Art103_Module10
Why were literati painters prominent during the Yuan dynasty?
During the Yuan dynasty, certain scholars who would have been officials, or literati, found themselves out of work for a couple of main reasons. Here's what your book explains: "Many scholars of this period were disinclined to serve the rulers who had conquered China. Others found themselves unable to advance via the civil service examinations which were suspended until 1315 and when reinstituted tended to discriminate against Han Chinese. As a result, some scholars ended up in other professions, including that of painter. Many literati paintings focus on themes of withdrawal from society or returning to the past; the political ramifications of both themes are easy to identify."
What role did the town of Jingdezhen play in porcelain production?
For centuries, Jingdezhen was the center for imperial porcelain production in China. The kilns there produced what is considered the finest porcelain. You watched some of the process of porcelain making in Jingdezhen in the beginning of the semester in the documentary about Ai Weiwei's Sunflower Seeds.
How does garden design relate to landscape painting in China?
Garden design has a direct relationship to landscape painting to the extent that both are artificial concentrations of the natural world. They both serve the same purposes, though one is two-dimensional and one is three-dimensional. They both manipulate natural elements to create picturesque scenes, and they both serve as an escape, placing the viewer or inhabitant in a world away from the day-to-day cares of urban life. Like the landscape painting, the Chinese garden invites us to travel a contemplative path, helping one to align with the Dao. A specific phrase is placed above passageways to bring a conceptual element to our contemplative movement through the garden. We can think about the frequent coexistence of image and text in Chinese painting.
What is the significance of the color yellow?
Here is what your book explains: "The vermilion walls of the buildings and the yellow glazed roof tiles make the palace architecture stand out; yellow signified the emperor, as the Mandarin words for "yellow" and "emperor" have identical pronunciations."
How does this relate to Huang Gongwang?
Huang Gongwang belongs to this group of literati painters. Initially he had a government post, but he gave that up and supported himself with more esoteric activities (as a Daoist teacher and diviner). Eventually, he moved to Hangzhou where he painted the Fuchun Mountains.
What does the term "literati" mean? Why were literati painters prominent during the Yuan dynasty? How does this relate to Huang Gongwang?
Literati painting is the most respected form during the Yuan dynasty. literati: "classically educated scholars who typically belonged to the official class of men who served in the Chinese political bureaucracy. Sometimes described as scholar-officials."
What made Suzhou an important commercial center?
Location. Suzhou was a commercial center that was optimally situated to participate in trade. It sits near the junction of Yangzi River and China's Grand Canal, a man-made waterway that connected northern and southern China. Suzhou is adjacent to the modern city of Shanghai.
What scenery is depicted in this scroll?
Remember the Chinese word for landscape? Shan-shui - mountain-water painting. Above is an overview of the scroll. Below, I am showing the scroll in five segments, starting with the right and moving to the left. We see water, trees, mountains, hills, valleys, houses, pavilions, little boats and people.
What is Suzhou's significance in terms of Chinese gardens?
Suzhou is China's classical garden city, there are dozens of gardens throughout the city, attesting in part to the financial growth of the merchant class during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
In landscape painting, what is the Dong Ju tradition? What are hemp-fiber strokes, vegetative dotting, and alum lumps? (pg7)
The Dong-Ju tradition refers to the painters Dong Yuan and Juran. The use of hemp-fiber strokes, vegetative dotting and alum lumps are characteristic of their style.
What function did the Forbidden City serve? Why is it referred to as "forbidden"?
The Forbidden City was the home of the Chinese Imperial government for almost 500 years. The Forbidden City contains the buildings of the imperial court, as well as the residence of the imperial family. It earned the name "forbidden" because it was separated from the public parts of the city. You only entered the forbidden city if you were invited. A moat and numerous walls and gates ensured protection and privacy.
What relationship does the Forbidden City have with earlier forms of imperial architecture in China?
The Ming dynasty built the Forbidden city. It was completed during the reign of the Yongle emperor. The layout of the structure echoes the traditional forms that palaces and cities have taken in China since ancient times. From the Zhou to the Tang to the Ming, a few key elements are consistent: -key structures are aligned on a North / South axis -the layout is symmetrical -there is an outer court at the front of the imperial city where official business is conducted -there is an inner court at the back that is the residence of the imperial family
What was the political context of the Yuan dynasty?
The Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) was founded by Khubilai Khan (seen hunting at left), grandson of Chinggis Khan, the famous Mongol ruler. Khubilai Khan, who ruled at the end of the 13th century, unified the regions of China that had split in the centuries after the end of the Tang dynasty. He named his dynasty "Yuan," which means "origin," and he named himself the first emperor (not the first to do that). Khan also moved the Imperial capital to present-day Beijing (it was called "Dadu" at the time). He was the first non-Han emperor ruling over all of China. Your book explains that living under foreign rule created a context where art was often an expression of identity politics: "Chinese artists and patrons were compelled to consider themselves in relation to not only these other cultures but also their own history. The Mongol rulers in the Yuan similarly emphasized aspects of their own distinctive identity and de-emphasized others." (Asian Art, p. 171)
Who is this garden named after?
The garden was renamed by a Qing dynasty official named Song Zonghuan. In the 18th century, he renovated and expanded a garden that was already more than 600 years old, known as the Fisherman's Retreat. Wangshi was the name that Zonghuan used as his "literary name," and it translates to "Master of Fishing Nets." Zonghuan's name has a nice resonance with the original name of the garden.
What was the market for Chinese porcelain in the Ming and Qing dynasties?
There was a strong domestic market for Chinese porcelain, including imperial demand for the finest wares. There was also a global market for these porcelains, traded via land and sea Silk Routes, particularly with Persia and the Middle East. Chinese porcelain producers relied upon this trade to access cobalt, which was mined in western Asia.
What kinds of rocks are featured in this garden?
These are highly regarded "scholar's rocks," comparable to the alum lump peaks of many landscape paintings. Suzhou is situated next to Lake Tai. When the Huntington Library and Gardens in San Marino built their Chinese landscape, they imported rocks from Lake Tai. The combination the specific rocks and water results in incredibly gnarled and eccentric rock formations. These are treasured objects of contemplation, and they are the center of a long history of petromania (the love of rocks) in China.
In one part of the scroll, we see a figure standing on a platform watching geese. Who is this probably referencing?
This is likely a representation of Wang Xizhi, the most famous master of calligraphy in China. Wang Xizhi lived in the 4th century, and the only examples we have of his work are copies (either tracings or stone rubbings) made long after his death. Wang's style of calligraphy was said to be inspired by the movements of the geese, their curving necks and their arching wings.
What method is used to decorate this chicken cup?
This object is an example of an "overglaze" process. It begins with the standard blue-and-white method described on the previous page. After it is fired, with the design outlined in the blue underglaze, brightly colored enamel paints are painted on top. It is then fired again at a lower temperature to melt the enamels. What results is an interesting integration of blue underdrawing, and surface level color overlays.
How did Chinese artisans achieve the classic blue-and-white ware?
To produce the classic blue-and-white porcelain the artisan begins with the white bodied porcelain clay. Once the pot was formed and allowed to air-dry, it would be painted with a "cobalt slip". Slip is a liquid mix of water, clay and pigment. Its clay base allows it to bind with the unfired clay. Once the slip dried, the pot would be dipped in a transparent glaze. Thus, the blue designs form the "underglaze."
What is the general layout of the site? pg4
You enter from the south. The structures labeled 1, 2 and 3 are the gates to the imperial city. Once you have entered through 3 - The Noon (or Meridian) Gate - you have entered within the central, part of the city, which is surrounded by a rectangular moat. The most important buildings in the Forbidden City line up on this north/south axis. On the other side of the Noon Gate, you enter the Outer Court. The Outer Court contains a set of three large halls, the most important is the Hall of Supreme Harmony. This structure sits on a raised marble platform. Important civic and religious rites were commemorated in this building. The inner court was located in the northern section of the complex, and it was the imperial residence.
Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains
who made this: Huang Gongwang when: Yuan Dynasty, ca. 1347-50 where: China medium: hand scroll, ink on paper size: 13 inches x 20 feet 10 inches
Forbidden City, Beijing
who made this: Ming Dynasty when: founded in 1407 where: Beijing, China medium: Imperial architecture size: 3,150 x 2,460 feet
Chicken Cup
who made this: Ming dynasty when: 1465-1487 where: Jingdezhen, China medium: porcelain with underglaze blue and overglaze enamels size: diameter 3 1/4 inches
Garden of the Master of the Fishing Nets (Wangshiyuan)
who made this: Qing dynasty when: ca. 1765 and ca. 1795 where: Suzhou, China medium: garden design size: dimensions not given
