyond them theres detailed brushwork describing rocky outcroppings, covered with trees. - There are two men driving a group of donkeys loaded with firewood and a temple partially hidden in the forest. - In the background a central peak rises from a mist-filled chasm and is flanked by two smaller peaks. - This solid screen of gritty rock takes up nearly two-thirds of the picture. The sheer height of the central peak is accentuated by a waterfall plummeting from a crevice near the summit and disappearing into the narrow valley. CONTEXT and FUNCTION - Fan kuan is daoist - Bounded by mountain ranges and bisected by two great rivers—the Yellow and the Yangzi—China's natural landscape has played an important role in the shaping of the Chinese mind and character. - From very early times, the Chinese viewed mountains as sacred and imagined them as the abode of immortals. - The term for landscape painting (shanshui hua) in Chinese is translated as "mountain water painting." - During the tumultuous Five Dynasties period in the early 10th century (an era of political upheaval between the fall of the Tang Dynasty and the founding of the Song Dynasty), scholars who fled to the mountains saw the tall pine tree as representative of the virtuous man. - After the long period of political disunity (the Five Dynasties period), Fan Kuan lived as a recluse and was one of many poets and artists of the time who were disenchanted with human affairs. - He turned away from the world to seek spiritual enlightenment. Through his painting Travelers by Streams and Mountains, Fan Kuan expressed a cosmic vision of man's harmonious existence in a vast but orderly universe. - The Neo-Confucian search for absolute truth in nature as well as self-cultivation reached its climax in the 11th century and is demonstrated in this work. - The development of Monumental landscape painting coincided with that of Neo-Confucianism—a reinterpretation of Chinese moral philosophy. -Beginning in the late Tang and early Northern Song, Neo-Confucian thinkers rebuilt Confucian ethics using Buddhist and Daoist metaphysics. - Chinese philosophers found it useful to think in terms of complimentary opposites, interacting polarities— inner and outer, substance and function, knowledge and action. In their metaphysics they naturally employed the ancient yin and yang -The interaction of these complementary poles was viewed as integral to the processes that generate natural order. - Central to understanding Neo-Confucian thought is the conceptual pair of li and qi. -Li is usually translated as principles that underlie all phenomena. Li constitutes the underlying pattern of reality. Nothing can exist if there is no li for it. This applies to human conduct and to the physical world. -Qi can be characterized as the vital force and substance of which man and the universe are made. Qi can also be conceived of as energy, but energy which occupies space. In its most refined form it occurs as mysterious ether, but condensed it becomes solid metal or rock. - By seeing things not through the human eye, but in the light of their own principles (li), Fan Kuan was able to organize and present different aspects of a landscape within a single composition—he does this with a constantly shifting viewpoint. In his masterful balance of li and qi, Fan Kuan created a microcosmic image of a moral and orderly universe.

Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja)

- 1000 CE - Hindu, India FORM - Copper alloy FUNCTION - the bronze Shiva as Lord of the Dance ("Nataraja"—nata meaning dance or performance, and raja meaning king or lord), is a sacred object that has been taken out of its original context— we don't even know where this particular sculpture was originally venerated. - this particular statue was intended to be movable, which explains its moderate size and sizeable circular base, ideal for lifting and hoisting onto a shoulder. - Hindu devotees carried these statues in processional parades as priests followed chanting prayers and bestowing blessings on people gathered for this purpose. -Sometimes the statues would be adorned in resplendent red and green clothes and gold jewelry to denote the glorious human form of the gods. In these processions The Shiva Nataraja may have had its legs wrapped with a white and red cloth, adorned with flowers, and surrounded by candles. - In a religious Hindu context, the statue is the literal embodiment of the divine. -When the worshiper comes before the statue and begins to pray, faith activates the divine energy inherent in the statue, and at that moment, Shiva is present. CONTENT -During this period (chola dynasty) a new kind of sculpture is made, one that combines the expressive qualities of stone temple carvings with the rich iconography possible in bronze casting. -This image of Shiva is taken from the ancient Indian manual of visual depiction, the Shilpa Shastras (The Science or Rules of Sculpture), which contained a precise set of measurements and shapes for the limbs and proportions of the divine figure. -Arms were to be long like stalks of bamboo, faces round like the moon, and eyes shaped like almonds or the leaves of a lotus. The Shastras were a primer on the ideals of beauty and physical perfection within ancient Hindu ideology. -Here, Shiva embodies those perfect physical qualities as he is frozen in the moment of his dance within the cosmic circle of fire that is the simultaneous and continuous creation and destruction of the universe. -The ring of fire that surrounds the figure is the encapsulated cosmos of mass, time, and space, whose endless cycle of annihilation and regeneration moves in tune to the beat of Shiva's drum and the rhythm of his steps. - In his upper right hand he holds the damaru, the drum whose beats syncopate the act of creation and the passage of time. - His lower right hand with his palm raised and facing the viewer is lifted in the gesture of the abhaya mudra, which says to the supplicant, "Be not afraid, for those who follow the path of righteousness will have my blessing." - Shiva's lower left hand stretches diagonally across his chest with his palm facing down towards his raised left foot, which signifies spiritual grace and fulfillment through meditation and mastery over one's baser appetites. - In his upper left hand he holds the agni, the flame of destruction that annihilates all that the sound of the damaru has drummed into existence. - Shiva's right foot stands upon the huddled dwarf, the demon Apasmara, the embodiment of ignorance. - Shiva's hair, the long hair of the yogi, streams out across the space within the halo of fire that constitutes the universe. - Throughout this entire process of chaos and renewal, the face of the god remains tranquil, transfixed in what the historian of South Asian art Heinrich Zimmer calls, "the mask of god's eternal essence." CONTEXT - Shiva constitutes a part of a powerful triad of divine energy within the cosmos of the Hindu religion. -There is Brahma, the benevolent creator of the universe; there is Vishnu, the sagacious preserver; then there is Shiva, the destroyer. -"Destroyer" in this sense is not an entirely negative force, but one that is expansive in its impact. In Hindu religious philosophy all things must come to a natural end so they can begin anew, and Shiva is the agent that brings about this end so that a new cycle can begin. -Made during Chola Dynasty.

Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace

- 1250 CE - Kamakura period, Japan FORM - Hand scroll - a common East Asian painting format in Japan called an emaki. - example of the action‐packed otoko‐e, "men's paintings," created in the Kamakura period FUNCTION - incident at Sanjô Palace designed to be unrolled in sections for close‐up viewing - The emaki depicts the seizing of the retired emperor Go‐Shirakawa. CONTENT - a bird's eye view of action moves right‐to‐left (between a written introduction and conclusion). In vibrant outline and washes of color, the story unfolds sequentially, so the main characters appear multiple times. - The attention to detail is so exact that historians consider it a uniquely valuable reference for this period: from the royal mansion's walled gateways, unpainted wooden buildings linked by corridors, bark roofs, large shutters and bamboo blinds that open to verandas, to the scores of foot soldiers, cavalry, courtiers, priests, imperial police, and even the occasional lady—each individualized by gesture and facial expression from horror to morbid humor, robes, armor, and weaponry easily identifiable according to rank, design, and type. - Beginning from a point of ominous calm, a single ox carriage transports the eye to a tangle of shoving and colliding carts and warriors. With escalating violence, the energy pulses and then rushes to a crescendo of graphic mayhem—decapitations, stabbings and hacking - the battle's apex marked at the center by the palace rooflines followed by an explosion of billowing flame and women fleeing for their lives - The chaos recedes as victors and dazed survivors stream through the rear gate, and ends in grisly, surreal calm with the dressed and tagged heads of nobles on pikes, a disorderly cluster of foot soldiers and cavalry surrounding the ox carriage, their general trotting before them in victorious satisfaction over the smoking and bloody atrocity left behind. - Three key elements appear multiple times, orienting the eye and organizing the sweep of events: guided by a groom inside, the elegant ox carriage that will carry off Go‐Shirakawa opens the action. - We see it knocked about with others in the crush of fighting at the palace wall, on the veranda where Nobuyori in colorful armor orders Go‐Shirakawa into it, and finally in the surge of departing victors where two soldiers lolling on top lending an air of indignity and insult to the monarch. - Nobuyori, now in court robes and on horseback, appears in front, glancing back at the carriage. - A mounted Minamoto Yoshitomo, distinguished by red armor and a distinctive horned helmet, appears twice—behind the carriage as it crashes onto the veranda, and brandishing a bow and arrow, cantering behind it in the departing crowd. CONTEXT - The incident at Sanjô Palace depicted on the scroll was one chapter in the vicious Heiji Insurrection of 1159‐60. - This short war marked a brutal era that came to a close in 1192 with the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate. - These stories, collectively called gunki monogatari, or "war tales," have inspired a huge body of art over the centuries. -The Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace, once part of a larger set that pictorialized the entire Heiji incident, survives with two other scrolls, one of them only in remnants. -Stories of romanticized martial derring‐do, gunki monogatari are history recounted by the victors. They celebrate Japan's change from a realm controlled by a royal court to one ruled by samurai. -But the events originated in the unusual nature of Japan's imperial world. Centered in the city of Kyôto, in some ways it resembled many ancient kingdoms. -It was prey to shifting loyalties, betrayals, and factional divisions among ambitious families who would stop at nothing in the quest for power. As elsewhere, emperors had several spouses, and noble daughters served as tools in political marriages to elevate the power of their families, and above all their clan head. -Unusually, a few patriarchs managed over time to displace imperial authority, lowering emperors to suppressing ceremonial functions. -And possibly, Japanese emperors found a way to reclaim some of that lost power: by resigning in favor of a successor. Freed from onerous rituals, a "retired" emperor could assert himself. -By the twelfth century, nobles as well as current and retired emperors had all turned to samurai clans to resolve their bitter rivalries. -Sanjô Palace was the home of former Emperor Go‐Shirakawa, known for a career as the wiliest and longest‐lived of retired royals. -He had recently resigned in favor of his son Emperor Nijô. The two emperors backed vying sides of the Fujiwara clan, a conspiratorial family unsurpassed in subjugating and sometimes choosing a succession of emperors. -One member of this clan, Fujiwara no Nobuyori, plotted against everyone. The Taira and the Minamoto clans served powerful interests in all of these disputes, while also pursuing their own ambitions as bitter rivals of the other. -******* Simply put the Night Attack was part of Fujiwara no Nobuyori's bid to seize power by abducting both the emperor and the retired emperor. -Backed by Minamoto no Yoshitomo, head of that clan, Nobuyori saw an opportunity when the head of the Taira clan, who supported Emperor Nijō, left Kyōto on a pilgrimage. -The emaki depicts the seizing of the retired emperor Go‐Shirakawa. - The remainder of the Heiji Rebellion story appeared on other emaki in the set, now mostly lost: the kidnapping of Emperor Nijô, the slaughter of another noble household, Nobuyori forcing Nijô to appoint him chancellor, Taira Kiyomori's return to decimate the schemers, and finally Kiyomori's mistake—banishing rather than executing several of Minamoto sons. -Minamoto no Yoritomo and his brother Yoshitsune would return years later to destroy the Taira clan in the Gempei War and found the first of four military governments of the Shōgunate that ruled Japan from 1192 until 1867. -Emperors and nobles remained in Kyoto, but were politically powerless. Feudal culture came to a violent end in 1868 at the hands of other samurai clans. They brought the young emperor Meiji into a new role as the monarch (really a figurehead) of a modern nation. -Japanese surnames come first and given names come second. Fujiwara and Taira are surnames.

The David Vases

- 1351 CE - Yuan Dynasty, China FORM - Blue and white porcelain- made of a pure kind of clay - Porcelain is white but the blue is from a mineral called cobalt, and its painted on - Covered in clear glaze - It's fired in very high temperature so it becomes like glass - The chinese had kilns that were technologically far advanced of anything in the west or near east FUNCTION - They were made for the altar of a Daoist temple in honor of a general who had recently been made a God CONTENT - their importance lies in the dated inscriptions on one side of their necks, above the bands of dragons. - He inscribed his name, date, and purpose of this dedication - Theres a great dragon in the serpentine form - At the base, above the dragon motif, and at the top, theres a vine and floral motif The neck of the vase is divided into two parts- the bottom includes a phoenix and the top leaves but interspersed between the leaves is the inscription the hangles are elephants - Originally the vases, modeled after bronzes, had porcelain rings attached through the elephant head shaped handles- you can see the break marks CONTEXT - The dedication records that in 1351 a man named Zhang Wenjin from Yushan county presented these two vases and an incense burner to a Daoist temple in Xingyuan (modern day Wuyuan county). - Yushan county is in northeast Jiangxi, which lies 120 km to the southeast of Jingdezhen, where these vases were made. - This inscription demonstrates that blue-and-white porcelain production was already well-established at Jingdezhen by 1351. - These vases were owned by Sir Percival David, who built the most important private collection of Chinese ceramics in the world. China was part of a vast mongol empire aka yuan dynasty - This work is a result of a global mongol empire and the interaction of china and iran

Forbidden City

- 1400 CE - beijing, China FORM - The architectural style reflects a sense of hierarchy. Each structure was designed in accordance with the Treatise on Architectural Methods or State Building Standards (Yingzao fashi), an eleventh-century manual that specified particular designs for buildings of different ranks in Chinese social structure. FUNCTION - was the political and ritual center of China for over 500 years. - After its completion in 1420, the Forbidden City was home to 24 emperors, their families and servants during the Ming and the Qing dynasties. - The last occupant (who was also the last emperor of imperial China), Puyi, was expelled in 1925 when the precinct was transformed into the Palace Museum. - Since the Forbidden City is a ceremonial, ritual and living space, the architects who designed its layout followed the ideal cosmic order in Confucian ideology that had held Chinese social structure together for centuries. - This layout ensured that all activities within this micro-city were conducted in the manner appropriate to the participants' social and familial roles. -All activities, such as imperial court ceremonies or life-cycle rituals, would take place in sophisticated palaces depending on the events' characteristics. Similarly, the court determined the occupants of the Forbidden City strictly according to their positions in the imperial family. - Although the Palace of Heavenly Purity was a grand palace building symbolizing the emperor's supreme status, it was too large for conducting private activities comfortably. -Therefore, after the early 18th century Qing emperor, Yongzheng, moved his residence to the smaller Hall of Mental Cultivation (Yangxindian) to the west of the main axis, the Palace of Heavenly Purity became a space for ceremonial use and all subsequent emperors resided in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. -The residences of the emperor's consorts flank the three major palaces in the inner court. Each side contains six identical, walled palace compounds, forming the shape of K'un "☷," one of the eight trigrams of ancient Chinese philosophy. It is the symbol of mother and earth, and thus is a metaphor for the proper feminine roles the occupants of these palaces should play. - Such architectural and philosophical symmetry, however, fundamentally changed when the empress dowager Cixi renovated the Palace of Eternal Spring (Changchungong) and the Palace of Gathered Elegance (Chuxiugong) in the west part of the inner court for her fortieth and fiftieth birthday. - The renovation transformed the original layout of six palace compounds into four, thereby breaking the shape of the symbolic trigram and implying the loosened control of Chinese patriarchal authority at the time. - The eastern and western sides of the inner court were reserved for the retired emperor and empress dowager. - The emperor Qianlong built his post-retirement palace, the Hall of Pleasant Longevity (Leshoutang), in the northeast corner of the Forbidden City. - In addition to these palace compounds for the older generation, there are also structures for the imperial family's religious activities in the east and west sides of the inner court, such as Buddhist and Daoist temples built during the Ming dynasty. CONTENT - is a large precinct of red walls and yellow glazed roof tiles located in the heart of China's capital, Beijing. - As its name suggests, the precinct is a micro-city in its own right. - the Forbidden City is composed of more than 90 palace compounds including 98 buildings and surrounded by a moat - Public and domestic spheres are clearly divided in the Forbidden City. - The southern half, or the outer court, contains spectacular palace compounds of supra-human scale. This outer court belonged to the realm of state affairs, and only men had access to its spaces. It included the emperor's formal reception halls, places for religious rituals and state ceremonies, and also the Meridian Gate (Wumen) located at the south end of the central axis that served as the main entrance. - Upon passing the Meridian Gate, one immediately enters an immense courtyard paved with white marble stones in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihedian). Since the Ming dynasty, officials gathered in front of the Meridian Gate before 3 a.m., waiting for the emperor's reception to start at 5 a.m. - While the outer court is reserved for men, the inner court is the domestic space, dedicated to the imperial family. - The inner court includes the palaces in the northern part of the Forbidden City. Here, three of the most important palaces align with the city's central axis: the emperor's residence known as the Palace of Heavenly Purity (Qianqinggong) is located to the south while the empress's residence, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility (Kunninggong), is to the north. - The Hall of Celestial and Terrestrial Union (Jiaotaidian), a smaller square building for imperial weddings and familial ceremonies, is sandwiched in between. CONTEXT - The construction of the Forbidden City was the result of a scandalous coup d'état plotted by Zhu Di, the fourth son of the Ming dynasty's founder Zhu Yuanzhang, that made him the Chengzu emperor (his official title) in 1402. - In order to solidify his power, the Chengzu emperor moved the capital, as well as his own army, from Nanjing in southeastern China to Beijing and began building a new heart of the empire, the Forbidden City. - The establishment of the Qing dynasty in 1644 did not lessen the Forbidden City's pivotal status, as the Manchu imperial family continued to live and rule there.

Portrait of Sin Sukju (1417-1475)

- 1417 CE - Korea FORM - Hanging scroll, ink and color on silk - Crisp, angular lines and subtle gradations of color characterize the folds of his gown. FUNCTION - Portrait paintings commemorated the sitter in both life and death in Joseon dynasty. -This painting depicts Sin Sukju as a "meritorious subject," or an official honored for his distinguished service at court and loyalty to the king during a tumultuous time. - artists in the Royal Bureau of Painting (a government agency staffed with artists) created portraits of officials awarded this honorary title. -These paintings would be cherished by their families and worshipped for generations to follow. CONTENT -This painting shows Sin Sukju dressed in his official robes with a black silk hat on his head. -In accordance with Korean portraiture conventions, court artists pictured subjects like Sin Sukju seated in a full-length view, often with their heads turned slightly and only one ear showing. -Here, the subject is seated in a folding chair with cabriole-style arms, where the upper part is convex and the bottom part is concave. - Leather shoes adorn his feet, which rest on an intricately carved wooden footstool. - In proper decorum, his hands are folded neatly and concealed within his sleeves. -He wears a rank badge on his chest. Rank badges are insignia typically made of embroidered silk. They indicate the status of the official, which could be anyone from the emperor down to a local official. -As in Ming-dynasty China, images of birds on rank badges precisely identified the rank of the wearer. Here, Sin Sukju's rank badge shows a pair of peacocks amongst flowering plants and clouds, especially luminous with the use of gold embroidery. --Crafted in sets, rank badges were worn on both the front and back of the official overcoat. -Although portraiture conventions, such as the attire and posture of the sitter, were quite formulaic, the facial features were painted with the goal of transmitting a sense of unique, physical likeness. This careful attention to the sitter's face, such as wrinkles and bone structure, served the Korean belief that the face could reveal important clues about the subject. -There are wrinkles around the edges of Sin Sukju's eyes ("crow's feet"). His thin, almond-shaped eyes are bright and clear, and his mouth is surrounded by deep grooves where his moustache meets his chin. His solemn visage exudes wisdom and dignity. -The meticulous brushwork on Sin Sukju's face is even more striking in comparison with the solid, undulating lines and bold blocks of color that define his attire. -Highly skilled artists at the court may have collaborated on portraits, such that one artist may have painted the robes according to the prescribed rank or title, while another may have painted the face in great detail. -Later portraits developed this interest in the face even further with the use of Western painting techniques introduced to Korea by Jesuit missionaries in China in the eighteenth century. CONTEXT - Sin Sukju was an eminent scholar and a powerful politician who rose to the rank of Prime Minister. -Named a meritorious subject four times in his life, he served both King Sejong and King Sejo. -he managed to maintain court favor through the tumult of King Sejo's overthrow in 1453. -In the course of capturing the throne, King Sejo arrested and killed his own brother, Prince Anpyeong, who Sin Sukju had also served until the prince's death. -It was his service to Prince Anpyeong that earned Sin Sukju a significant place in the history of art. -In 1445, Sin Sukju compiled Hwagi (Commentaries on Painting), which contains a catalogue of Prince Anpyeong's collection of paintings. -Sin Sukju's detailed records revealed the prince's interest in Chinese paintings and his patronage of the Joseon court painter, An Gyeon, who was professionally active as an artist for 30 years beginning in approximately 1440. -Sin Sukju's commentaries have helped scholars to identify specific works and prompted speculation on the cultural exchange between China and Korea. -In addition to the virtue of loyalty (such as the devotion of a subject to his ruler), Confucianism emphasized filial piety, or honor and respect for one's elders and ancestors. -Even more important than recording the sitter's appearance and preserving his rank during life, portrait painting served as a focus for ancestral rituals after his death. It was thought that when a person died, the soul of the deceased remained among the world of the living until it gradually disappeared -Rendered in the format of a hanging scroll, this painting likely hung within the family shrine to guide the soul in the practice of ancestral worship. In this way, Portrait of Sin Sukju reflected both the honor that Sin Sukju brought to his lineage as a meritorious official as well as Confucian beliefs about the afterlife.

Ryōan-ji

- 1480 CE - Kyoto, Japan FORM - The Ryōanji garden is a rock garden—a form that developed during the Muromachi period. -This type of garden consists of rocks and pebbles rather than vegetation and water, and was mainly created on the grounds of temples for encouraging contemplation. -White gravel often symbolizes flowing elements such as waterfalls, rivers, creeks, or sea, while rocks suggest islands, shores, or bridges. -The garden may have been inspired by aspects of both Japanese and Chinese culture. For instance, Shinto, an indigenous religion of Japan, focuses on the worship of deities in nature. - Also, Zen Buddhism, which derived from Chan Buddhism in China, emphasizes meditation as a path toward enlightenment. - Medieval Chinese landscape paintings associated with this sect of Buddhism often displayed a sparse, monochromatic style that reflected a spontaneous approach to enlightenment - Together, these concepts promoted the aesthetic values of rustic simplicity, spontaneity, and truth to materials that came to characterize Zen art. FUNCTION - "Ji" is temple - Ryoanji means (Peaceful Dragon Temple) - Temple located in north Kyoto, Japan affiliated with a branch of Zen Buddhism. -The followers of Zen Buddhism pursued "enlightenment" or "awakening" by means of self-introspection and personal experience in daily life. -Ryōanji thrived as a great Zen center for the cultural activities of the elite from the late 16th through the first half of the 17th century under the patronage of the Hosokawa family. -Many different theories on the garden's meaning have been suggested—some say it represents islands floating on an ocean, or a mother tiger carrying cubs over the sea, while others say it symbolizes the Japanese aesthetic concept of wabi (refined austerity) and sabi (subdued taste), or the fundamental ideal of Zen philosophy. -A more recent theory argues that it is an expression of a pure form of abstract composition meant to incite meditation. CONTENT - The temple and its gardens are listed as one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto. - When visitors pass through main gate, they encounter the Mirror Pond (Kyōyōchi) on the left with a scenic view of surrounding mountains. - Walking along the pilgrim's path and entering the second gate, visitors arrive at the main building of the monastery, the hōjo (abbot's residence). -the rock garden is located in the front of the hojo and is viewed either from the wooden veranda embracing the building or from inside the room. -The essential element of Zen Buddhism is found in its name, for Zen means "meditation." Zen teaches that enlightenment is achieved through the profound realization that one is already an enlightened being. This awakening can happen gradually or in a flash of insight. But in either case, it is the result of one's own efforts. Deities and scriptures can offer only limited assistance. -Like other Japanese rock gardens, the Ryōanji garden presents stones surrounded by raked white gravel with a minimal use of plants. Fifteen rocks of different sizes are carefully arranged in groups amidst the raked pebbles - The stones are carefully arranged so that one can only see no more than fourteen of the fifteen at once from any angle. Staring from the largest group on the far left, a visitor's eyes rhythmically move through the garden from the front to the rear and back, and then from the front to the right upper corner. - The garden is located on the south side of the hōjō, the main building used for the abbot's personal study and living quarters. - The hōjō is divided into six rooms by sliding doors called fusuma; three rooms on the south (a reception, a lecture room and a meeting room) and those on the north (a study, a changing room and a central room consisting of three subdivisions of a serving chamber, alter, and sleeping room). -The hōjō also includes gardens on each side of the building—a moss garden called the West Garden, a stone and moss garden, and a garden with a tea house. -The fame of the stone garden at Ryōanji is so imposing that it has overwhelmed the other parts of the temple, including Kyōyōchi (Mirror Pond, located in the lower part of the site), a small west garden, and a rear garden with a teahouse. -The Mirror Pond is reminiscent of courtly gardens from the Heian period. Near the teahouse is a famous stone water basin. - The wall door paintings that once decorated the hōjō are preserved today in Japanese and overseas collections. Among them, two large panels depicting "Chinese Immortals" and the "Four Elegant Accomplishments" belonged to Ryōanji's main hall and once faced its rock garden. -They were removed from Ryōanji and sold in 1895, when Buddhism was persecuted during the new Meiji regime. -These works entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1989. -Contrary to the austere monochrome ink paintings of landscapes and bird-and-flower paintings decorating the abbot's quarters in Zen temples dating from the Muromachi period, they depict Chinese narrative themes rendered with extravagant colors on golden backgrounds. This permits a glimpse into a radical shift in the interior program of the Zen monastery during the late Momoyama and early Edo periods, led by the rise of samurai warlords as prominent patrons of art and formidable political entities. CONTEXT -Zen traces its origins to India, but it was formalized in China. Chan, as it is known in China, was transmitted to Japan and took root there - Scholars debate the exact dating of the garden, but the consensus is that it was originally created in the fifteenth century and that its present design dates from the Edo period ( (1615-1868). - The identity of the garden's creator is also controversial, as no records of the rock garden can be found prior to the early 1680s. - Early descriptions explain that the garden has nine big stones representing "tiger cubs crossing the water" and attribute the design to Matsumoto, the chief patron of Ryōanji, or Sōami, the connoisseur, painter, and garden designer attending the Ashikaga shogunate. - An inscription carved on the back of one stone bears witness to the involvement of professional laborers in the garden's architecture—the stone has two names, Kotaro and Hikojiro, who were known as sensui kawaramono (riverbank workers) belonging to the lower social strata. - As the garden has fifteen stones today, it is certain that the arrangement we see now cannot be the same as the original medieval design (which had nine stones).

Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings, Bichitr

- 1620 CE - South Asia FORM - Opaque watercolor, gold and ink on paper FUNCTION - Allegorical portraits were a popular painting genre among Jahangir's court painters from 1615. -To flatter their Emperor, Jahangir's artists portrayed him in imagined victories over rivals and enemies or painted events reflecting imperial desire. -Regardless of whether Jahangir actually met the Shaikh or was visited by a real Ottoman Sultan (King James I certainly did not visit the Mughal court), Bichitr has dutifully indulged his patron's desire to be seen as powerful ruler (in a position of superiority to other kings), but with a spiritual bent. While doing so, the artist has also cleverly taken the opportunity to immortalize himself. CONTENT - In this miniature painting, flames of gold radiate from the Emperor's head against a background of a larger, darker gold disc. A slim crescent moon hugs most of the disc's border, creating a harmonious fusion between the sun and the moon (thus, day and night), and symbolizing the ruler's emperorship and divine truth. - Jahangir is shown seated on an elevated, stone-studded platform whose circular form mimics the disc above. The Emperor is the biggest of the five human figures painted, and the disc with his halo—a visual manifestation of his title of honor—is the largest object in this painting. - Jahangir faces four bearded men of varying ethnicity, who stand in a receiving-line format on a blue carpet embellished with arabesque flower designs and fanciful beast motifs. - Almost on par with the Emperor's level stands the Sufi Shaikh, who accepts the gifted book, a hint of a smile brightening his face. -By engaging directly only with the Shaikh, Jahangir is making a statement about his spiritual leanings. -Inscriptions in the cartouches on the top and bottom margins of the folio reiterate the fact that the Emperor favors visitation with a holy man over an audience with kings. -Below the Shaikh, and thus, second in the hierarchical order of importance, stands an Ottoman Sultan. The unidentified leader, dressed in gold-embroidered green clothing and a turban tied in a style that distinguishes him as a foreigner, looks in the direction of the throne, his hands joined in respectful supplication. -The third standing figure awaiting a reception with the Emperor has been identified as King James I of England. By his European attire—plumed hat worn at a tilt; pink cloak; fitted shirt with lace ruff; and elaborate jewelry—he appears distinctive. His uniquely frontal posture and direct gaze also make him appear indecorous and perhaps even uneasy. -Last in line is Bichitr, the artist responsible for this miniature, shown wearing an understated yellow jama (robe) tied on his left, which indicates that he is a Hindu in service at the Mughal court—a reminder that artists who created Islamic art were not always Muslim. -This miniature folio was once a part of a muraqqa', or album, which would typically have had alternating folios containing calligraphic text and painting. -In all, six such albums are attributed to the rule of Jahangir and his heir, Shah Jahan. But the folios, which vary greatly in subject matter, have now been widely dispersed over collections across three continents. -During Mughal rule artists were singled out for their special talents. In recent scholarship, Bichitr's reputation is strong in formal portraiture, and within this category, his superior rendering of hands. - Clear to the observer is the stark contrast between Jahangir's gem-studded wrist bracelets and finger rings and the Shaikh's bare hands, the distinction between rich and poor, and the pursuit of material and spiritual endeavors. - Less clear is the implied respect to the Emperor by the elderly Shaikh's decision to accept the imperial gift not directly in his hands, but in his shawl (thereby avoiding physical contact with a royal personage, a cultural taboo). - A similar principle is at work in the action of the Sultan who presses his palms together in a respectful gesture. By agreeing to adopt the manner of greeting of the foreign country in which he is a guest, the Ottoman leader exhibits both respect and humility. -King James' depiction is slightly more complex: Bichtir based his image of the English monarch on a portrait by John de Crtiz, which is believed to have been given to Jahangir by Sir Thomas Roe, the first English Ambassador to the Mughal court (this was a way to cement diplomatic relations and gifted items went both ways, east and west). - In Bichitr's miniature, only one of King James's hands can be seen, and it is worth noting that it has been positioned close to—but not touching—the hilt of his weapon. Typically, at this time, portraits of European Kings depicted one hand of the monarch resting on his hip, and the other on his sword. Thus, we can speculate that Bichitr deliberately altered the positioning of the king's hand to avoid an interpretation of a threat to his Emperor. -Finally, the artist paints himself holding a red-bordered miniature painting as though it were a prized treasure. In this tiny painting-within-a-painting, Bichtir replicates his yellow jama (a man's robe)—perhaps to clarify his identity—and places himself alongside two horses and an elephant, which may have been imperial gifts. He shows himself bowing in the direction of his Emperor in humble gratitude. To underscore his humility, Bichitr puts his signature on the stool over which the Emperor's feet would have to step in order to take his seat. -Beneath Jahangir's seat, crouching angels write (in Persian), "O Shah, May the Span of Your Life be a Thousand Years," at the base of a mighty hourglass that makes up the pedestal of Jahangir's throne. -This reading is a clear allusion to the passage of time, but the putti figures (borrowed from European iconography) suspended in mid-air toward the top of the painting provide few clues as to their purpose or meaning. -Facing away from the Emperor, the putto on the left holds a bow with a broken string and a bent arrow, while the one on the right covers his face with his hands. Some scholars say he shield his eyes from the Emperor's radiance Or as others suggest, hes crying because time is running out for the Emperor (as represented in the slipping sand in the hourglass)? -Also mysterious is the many-headed kneeling figure that forms the base of Jahangir's footstool. CONTEXT - When Akbar, the third Emperor of the Mughal dynasty, had no living heir at age 28, he consulted with a Sufi (an Islamic mystic), Shaikh Salim, who assured him a son would come. -Soon after, when a male child was born, he was named Salim. Upon his ascent to the throne in 1605, Prince Salim decided to give himself the honorific title of Nur ud-Din ("Light of Faith") and the name Jahangir ("Seizer of the World").

Taj Mahal

- 1632 CE - Agra, India FORM - White marble and red sandstone - whereas most Mughal-era buildings tended to use red stone for exteriors and functional architecture (such as military buildings and forts)—reserving white marble for special inner spaces or for the tombs of holy men, the Taj's entire main structure is constructed of white marble and the auxiliary buildings are composed of red sandstone. -This white-and-red color scheme of the built complex may correspond with principles laid down in ancient Hindu texts—in which white stood for purity and the priestly class, and red represented the color of the warrior class. FUNCTION -During his third regnal year, shah jahan's favorite wife, known as Mumtaz Mahal, died due to complications arising from the birth of their fourteenth child. Deeply saddened, the emperor started planning the construction of a suitable, permanent resting place for his beloved wife almost immediately. CONTENT -Entry to the Taj Mahal complex via the forecourt, which in the sixteenth century housed shops, and through a monumental gate of inlaid and highly decorated red sandstone made for a first impression of grand splendor and symmetry: aligned along a long water channel through this gate is the Taj—set on a raised platform on the north end. - The white-marble mausoleum is flanked on either side by identical buildings in red sandstone. One of these serves as a mosque, and the other, whose exact function is unknown, provides architectural balance. -The marble structure is topped by a bulbous dome and surrounded by four minarets of equal height. While minarets in Islamic architecture are usually associated with mosques—for use by the muezzin who leads the call to prayer—here, they are not functional, but ornamental, once again underscoring the Mughal focus on structural balance and harmony. - The interior floor plan of the Taj exhibits the hasht bishisht (eight levels) principle, alluding to the eight levels of paradise. -Consisting of eight halls and side rooms connected to the main space in a cross-axial plan—the favored design for Islamic architecture from the mid-fifteenth century—the center of the main chamber holds Mumtaz Mahal's intricately decorated marble cenotaph on a raised platform. -The emperor's cenotaph was laid down beside hers after he died three decades later—both are encased in an octagon of exquisitely carved white-marble screens. -The coffins bearing their remains lie in the spaces directly beneath the cenotaphs. There are Qur'anic verses inscribed into the walls of the building and designs inlaid with semi-precious stones—coral, onyx, carnelian, amethyst, and lapis lazuli -The dominant theme of the carved imagery is floral,—another link to the theme of paradise -Some of the Taj Mahal's architecture fuses aspects from other Islamic traditions, but other aspects reflect with indigenous style elements. In particular, this is evident in the umbrella-shaped ornamental chhatris (dome shaped pavillions) atop the pavilions and minarets. -Stretching in front of the Taj Mahal is a char bagh garden. Typically, a char bagh was divided into four main quadrants, with a building (such as a pavilion or tomb) along its central axis. When viewed from the main gateway today, the Taj Mahal appears to deviate from this norm, as it is not centrally placed within the garden, but rather located at the end of a complex that is backed by the river, such as was found in other Mughal-era pleasure gardens. - When viewed from the Mahtab Bagh, moonlight gardens, across the river, however, the monument appears to be centrally located in a grander complex. This view, only possible when one incorporates the Yamuna River into the complex -by raising the Taj onto an elevated foundation, the builders ensured that Shah Jahan's funerary complex as well as the tombs of other Mughal nobles along with their attached gardens could be viewed from many angles along the river. - The garden incorporated waterways and fountains. This was a new type of gardening that was introduced to India by Babur, Shah Jahan's great great grandfather in the sixteenth century. CONTEXT - Shah Jahan was the fifth ruler of the Mughal dynasty. - In general terms, Sunni Muslims favor a simple burial, under an open sky. But notable domed mausolea for Mughals were built prior to Shah Jahan's rule, so in this regard, the Taj is not unique. The Taj is, however, exceptional for its monumental scale, stunning gardens, lavish ornamentation, and its overt use of white marble. -Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in Agra, where he took the throne in 1628. -First conquered by Muslim invaders in the eleventh century, the city had been transformed into a flourishing area of trade during Shah Jahan's rule. Situated on the banks of the Yamuna River allowed for easy access to water, and Agra soon earned the reputation as a "riverfront garden city," on account of its meticulously planned gardens -The finest marble came from quarries 250 miles away in Makrarna, Rajasthan. - Mir Abd Al-Karim was designated as the lead architect. Abdul Haqq was chosen as the calligrapher, and Ustad Ahmad Lahauri was made the supervisor. -Shah Jahan made sure that the principles of Mughal architecture were incorporated into the design throughout the building process. -When Mumtaz Mahal died at age 38 in 1631, the emperor is reported to have refused to engage in court festivities, postponed two of his sons' weddings, and allegedly made frequent visits to his wife's temporary resting place (in Burhanpur) during the time it took to build the Taj -Stories like these have led to the Taj Mahal being referred to as an architectural "symbol of love" in popular literature. -But there are other theories: one suggests that the Taj is not a funeral monument, and that Shah Jahan might have built a similar structure even if his wife had not died. -Based on the metaphoric specificity of Qur'anic and other inscriptions and the emperor's love of thrones, another theory maintains that the Taj Mahal is a symbolic representation of a Divine Throne—the seat of God—on the Day of Judgment. -A third view holds that the monument was built to represent a replica of a house of paradise. In the "paradisiacal mansion" theory, the Taj was something of a vanity project, built to glorify Mughal rule and the emperor himself. -The emperor died not as a ruler, but as a prisoner. Relegated to Agra Fort under house arrest for eight years prior to his death in 1666, Shah Jahan could enjoy only a distant view of the Taj Mahal.

Red and White Plum Blossoms, Ogata Kōrin

- 1710 CE - Japan FORM AND CONTEXT - Pair of two-fold screens, color and gold leaf on paper - Executed in black ink and blotchy washes of gem-like mineral color - the image seems both abstract and realistic at the same time. - This painting exemplifies a style that for many epitomizes Japanese art. It has profoundly impacted modernism in the West, most famously in the work of Gustav Klimt. - Since the 19th century this combination of abstraction and naturalism, monumental presence, dynamism has commonly been referred to as Rinpa, or "School of Kôrin." -But Kôrin neither originated this aesthetic, nor presided over a formal school; more accurately he stood at the forefront of a loose movement of like-minded artists and designers in various media. - Rinpa first appeared a century earlier, in the brilliant relationship of a calligrapher, connoisseur, and intellectual named Hon'ami Kôetsu, and a painter of fans and screens, Tarawaya Sôtatsu, who created works that aimed to satisfy the luxurious tastes of 17th century Kyoto's aristocrats and wealthy merchants - Entranced by a few of Sôtatsu's paintings that he saw in the collection of a patron, Kôrin taught himself the techniques: images pared to bare essentials and then dramatically magnified, emphasis on the interplay of forms, colors, and textures, and unconventional adaptations of ink painting methods. - These methods included tarashikomi, or dilute washes of color blended while very wet, and mokkotsu, or "bonelessness," which creates forms without exterior outlines. Some scholars now use terms such as Sôtatsu-Kôrinha, Kôetsuha, and Kôetsu-Kôrinha rather than Rinpa, in recognition of its actual origins. - His numerous works in this sophisticated style thus encompass many media- paintings in color and ink on large screens, small albums, fans, hanging and hand scrolls, printed books, lacquers, ceramics and even textiles. FUNCTION - Kôrin shows us the vitality of early spring. CONTENT - two flowering trees on either side of a brook—into a dream vision - Its background, a subtle grid of gold leaf, denies any sense of place or time and imbues everything with an ethereal glow. - The stream's swelling metallic curls and spirals are a make-believe of flowing water, and its sharply tapered serpentine contour lines angle the picture plane in an unnatural upward tilt. - The trunks of the trees are nothing more than pools of mottled color without so much as an outline. These forms and spaces appear flat to the eye. Yet the artist's intimate knowledge of how a plum tree grows can be seen in their writhing forms and tangle of shoots and branches. -In planning its imagery Kôrin closely considered the function of the folding screen within the traditional Japanese interior. -The two sections would have been positioned separately yet near enough to each other to define an enclosed space. Kôrin depicted only the lower parts of the trees, as if viewed from very near: the tree with red blossoms thrusts upward from the ground and out of sight; the white pushes leftward out of view and then, two slender branches appear to spring back - With each screen standing hinged at its central fold, a viewer experiences these exaggerated two-dimensional images in three dimensions.

Funeral banner of Lady Dai (Xin Zhui)

- 180 BCE - Han Dynasty, China FORM - silk FUNCTION - Although scholars still debate the function of these banners, we know they had some connection with the afterlife. - They may be "name banners" used to identify the dead during the mourning ceremonies, or they may have been burial shrouds intended to aid the soul in its passage to the afterlife. CONTENT - Three elite tombs, discovered in 1972, at Mawangdui, Hunan Province (eastern China) are the tombs of a high-ranking Han official civil servant, the Marquis of Dai, Lady Dai (his wife), and their son. - In Lady Dai's tomb, archaeologists found a painted silk banner over six feet long in excellent condition. - The T-shaped banner was on top of the innermost of four nesting coffins. -Lady Dai's banner is important for two primary reasons. It is an early example of pictorial (representing naturalistic scenes not just abstract shapes) art in China. Secondly, the banner features the earliest known portrait in Chinese painting. - We can divide Lady Dai's banner into four horizontal registers: heavenly realm, lady dai and her attendants, body of lady dai with mourners, underworld - In the lower central register, we see Lady Dai in an embroidered silk robe leaning on a staff. This portrait of Lady Dai is the earliest example of a painted portrait of a specific individual in China. -She stands on a platform along with her servants-two in front and three behind. -Long, sinuous dragons frame the scene on either side, and their white and pink bodies loop through a bi (a disc with a hole thought to represent the sky) underneath Lady Dai. -this is not a portrait of Lady Dai in her former life, but an image of her in the afterlife enjoying the immortal comforts of her tomb as she ascends toward the heavens. -next register we see sacrificial funerary rituals taking place in a mourning hall. - Tripod containers and vase-shaped vessels for offering food and wine stand in the foreground. -In the middle ground, seated mourners line up in two rows. Theres a mound in the center, between the two rows of mourners. If you look closely, you can see the patterns on the silk that match the robe Lady Dai wears in the scene above. Her corpse is wrapped in her finest robe! More vessels appear on a shelf in the background. - In the mourning scene, we can also appreciate the importance of Lady Dai's banner for understanding how artists began to represent depth and space in early Chinese painting. They made efforts to indicate depth through the use of the overlapping bodies of the mourners. They also made objects in the foreground larger, and objects in the background smaller, to create the illusion of space in the mourning hall. - Lady Dai's banner gives us some insight into cosmological beliefs and funeral practices of Han dynasty China. Above and below the scenes of Lady Dai and the mourning hall, we see images of heaven and the underworld. - Toward the top, near the cross of the "T," two men face each other and guard the gate to the heavenly realm. Directly above the two men, at the very top of the banner, we see a deity with a human head and a dragon body. - On the left, a toad standing on a crescent moon flanks the dragon/human deity. - On the right, we see what may be a three-legged crow within a pink sun. - The moon and the sun are emblematic of a supernatural realm above the human world. - Dragons and other immortal beings populate the sky. - In the lower register, beneath the mourning hall, we see the underworld populated by two giant black fish, a red snake, a pair of blue goats, and an unidentified earthly deity. The deity appears to hold up the floor of the mourning hall, while the two fish cross to form a circle beneath him. -The beings in the underworld symbolize water and earth, and they indicate an underground domain below the human world. - Four compartments surrounded Lady Dai's central tomb, and they offer some sense of the life she was expected to lead in the afterlife. -The top compartment represented a room where Lady Dai was supposed to sit while having her meal. In this compartment, researchers found cushions, an armrest and her walking stick. The compartment also contained a meal laid out for her to eat in the afterlife. Lady Dai was 50 years old when she died, but her lavish tomb—marked by her funeral banner —ensured that she would enjoy the comforts of her earthly life for eternity. CONTEXT - The elite men and women of the Han dynasty enjoyed an luxurious lifestyle that could stretch into the afterlife. - The Marquis died in 186 B.C.E., and his wife and son both died by 163 B.C.E. The Marquis' tomb was not in good condition when it was discovered. However, the objects in the son's and wife's tombs were of extraordinary quality and very well preserved. From these objects, we can see that Lady Dai and her son were to spend the afterlife in sumptuous comfort.

The Great Wave, Katsushika Hokusai

- 1830 CE - Japan FORM - It is a polychrome (multi-colored) woodblock print, made of ink and color on paper that is approximately 10 x 14 inches. - Ukiyo-e is the name for Japanese woodblock prints made during the Edo Period. -Ukiyo-e, which originated as a Buddhist term, means "floating world" and refers to the impermanence of the world. -The earliest prints were made in only black and white, but later, additional colors were added. -A separate block of wood was used for each color. Each print is made with a final overlay of black line, which helps to break up the flat colors. -Ukiyo-e prints are recognizable for their emphasis on line and pure, bright color, as well as their ability to distill form down to the minimum. -Hokusai moved away from the tradition of making images of courtesans and actors, which was the customary subject of ukiyo-e prints. Instead, his work focused on the daily life of Japanese people from a variety of social levels. Such as the quotidian scene of fishermen battling the sea off the coast of Mount Fuji that we see in The Great Wave. FUNCTION - This is part of a series of prints titled Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji, which Hokusai made between 1830 and 1833. - Hokusai is often described as having a personal fascination with the mountain, which sparked his interest in making this series. -However, he was also responding to a boom in domestic travel and the corresponding market for images of Mount Fuji. -Japanese woodblock prints were often purchased as souvenirs. -The original audience for Hokusai's prints was ordinary townspeople who were followers of the "Fuji cult" and made pilgrimages to climb the mountain, or tourists visiting the new capital city. CONTENT - All of the images in the series feature a glimpse of the mountain, but as you can see from this example, Mount Fuji does not always dominate the frame. here, the foreground is filled with a massive cresting wave. The threatening wave is pictured just moments before crashing down on to three fishing boats below. - The mountain, made tiny by the use of perspective, appears as if it too will be swallowed up by the wave. -Hokusai's optical play can also be lighthearted, and the spray from top of the crashing wave looks like snow falling on the mountain. - Hokusai has arranged the composition to frame Mount Fuji. The curves of the wave and hull of one boat dip down just low enough to allow the base of Mount Fuji to be visible, and the white top of the great wave creates a diagonal line that leads the viewers eye directly to the peak of the mountain top CONTEXT - Despite the fact that it was created at a time when Japanese trade was heavily restricted, Hokusai's print displays the influence of Dutch art, and proved to be inspirational for many artists working in Europe later in the nineteenth century. - Hokusai went by many different names; he began calling himself Hokusai in 1797. -Hokusai discovered Western prints that came to Japan by way of Dutch trade. -From the Dutch artwork Hokusai became interested in linear perspective. Subsequently, Hokusai created a Japanese variant of linear perspective. -The influence of Dutch art can also be seen in the use of a low horizon line and the distinctive European color, Prussian blue. - Hokusai was interested in oblique angles, contrasts of near and far, and contrasts of manmade and the natural. - These can be seen in Under the Wave off Kanagawa through the juxtaposition of the large wave in the foreground which dwarfs the small mountain in the distance, as well as the inclusion of the men and boats amidst the powerful waves. - Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan and has long been considered sacred. - Beginning in 1640, Japan was largely closed off to the world and only limited interaction with China and Holland was allowed. This changed in the 1850s, when trade was forced open by American naval commodore, Matthew C. Perry. After this, there was a flood of Japanese visual culture into the West. - At the 1867 International Exposition in Paris, Hokusai's work was on view at the Japanese pavilion. This was the first introduction of Japanese culture to mass audiences in the West, and a craze for collecting art called Japonisme ensued. Additionally, Impressionist artists in Paris, such as Claude Monet, were great fans of Japanese prints.

Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan, Liu Chunhua

- 1969 CE - China FORM - Oil on canvas - The cool color tonalities of this painting differ from other Mao paintings, which tended toward warm tones with clear, blue skies. - Others often featured vibrant red accents—red being the color of revolution. Instead, Liu Chunhua opted for deep blue and purple hues to capture Mao's determination as he marched to address the plight of those suffering - Liu Chunhua adapted Chinese landscape conventions to a new style and purpose—an evocative portrayal that suggested that Mao was capable of leading the country toward revolution. - He pictured his subject emerging atop a mountain with clouds of mist below. FUNCTION - In picturing a moment in Chinese Communist Party history, Liu Chunhua celebrated Chairman Mao and his longstanding commitment to Communist Party ideals. - this work uses socialist realism to portray Chairman Mao as a revolutionary leader committed to championing the common people CONTENT -A young Mao Zedong (Chinese Communist revolutionary, founding father of the People's Republic of China, and leader of China from 1949-76) is Striding atop a mountain peak wearing a look of determination on his face, ready to weather any storm. - Based on his findings, he rendered Mao wearing a traditional Chinese gown rather than Western attire. - In China, landscapes such as this often evoked immortal realms, or extraordinary sites invested with the misty vapors of the mountain. - However, a telephone pole is discernable in the lower left corner of the composition, and water cascades from a dam in the right—hints of modernity within the ethereal landscape. - With an umbrella tucked beneath one arm and the other hand clenched into a fist, and wearing windswept robes, Mao appears superhuman, yet also practical and charismatic. CONTEXT -Painted in 1967 at the dawn of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution - During the Cultural Revolution, artists focused on creating portraits of Mao, or "Mao paintings," which represented Mao's effort to regain his hold after bitter political struggles within the party. - With the leadership of Mao's last wife, Jiang Qing, the movement aimed to end criticisms of Mao in drama, literature, and the visual arts. - More broadly, it aimed to correct political fallout from the disasters of the 1950s, especially the widespread famine and deaths that resulted from the Great Leap Forward (an attempt from 1958-61 to rapidly modernize China, transforming it from an agrarian economy into an industrialized, socialist society), and reinvigorate Communist ideology in general. - In the years that followed, Mao would lead the country through a decade of violent class struggles aimed at purging traditional customs and capitalism from Chinese society. - in the early years of the Cultural Revolution, artists such as Liu Chunhua turned to a style known as socialist realism for creating portraits of Mao Zedong. - Socialist realism was introduced to China in order to address the lives of the working class. - Suitable for propaganda, socialist realism aimed for intelligible subjects and emotionally moving themes. - Subjects often included peasants, soldiers, and workers—all of whom represented the central concern of Mao Zedong and the Communist Party. - Modeled after works in the Soviet Union, paintings in this style were rendered in oil on canvas. - They notably departed from Chinese hanging scrolls in ink and paper, such as Li Keran's Ten Thousand Crimson Hills, painted in 1964 (left). - Standardized by the Central Propaganda Department, Mao paintings typically pictured the Chinese leader in an idealized fashion, as a luminous presence at the center of the composition. - Unlike Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan, portraits usually depicted Mao among the people, such as strolling through lush fields alongside smiling peasants. - This painting presents a critical moment in Chinese Communist Party history: Mao marching toward the coal mines of Anyuan, Jiangxi province in south-central China, where he organized a nonviolent strike of thirteen thousand miners and railway workers. - Occurring only a year after the founding of the Chinese Communist Party, the Anyuan Miners' Strike of 1922 was a defining moment for the Chinese Communist Party because the miners represented the suffering of the masses at the heart of the revolutionary cause. - Many of the miners enlisted as soldiers in the Red Army (the army of the Chinese Communist Party), intent on following the young Mao toward revolution. - Painting nearly half a century after the Anyuan Miners' Strike, Liu Chunhua created this painting for a national exhibition. Liu Chunhua was a member of the Red Guard, or the group of radical youth whose mission was to attack the "four olds" (customs, habits, culture, and thinking). - To create this painting, he studied old photographs of Mao and visited Anyuan to interview workers for visual accuracy.

Terra cotta warriors from mausoleum of the first Qin emperor of China

- 221 BCE - Qin Dynasty, China FORM - Painted terracotta FUNCTION - Qin Shihuang conquered much in this life, but his driving purpose was even greater; he sought to conquer death. - In order to achieve immortality, he built himself a tomb—a vast underground city guarded by a life-size terracotta army including warriors, infantrymen, horses, chariots and all their attendant armor and weaponry - the eventual First Emperor ascended to the throne of the Qin state at age of 13 and immediately began to plan his burial, and more importantly, his underground palace, a mausoleum attended by an army including over 7,000 terracotta warriors horses, chariots and weaponry intended to protect him in the afterlife. -The First Emperor envisioned a subterranean domain that would parallel his worldly existence after corporal death. CONTENT - When the burial complex was first discovered by farmers in 1974, the excavation uncovered a sprawling citadel with thousands of warriors, each designed with a unique face and clothing. -In addition to the warriors, they uncovered horses, chariots, bronze ritual vessels, jade jewelry, and gold and silver ornaments. - Besides revealing much about an ancient way of life, observing the physical construction of the underground complex and the methodical production of the figures reveals a set of themes from which we gain a window of insight to the First Emperor's worldview and enduring influence. - the First Emperor lined his burial complex with a treasury of riches and piles of precious gemstones said to represent the stars, sun and moon. He was deeply concerned with the universe and looked to the cosmos as a guide for crossing over to an immortal existence. - Excavation also revealed other mysterious findings, like strangely high levels of mercury and evidence that the poisonous substance coursed through an intricate system of underground troughs, replicating the topography of the actual rivers and seas carving the surrounding landscape. -Some suggest that the emperor believed mercury had life-giving power and so surrounded himself with the toxic element, believing it was yet another way he might live forever. -studies of their proportions reveal that their frames were created using an assembly production system that paved the way for advances in mass production and commerce. -Archaeologists estimate that the objects, including figures, horses, and weapons, number in the thousands, though the true total may never be known. CONTEXT - The First Emperor is known for innovations that consolidated his rule through modernization. - During his reign, he introduced the standardization of currency, writing, measurements, and more. -He connected cities and states with advanced systems of roads and canals. He is also credited with continuing the construction of the Great Wall -He is regarded as a military genius, and while his methods included massacre and destruction, some claim that his ultimate success at bringing the states together justifies the violence, a necessary cost of nation-building. We also see the first assembly-line style production in the creation of his terracotta warriors, horses and chariots. - Born in a time of turmoil in China, known as the Warring States period, The First Emperor founded the short-lived Qin dynasty. -By 221 B.C.E., he united the seven warring states into one nation and took the name Qin Shihuang, which means First Emperor. -He left a legacy of a centralized and bureaucratic state that would be carried onto successive dynasties over the next two millennia. -the emperor feared that his artisans might disclose all the treasure that was in the tomb, . . that after the burial and sealing up of the treasures, the middle gate was shut and the outer gate closed to imprison all the artisans and laborers, so that no one came out. -Enormous numbers of laborers worked on the project - To date, four pits have been partially excavated. Three contain terracotta soldiers, horse-drawn chariots and weapons. The fourth pit was found empty, a testament to the original unfinished construction.

Great Stupa at Sanchi

- 300 BCE - Sanchi, India FORM - Before Buddhism, great teachers were buried in mounds. - Some were cremated, but sometimes they were buried in a seated, meditative position. - The mound of earth covered them up. - Thus, the domed shape of the stupa came to represent a person seated in meditation much as the Buddha was when he achieved Enlightenment and knowledge of the Four Noble Truths. - The base of the stupa represents his crossed legs as he sat in a meditative pose (called padmasana or the lotus position). -The middle portion is the Buddha's body and the top of the mound, where a pole rises from the apex surrounded by a small fence, represents his head. -Before images of the human Buddha were created, reliefs often depicted practitioners demonstrating devotion to a stupa. FUNCTION - ("stupa" is Sanskrit for heap) is an important form of Buddhist architecture, though it predates Buddhism. - It is generally considered to be a sepulchral monument—a place of burial or a receptacle for religious objects. - The practitioner does not enter the stupa, it is a solid object. Instead, the practitioner circumambulates (walks around) it as a meditational practice focusing on the Buddha's teachings. - This movement suggests the endless cycle of rebirth (samsara) and the spokes of the Eightfold Path (eight guidelines that assist the practitioner) that leads to knowledge of the Four Noble Truths and into the center of the unmoving hub of the wheel, Enlightenment. - This walking meditation at a stupa enables the practitioner to visualize Enlightenment as the movement from the perimeter of the stupa to the unmoving hub at the center marked by the yasti. - The practitioner can walk to circumambulate the stupa or move around it through a series of prostrations (a movement that brings the practitioner's body down low to the ground in a position of submission). -An energetic and circular movement around the stupa raises the body's temperature. Practitioners do this to mimic the heat of the fire that cremated the Buddha's body, a process that burned away the bonds of self-hood and attachment to the mundane or ordinary world. -Attachments to the earthly realm are considered obstacles in the path toward Enlightenment. -The Buddha did not want to be revered as a god, but wanted his ashes in the stupas to serve as a reminder of the Four Noble Truths. CONTENT - a stupa is a dirt burial mound faced with stone. - In Buddhism, the earliest stupas contained portions of the Buddha's ashes, and as a result, the stupa began to be associated with the body of the Buddha. - Adding the Buddha's ashes to the mound of dirt activated it with the energy of the Buddha himself. - If one thinks of the stupa as a circle or wheel, the unmoving center symbolizes Enlightenment. - Likewise, the practitioner achieves stillness and peace when the Buddhist dharma is fully understood. - Many stupas are placed on a square base, and the four sides represent the four directions, north, south, east and west. - Each side often has a gate in the center, which allows the practitioner to enter from any side. The gates are called torana. - Each gate also represents the four great life events of the Buddha: East (Buddha's birth), South (Enlightenment), West (First Sermon where he preached his teachings or dharma), and North (Nirvana). - The gates are turned at right angles to the axis mundi to indicate movement in the manner of the arms of a svastika, a directional symbol that, in Sanskrit, means "to be good" ("su" means good or auspicious and "asti" means to be). - The torana are directional gates guiding the practitioner in the correct direction on the correct path to Enlightenment, the understanding of the Four Noble Truths. - At the top of stupa is a yasti, or spire, which symbolizes the axis mundi (a line through the earth's center around which the universe is thought to revolve). - The yasti is surrounded by a harmika, a gate or fence, and is topped by chattras (umbrella-like objects symbolizing royalty and protection). -The axis symbolizes the center of the cosmos partitioning the world into six directions: north, south, east, west, the nadir and the zenith. -This central axis, the axis mundi, is echoed in the same axis that bisects the human body. In this manner, the human body also functions as a microcosm of the universe. - The spinal column is the axis that bisects Mt. Meru (the sacred mountain at the center of the Buddhist world) and around which the world pivots. - The aim of the practitioner is to climb the mountain of one's own mind, ascending stage by stage through the planes of increasing levels of Enlightenment - Small stupas can function as votive offerings - In order to gain merit, to improve one's karma, individuals could sponsor the casting of a votive stupa. - Indian and Tibetan stupas typically have inscriptions that state that the stupa was made "so that all beings may attain Enlightenment." -Votive stupas can be consecrated and used in home altars or utilized in monastic shrines. Since they are small, they can be easily transported. Votive stupas are often carved from stone or caste in bronze. The bronze stupas can also serve as a reliquary and ashes of important teachers can be encased inside. - He is making the earth touching gesture (bhumisparsamudra) and is seated in padmasan, the lotus position. He is seated in a gateway signifying a sacred space that recalls the gates on each side of monumental stupas. CONTEXT - The ashes of the Buddha were buried in stupas built at locations associated with important events in the Buddha's life including Lumbini (where he was born), Bodh Gaya (where he achieved Enlightenment), Deer Park at Sarnath (where he preached his first sermon sharing the Four Noble Truths (also called the dharma or the law), and Kushingara (where he died). - The choice of these sites and others were based on both real and legendary events. - According to legend, King Ashoka, who was the first king to embrace Buddhism, created 84,000 stupas and divided the Buddha's ashes among them all. -While this is an exaggeration, it is clear that Ashoka was responsible for building many stupas all over northern India and the other territories under the Mauryan Dynasty in areas now known as Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. -One of Ashoka's goals was to provide new converts with the tools to help with their new faith. In this, Ashoka was following the directions of the Buddha who, prior to his death (parinirvana), directed that stupas should be erected in places other than those associated with key moments of his life so that "the hearts of many shall be made calm and glad." -Ashoka also built stupas in regions where the people might have difficulty reaching the stupas that contained the Buddha's ashes. -While stupas have changed in form over the years, their function remains essentially unchanged -For Buddhists, building stupas also has karmic benefits. Karma is the energy generated by a person's actions and the ethical consequences of those actions. Karma affects a person's next existence or re-birth. -Buddhists visit stupas to perform rituals that help them to achieve one of the most important goals of Buddhism: to understand the Buddha's teachings, known as the Four Noble Truths (also known as the dharma and the law) so when they die they cease to be caught up in samsara, the endless cycle of birth and death. The Four Noble Truths: 1. life is suffering (suffering=rebirth) 2. the cause of suffering is desire 3. the cause of desire must be overcome 4. when desire is overcome, there is no more suffering (suffering=rebirth) - Once individuals come to fully understand The Four Noble Truths, they are able to achieve Enlightenment, or the complete knowledge of the dharma. In fact, Buddha means "the Enlightened One" and it is the knowledge that the Buddha gained on his way to achieving Enlightenment that Buddhist practitioners seek on their own journey toward Enlightenment. - One of the early sutras (a collection of sayings attributed to the Buddha forming a religious text) records that the Buddha gave specific directions regarding the appropriate method of honoring his remains (the Maha-parinibbāna sutra): his ashes were to be buried in a stupa at the crossing of the mythical four great roads (the four directions of space), the unmoving hub of the wheel, the place of Enlightenment.

Longmen caves

- 493 CE - Luoyand, China FORM - Limestone cliffs- extend for almost a mile located on both sides of the Yi River (south of the ancient capital of Luoyang) - Central Binyang Cave- carvings painted in brilliant blue, red, ochre and gold (most of the paint is now gone) - The style of the reliefs may be inspired by secular painting, since the figures all appear very gracious and solemn. They are clad in Chinese court robes and look genuinely Chinese - Tang dynasty realism—whether fleshy or wizened, dignified or light-hearted—is displayed in the Kanjing cave Temple at Longmen. we see accurate portrayals of individuals. This temple was created under the patronage of Empress Wu. FUNCTION - Foreign rulers of the Northern Wei, yearning for assimilation and control, made use of Buddhist images for authority and power. - Tang dynasty leaders thrived during China's golden age, asserting their sovereignty with the assistance of Buddhist iconography. CONTENT - 2300 caves and niches - Contains about 110,000 buddhist stone statues, 60 stupas, and 2800 insciptions carved on steles - The Central Binyang Cave was one of three caves started in 508 C.E. It was commissioned by Emperor Xuan Wu in memory of his father. The other two caves, known as Northern and Southern Binyang, were never completed. - Across from the entry is the most significant devotional grouping—a pentad - The central Buddha, seated on a lion throne, is generally identified as Shakyamuni (the historical Buddha), - although some scholars identify him as Maitreya (the Buddha of the future) based on the "giving" mudra—a hand gesture associated with Maitreya. - He is assisted by two bodhisattvas and two disciples—Ananda and Kasyapa (bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who have put off entering paradise in order to help others attain enlightenment). - The Buddha's monastic robe is rendered to appear as though tucked under him. - Ripples of folds cascade over the front of his throne. These linear and abstract motifs are typical of the mature Northern Wei style. - The flattened, elongated bodies of the Longmen bodhisattvas are hidden under elaborately pleated and flaring skirts. The bodhisattvas wear draping scarves, jewelry and crowns with floral designs. Their gentle, smiling faces are rectangular and elongated. - Low relief carving covers the lateral walls, ceiling, and floor. Finely chiseled haloes back the images. T - the halo of the main Buddha extends up to merge with a lotus carving in the middle of the ceiling, where celestial deities appear to flutter down from the heavens with their scarves trailing. - In contrast to the Northern Wei style seen on the pentad, the sinuous and dynamic surface decoration displays Chinese style. - The Northern Wei craftsmen were able to marry two different aesthetics in one cave temple. - Two relief carvings of imperial processions once flanked the doorway of the cave entrance. These reliefs most likely commemorate historic events. - Theres an imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen. - Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. - The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). - Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. - This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. - These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. -The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. - In the images of arhats (worthy monks who have advanced very far in their quest of Enlightenment), who line the walls, the carver sought to create intense realism. - Although they are still mortal, arhats are capable of extraordinary deeds both physical and spiritual (they can move at free will through space, can understand the thoughts in people's minds, and hear the voices of far away speakers). - Twenty-nine monks form a procession around the cave perimeter, linking the subject matter to the rising interest in Chan Buddhism (the Meditation School) fostered at court by the empress herself. These portraits record the lineage of the great patriarchs who transmitted the Buddhist doctrine. CONTEXT - Buddhism, born in India, was transmitted to China intermittently and haphazardly. - Buddhism brought to China new images, texts, ideas about life and death, and new opportunities to assert authority. - Most of the carvings at the Longmen site date between the end of the 5th century and the middle of the 8th century—the periods of the Northern Wei through early Tang dynasties. - The Northern Wei was the most enduring and powerful of the northern Chinese dynasties that ruled before the reunification of China under the Sui and Tang dynasties. - The Wei dynasty was founded by Tuoba tribesmen (nomads from the frontiers of northern China). - Northern Wei Emperor Xiao Wen decided to move the capital south to Luoyang, a region considered the cradle of Chinese civilization. - Many of the Tuoba elite opposed the move and disapproved of Xiao Wen's eager adoption of Chinese culture. Even his own son disapproved and was forced to end his own life. - At first, Emperor Xiao Wen and rich citizens focused on building the city's administrative and court quarters—only later did they shift their energies and wealth into the construction of monasteries and temples. - the court barely managed to complete one cave temple at Longmen—the Central Binyang Cave - The Tang dynasty is considered the age of "international Buddhism." Many Chinese, Indian, Central Asian and East Asian monks traveled throughout Asia. The centers of Buddhism in China were invigorated by these travels, and important developments in Buddhist thought and practice originated in China at this time.

Gold and jade crown

- 550 CE - Korea FORM - Gold and jade Metalworking techniques, such as granulation (a technique whereby a surface is covered in spherules or granules of precious metal) and filigree—seen in the Mediterranean—appear to have traveled along the Silk term-5Road. FUNCTION - Although their fragile gold construction initially led some to believe that these crowns were made specifically for burial, recent research has revealed that they were also used in ceremonial rites of the Silla royalty during the Three Kingdoms Period. - Prior to the adoption of Buddhism, Koreans practiced shamanism, which is a kind of nature worship that requires the expertise of a priest-like figure, or shaman, who intercedes to alleviate problems facing the community. - Silla royalty upheld shamanistic practices in ceremonial rites such as coronations and memorial services. - In these sacred rituals, the gold crowns emphasized the power of the wearer through their precious materials and natural imagery. - Though their use of gold and practice of shamanism related to the northern steppe cultures, the Silla royalty adopted the burial customs of the Chinese by burying their elite in mounded tombs. - In Chinese burials, objects that were important in life were often taken to the grave. - Similarly, power objects like the Silla gold crowns were used both above ground and below, and their luxurious materials conveyed the social status of the tomb occupant in the afterlife. CONTENT - Worn around the forehead, this tree-shaped crown (daegwan) is the headband type found in the south in royal tombs at the Silla capital, Gyeongju. - Between the fifth and sixth centuries, Silla crowns became increasingly lavish with more ornamentation and additional, increasingly elongated branch-like protrusions. - In this crown, three tree-shaped vertical elements evoke the sacred tree that once stood in the ritual precinct of Gyeongju. - This sacred tree was conceived of as a "world tree," or an axis mundi that connected heaven and earth. Two additional antler-shaped protrusions may refer to the reindeer that were native to the Eurasian steppe that lies to the north of the peninsula. - Attached to the branch-like features of the crown are tiny gold discs and jade ornaments called gogok. - These jade ornaments symbolize ripe fruits hanging from tree branches, representing fertility and abundance. - A second type of crown, the conical cap (mogwan), was found throughout the peninsula. Although it was initially thought to be an internal component of the headband crown, mural paintings show that it was worn independently over a topknot to proclaim the rank and social status of its wearer. -The cap was secured to the head with double straps under the chin, as indicated by the small holes along either side of the cap. Appendages in the shape of wings, feathers, or flowers often were used to accessorize the crown, and those ornaments tended to be geographically specific to each kingdom. - In addition to crowns, belts, earrings, other jewelry were placed in Korean tombs during the Three Kingdoms era to represent the rank and identity of the wearer. - Some objects were practical, such as knife sheaths and needle boxes. Others were symbolic, such as the comma-shaped ornaments seen on the Silla crown or miniature fish, which may have been charms to avert evil. - The materials of a belt also corresponded to social status; for example, tombs of the Silla royalty had gold belts, while the nobility in other regions of the peninsula had silver or gilt-bronze belts. CONTEXT - In the fifth and sixth centuries, the Korean peninsula was divided between three rivaling kingdoms. The most powerful of these was the Silla kingdom in the southeast of the peninsula. - The Silla crown demonstrates cultural interactions between the Korean peninsula and the Eurasian steppe (thousands of miles of grassland that stretches from central Europe through Asia). -Scytho-Siberian peoples of the Eurasian steppe created golden diadems similar to the Silla crown, such as a crown from Tillya Tepe -the Silk Road connected a vast terrain of ancient cultures. While the Silla kingdom shared shamanism with the Eurasian steppe and burial customs with China and Japan, the Silk Road was a main route for conveying materials, techniques, and ideas from as far away as Rome.

Tōdai-ji

- 743 CE - Nara, Japan FORM - The grand Buddhist architectural and sculptural projects of early Japan share a common material—wood-and are thus closely linked to the natural environment and to the long history of wood craftsmanship in Japan. - When Korean craftsmen brought Buddhist temple architecture to Japan in the 6th century, Japanese carpenters were already using complex wooden joints (instead of nails) to hold buildings together. - The Korean's technology allowed for the support of larger, tile-roof structures that used brackets and sturdy foundation pillars to funnel weight to the ground. This technology ushered in a new, larger scale in Japanese architecture. - Monumental timber-framed architecture requires enormous amounts of wood. The wood of choice was cypress - The 8th century campaign to construct Buddhist temples in every Japanese province under Imperial control (mostly in the Kinai area, today home to Osaka and Kyoto) is estimated to have resulted in the construction 600-850 temples using 3 million cubic meters of wood. - 8th century Todai-ji had two 9-storey pagodas and a 50 x 86 meter great hall supported by 84 massive cypress pillars that used at least 2200 acres of local forest. - This colossal Buddha required all the available copper in Japan and workers used an estimated 163,000 cubic feet of charcoal to produce the metal alloy and form the bronze figure. FUNCTION When completed in the 740s, Todai-ji (or "Great Eastern Temple") was the largest building project ever in japan. -Its creation reflects the complex intermingling of Buddhism and politics in early Japan. -When it was rebuilt in the 12th century, it ushered in a new era of Shoguns and helped to found Japan's most celebrated school of sculpture. - Buddhism's influence grew in the Nara era during the reign of Emperor Shomu and his consort, Empress Komyo who fused Buddhist doctrine and political policy—promoting Buddhism as the protector of the state. -reportedly following the Empress' wishes, Shomu ordered temples, monasteries and convents to be built throughout Japan's 66 provinces. -This national system of monasteries, known as the Kokubun-ji, would be under the jurisdiction of the new imperial Todai-ji ("Great Eastern Temple") to be built in the capital of Nara. -Todai-ji would be the chief temple of the Kokubun-ji system and be the center of national ritual. CONTENT - Todai-ji included the usual components of a Buddhist complex. At its symbolic heart was the massive hondō (main hall), also called the Daibutsuden (Great Buddha Hall) was supported by 84 massive cypress pillars. - It held a huge bronze Buddha figure (the Daibutsu) - Subsequently, two nine-story pagodas, a lecture hall and quarters for the monks were added to the complex. - The statue was inspired by similar statues of the Buddha in China and was commissioned by Emperor Shomu. - It was completed in 749, although the snail-curl hair (one of the 32 signs of the Buddha's divinity) took an additional two years. - The Daibutsu sits upon a bronze lotus petal pedestal that is engraved with images of the Shaka (the historical Buddha, known also as Shakyamuni), Buddha and varied Bodhisattvas (sacred beings). - The petal surfaces are etched with fleshy figures with swelling chests, full faces and swirling drapery in a style typical of the elegant naturalism of Nara era imagery. - The petals are the only reminders of the original statue, which was destroyed by fire in the 12th century. Today's statue is a 17th century replacement but remains a revered figure with an annual ritual cleaning ceremony each August. - When completed, the entire Japanese court, government officials and Buddhist dignitaries from China and India attended the Buddha's "eye-opening" ceremony. - Overseen by the Empress Koken and attended by the retired Emperor Shomu and Empress Komyo, an Indian monk named Bodhisena is recorded as painting in the Buddha's eyes, symbolically imbuing it with life. - The Emperor Shōmu himself is said to have sat in front of Great Buddha and vowed himself to be a servant of the Three Treasures of Buddhism: the Buddha, Buddhist Law, and Buddhist Monastic Community. -Noted for its austere realism and the dynamic, muscularity of its figures, the Kei School reflects the Buddhism and warrior-centered culture of the Kamakura era -Unkei is considered the leading figure of the Kei school, with a career spanning over 30 years. Unkei's fierce guardian figure Ungyō in the Nandaimon is typical of Unkei's powerful, dynamic bodies. -It stands in dramatic contrapposto opposite the other muscular Guardian King, Agyō, created with Kaikei and other Kei sculptors. - Both figures are fashioned of cypress wood and stand over eight meters tall. They were made using the joint block technique (yosegi zukuri), that used eight or nine large wood blocks over which another layer of wooden planks were attached. The outer wood was then carved and painted. Only a few traces of color remain. CONTEXT - The roots of Todai-ji are found in the arrival of Buddhism in Japan in the 6th century. Buddhism made its way from India along the Silk Route through Central Asia, China and Korea. Mahayana Buddhism was officially introduced to the Japanese Imperial court around 552 by an emissary from a Korean king who offered the Japanese Emperor Kimmei a gilded bronze statue of the Buddha, a copy of the Buddhist sutras (sacred writings) and a letter - Buddhism quickly became associated with the Imperial court whose members became the patrons of early Buddhist art and architecture. -The Genpei Civil War saw countless temples destroyed as Buddhist clergy took sides in clan warfare. - Japan's principal temple Todai-ji sided with the eventually victorious Minamoto clan but was burned by the soon-to-be defeated Taira clan in 1180. -At the war's end, the reconstruction of Todai-ji was one of the first projects undertaken by Minamoto Yoritomo who, as the new ruling Shogun -the Buddhist priest Shunjobo Chogen was placed in charge of reconstruction. His experience of Song Dynasty Buddhist architecture inspired the rebuilding of the temples of Nara, in what became know as the "Great Buddha" or the "Indian" style. -The key-surviving example of this style is Todai-ji's Great South Gate—Nandaimon. An elaborate bracketing system supports the broad-eaved, two-tiered roof. The Nandaimon holds the 2 massive wooden sculptures of Guardian Kings (Kongō Rikishi) by masters of the Kei School of Sculpture. - The large scale rebuilding after the Genpei Civil War created a multitude of commissions for builders, carpenters and sculptors. This concentration of talent led to the emergence of the Kei School of sculpture—considered by many to be the peak of Japanese sculpture. - After Todai-ji's destruction in 1180, it was rebuilt under the supervision of the monk Chogen, Todai-ji's reconstructed main hall was only half the size of the original and its pagodas several stories shorter. The availability or scarcity of quality local wood was a major factor in the design and evolution of architecture in Japan

Borobudur Temple

- 750 CE - Central Java, Indonesia FORM - Its basic structure resembles a pyramid, yet it has been also referred to as a caitya (shrine), a stupa (reliquary), and a sacred mountain. -In fact, the name Śailendra literally means "Lord of the Mountain." -While the temple exhibits characteristics of all these architectural configurations, its overall plan is that of a three-dimensional mandala—a diagram of the cosmos used for meditation—and it is in that sense where the richest understanding of the monument occurs. - Set high upon a hill vertically enhanced by its builders to achieve a greater elevation, Borobudur consists of a series of open-air passageways that radiate around a central axis mundi (cosmic axis). -Devotees circumambulate clockwise along walkways that gradually ascend to its uppermost level. - geometry, geomancy, and theology all instruct adherents toward the ultimate goal of enlightenment. Meticulously carved relief sculptures mediate a physical and spiritual journey that guides pilgrims progressively toward higher states of consciousness. -The repetition of form and the circumabulatory progress of the pilgrim mimic, and thereby access, the cosmological as a microcosm. -The clockwise movement around the cosmic center reproduces the macrocosmic path of the sun. -Thus, when one emerges from the dark galleries representing the realms of desire and form into the light of the "formless" circular open air upper walkways, the material effect of light on one's physical form merges with the spiritual enlightenment generated by the metaphysical journey of the sacred path. -Light is the ultimate goal. The crowning stupa of this sacred mountain is dedicated to the "Great Sun Buddha" Vairocana. T -he temple sits in cosmic proximity to the nearby volcano Mt. Merapi. -During certain times of the year the path of the rising sun in the East seems to emerge out of the mountain to strike the temple's peak in radiant synergy. FUNCTION -the rulers of the Śailendra Dynasty built the Temple of Borobudur as a monument to the Buddha -The most essential tenet the religion promulgates is the impermanent, transient nature of existence. Transcendental wisdom via the Dharma (the Noble Eight-Fold Path) hinges on recognizing that attachment to the idea of a fixed, immutable "self" is a delusion. - Enlightenment entails embracing the concept of "no-self" (anattā), understood to be at the heart of eliminating the suffering and dissatisfaction (dukkha) of sentient beings. - This is the ultimate message expressed in the sacred scriptures that are solidified in artistic magnificence along the stone walls and railings of Borobudur. - The physical movement of circumambulating the structure symbolizes the non-physical—or spiritual—path of enlightenment. - The texts illustrated on the walls refer to pathways as well. For instance, the Gandavyuha Sutra forms a major segment of the temple's upper galleries. The last chapter of a larger text called the Flower Garland Sutra, it relates the story of Suddhana, a youth who commences a journey to meet fifty-three teachers while seeking the path to enlightenment. The concept of "path" is a central theme in the text. He eventually meets an enlightened being (bodhisattva) named Samantabadhra. - The idea of moving from the darkness into the light is the final element of the experience of Borobudur. - The temple's pathway takes one from the earthly realm of desire (kamadhatu), represented and documented on the hidden narratives of the structure's earthbound base, through the world of forms (rupadhatu) as expounded on the narratives carved along the four galleries set at right angles, until one finally emerges into the realm of formlessness (arupadhatu) as symbolized and manifested in the open circular terraces crowned with 72 stupas. CONTENT - Located on the island of Java in Indonesia - The entire site contains 504 statues of the Buddha. 1460 stone reliefs on the walls and opposite balustrades decorate the first four galleries, with an additional 1212 decorative reliefs - The relief sculptures narrate the Buddha's teachings (the Dharma), depict various events related to his past lives (Jataka tales), and illustrate didactic stories taken from important Buddhist scriptures (sutras). - another 160 relief sculptures adorn the base of the monument, but are concealed behind stone buttresses that were added shortly after the building's construction in order to further support the structure's weight. - The hidden narrative reliefs were photographed when they were discovered in the late 19th century before the stones were put back to help ensure the temple's stability. - Moving past the base and through the four galleries, the devotee emerges onto the three upper terraces, encountering 72 stupas each containing a three-dimensional sculpture of a seated Buddha within a stone latticework. CONTEXT - The temple (or candi in Javanese) fell into disuse roughly one hundred years after its completion when, for still unknown reasons, the rulers of Java relocated the governing center to another part of the island.

Angkor, the temple of Angkor Wat, the city of Angkor Thom

- 800 CE - Angkor Thom, Cambodia FORM - largest religious monument in the world - The site is built entirely out of stone - almost every surface is treated and carved with narrative or decorative details. FUNCTION - Angkor Wat, translated from Khmer (the official language of Cambodia) literally means "City Temple." - Angkor Wat is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu who is one of the three principal gods in the Hindu pantheon (Shiva and Brahma are the others). - Among them he is known as the "Protector." - The major patron of Angkor Wat was King Suryavarman II, whose name translates as the "protector of the sun." - Many scholars believe that Angkor Wat was not only a temple dedicated to Vishnu but that it was also intended to serve as the king's mausoleum in death. - The building of temples by Khmer kings was a means of legitimizing their claim to political office and also to lay claim to the protection and powers of the gods. - Hindu temples are not a place for religious congregation; instead; they are homes of the god. - In order for a king to lay claim to his political office he had prove that the gods did not support his predecessors or his enemies. To this end, the king had to build the grandest temple/palace for the gods, one that proved to be more lavish than any previous temples. CONTENT - There are 1,200 square meters of carved bas reliefs at Angkor Wat, representing eight different Hindu stories. - Perhaps the most important narrative represented at Angkor Wat is the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, which depicts a story about the beginning of time and the creation of the universe. - It is also a story about the victory of good over evil. - In the story, devas (gods) are fighting the asuras (demons) in order reclaim order and power for the gods who have lost it. In order to reclaim peace and order, the elixir of life (amrita) needs to be released from the earth; however, the only way for the elixir to be released is for the gods and demons to first work together. To this end, both sides are aware that once the amrita is released there will be a battle to attain it. - The relief depicts the moment when the two sides are churning the ocean of milk. In the detail you can see that the gods and demons are playing a sort of tug-of-war with the Naga or serpent king as their divine rope. The Naga is being spun on Mt. Mandara represented by Vishnu (in the center). - Several things happen while the churning of milk takes place. One event is that the foam from the churning produces apsaras or celestial maidens who are carved in relief throughout Angkor Wat (we see them here on either side of Vishnu, above the gods and demons). - Once the elixir is released, Indra (the Vedic god who is considered the king of all the gods) is seen descending from heaven to catch it and save the world from the destruction of the demons. - An aerial view of Angkor Wat demonstrates that the temple is made up of an expansive enclosure wall, which separates the sacred temple grounds from the protective moat that surrounds the entire complex. -The temple proper is comprised of three galleries (a passageway running along the length of the temple) with a central sanctuary, marked by five stone towers. - The five stone towers are intended to mimic the five mountain ranges of Mt. Meru—the mythical home of the gods, for both Hindus and Buddhists. - The temple mountain as an architectural design was invented in Southeast Asia. - The galleries and the empty spaces that they created between one another and the moat are envisioned as the mountain ranges and oceans that surround Mt. Meru. - Mt. Meru is not only home to the gods, it is also considered an axis-mundi. An axis-mundi is a cosmic or world axis that connects heaven and earth. - In designing Angkor Wat in this way, King Suryavarman II and his architects intended for the temple to serve as the supreme abode for Vishnu. - Similarly, the symbolism of Angkor Wat serving as an axis mundi was intended to demonstrate the Angkor Kingdom's and the king's central place in the universe. - In addition to envisioning Angkor Wat as Mt. Meru on earth, the temple's architects designed the temple so that embedded in the temple's construction is a map of the cosmos (mandala) as well as a historical record of the temple's patron. - According to ancient Sanskrit and Khmer texts, religious monuments and specifically temples must be organized in such a way that they are in harmony with the universe, meaning that the temple should be planned according to the rising sun and moon, in addition to symbolizing the recurrent time sequences of the days, months and years. - The central axis of these temples should also be aligned with the planets, thus connecting the structure to the cosmos so that temples become spiritual, political, cosmological, astronomical and geo-physical centers. - They are, in other words, intended to represent microcosms of the universe and are organized as mandalas—diagrams of the universe. CONTEXT - Angkor Wat was not the original name given to the temple when it was built in the 12th century. We have little knowledge of how this temple was referred to during the time of its use - A possible reason why the temple's original name may have never been documented is that it was such an important and famous monument that there was no need to refer to it by its name. - The construction of Angkor Wat likely began in the year 1116 C.E.—three years after King Suryavarman II came to the throne—with construction ending in 1150, shortly after the king's death. - Evidence for these dates comes in part from inscriptions, which are vague, but also from the architectural design and artistic style of the temple and its associated sculptures. - The building of Angkor Wat is likely to have necessitated some 300,000 workers, which included architects, construction workers, masons, sculptors and the servants to feed these workers. Construction of the site took over 30 years and was never completely finished.

Lakshmana Temple

- 930 CE - India FORM - The Lakshmana Temple is an example of Nagara style Hindu temple architecture. - In its most basic form, a Nagara temple consists of a shrine known as vimana (essentially the shell of the womb chamber) and a flat-roofed entry porch known as mandapa. - the shrine of Nagara temples include a base platform and a large superstructure known as sikhara (meaning mountain peak), which viewers can see from a distance. - The Lakshmana temple's superstructure appear like the many rising peaks of a mountain range. - In general, there are two main styles of Hindu temple architecture: the Nagara style, which dominates temples from the northern regions of India, and the Dravida style, which appears more often in the South. FUNCTION - Depicting idealized female beauty was important for temple architecture and considered auspicious (favorable), even protective. - Texts written for temple builders describe different "types" of women to include within a temple's sculptural program, and emphasize their roles as symbols of fertility, growth, and prosperity. - Additionally, images of loving couples known as mithuna (literally "the state of being a couple") appear on the Lakshmana temple as symbols of divine union and moksha, the final release from samsara (the cycle of death and rebirth). - Yashovarman sought to build a temple to legitimize his rule over these territories, though he died before it was finished. His son Dhanga completed the work and dedicated the temple in 954 C.E. CONTENT - an elegant woman walks barefoot along a path accompanied by her attendant. She steps on a thorn and turns—adeptly bending her left leg, twisting her body, and arching her back—to point out the thorn and ask her attendant's help in removing it. - As she turns the viewer sees her face: it is round like the full moon with a slender nose, plump lips, arched eyebrows, and eyes shaped like lotus petals. While her right hand points to the thorn in her foot, her left hand raises in a gesture of reassurance. - The central deity at the Lakshmana temple is an image of Vishnu in his three-headed form known as Vaikuntha who sits inside the temple's inner womb chamber also known as garba griha —an architectural feature at the heart of all Hindu temples regardless of size or location. - The womb chamber is the symbolic and physical core of the temple's shrine. It is dark, windowless, and designed for intimate, individualized worship of the divine—quite different from large congregational worshipping spaces that characterize many Christian churches and Muslim mosques. - Devotees approach the Lakshamana temple from the east and walk around its entirety— circumambulation. - They begin walking along the large plinth of the temple's base, moving in a clockwise direction starting from the left of the stairs. - Sculpted friezes along the plinth depict images of daily life, love, and war and many recall historical events of the Chandella period - Devotees then climb the stairs of the plinth, and encounter another set of images, including deities sculpted within niches on the exterior wall of the temple. - In one niche the elephant-headed Ganesha appears. His presence suggests that devotees are moving in the correct direction for circumambulation, as Ganesha is a god typically worshipped at the start of things. - Other sculpted forms appear nearby in lively, active postures: swaying hips, bent arms, and tilted heads which create a dramatic "triple-bend" contrapposto pose, all carved in deep relief emphasizing their three-dimensionality. -It is here —specifically on the exterior juncture wall between the vimana and the mandapa —where devotees encounter erotic images of couples embraced in sexual union -This place of architectural juncture serves a symbolic function as the joining of the vimana and mandapa, accentuated by the depiction of "joined" couples. -Four smaller, subsidiary shrines sit at each corner of the plinth. These shrines appear like miniature temples with their own vimanas, sikharas, and mandapas, and womb chambers with images of deities, originally other forms or avatars of Vishnu. - Following circumambulation of the exterior of the temple, devotees encounter three mandapas, which prepare them for entering the vimana. Each mandapa has a pyramidal-shaped roof that increases in size as devotees move from east to west. - Once devotees pass through the third and final mandapa they find an enclosed passage along the wall of the shrine, allowing them to circumambulate this sacred structure in a clockwise direction. - The base platform is sometimes known as pitha, meaning "seat." A flattened bulb-shaped topper known as amalaka appears at the top of the superstructure or sikhara. The amalaka is named after the local amla fruit and is symbolic of abundance and growth. CONTEXT - The Lakshmana temple was the first of several temples built by the Chandella kings in their newly-created capital of Khajuraho. -Between the 10th and 13th centuries, the Chandellas patronized artists, poets, and performers, and built irrigation systems, palaces, and numerous temples out of sandstone -The original patron of the Lakshmana temple was a leader of the Chandella clan, Yashovarman, who gained control over territories in the Bundelkhand region of central India that was once part of the larger Pratihara Dynasty.