Chapter 34: China and Korea (ART 266)

Modern Korea

- After its annexation in 1910, Korea remained part of Japan until 1945, when the Western Allies and the Soviet Union took control of the peninsula nation at the end of World War II. - Korea was divided into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) - in 1948. South Korea soon emerged as a fully industrialized nation, and its artists have had a wide exposure to art styles from around the globe.

China today

- By the second decade of the 21st century, China had become one of the world's great economic powers - a fruitful exchange between China and the West, with artists such as Zhang Xiaogang , Wu Guanzhong, and Xu Bing achieving international reputations.

Korea

- The great political, social, religious, and artistic changes that took place in China from the Mongol era to the time of the People's Republic find parallels elsewhere in East Asia, especially in Korea. - From the medieval period through the early 20th century, Korea was ruled by two long-lived dynasties, the Goryeo and Joseon - but unlike China, whose emperors were overthrown by an internal revolution, Korea became absorbed into another nation—Japan— before regaining its independence after World War II.

Qing Dynasty

- another group of invaders, the Manchus of Manchuria, to overrun China in the 17th century and establish the Qing dynasty - The Manchurian rulers adapted themselves to Chinese life and cultivated knowledge of China's arts, including literati painting - which under the Yuan emperors was primarily the preferred style of artists who shunned the court.

Chinese Porcelain

- Stoneware: emerged during the Tang dynasty, then matured during the Song dynasty - Unlike stoneware, however, ceramists create porcelain from a fine white clay called kaolin mixed with ground petuntse - Chinese ceramists often decorate porcelains with colored designs or pictures, working with finely ground minerals suspended in water and a binding agent - The most stable and widely used coloring agents for porcelains are cobalt compounds, which emerge from the kiln as an intense blue - Rarely, ceramists use copper compounds to produce stunning reds by carefully manipulating the kiln's temperature and oxygen content. - overglaze colors/enamels: fuse to the glazed surface in an additional firing at a much lower temperature. Enamels are brighter than other ceramic glazes, ranging from deep browns to brilliant reds and greens, but they do not have the durability of underglaze decoration.

Yuan Dynasty

- started by Kublai Khan, dominated by Mongol leaders and lasted 100 years - Marco Polo came to admire all of China's prestige and luxury - When the Mongols took control of China, few aristocratic native Chinese joined their government. The most notable exception during the Yuan dynasty was Zhao Mengfu - Zhao Mengfu was a descendant of the first Song emperor - He was a learned man, skilled in both calligraphy and poetry, he won renown as a painter of horses and of landscapes, but he also painted other subjects