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Martin Robertson and Mary Beard’s manuscript, Adopting an Approach, focuses on the study of Athenian pottery. The manuscript begins, by describing Sir John Beazley and his revolutionary method of studying Greek vases. The Beazley Method focuses on the technical conventions of Greek Vases such as naming the artist, dating the pieces and then grouping them based off of similar characteristics. Beazley “provided for the first time a comprehensive framework of analysis for Athenian painting, and a way of dating and classifying.” (Pg. 16) However, what Beard’s main argument suggests is that it is not the artists that help us understand the importance of the vases because even if a vase is assigned to a specific time period or artist, there is

The Tang and Song dynasties have been regarded as the “golden age” of arts and literature, setting the bar high for poetry, landscape painting, and ceramics. When international merchants brought their poetry, the Chinese invention of paper and block printing made poetry widely available in the Tang dynasty. They also invented new styles of ceramics and metalwork, influenced by

Tao Qian, also known as Tao Yuan-ming, was a Chinese poet of the Six Dynasties period. Tao was well versed in the classics of Confucianism and Daoism, which is evident in his poetry. However, he wasn’t known for the extent of his knowledge but for his distinctive voice as a poet of transition and reclusion. Throughout his life, he held and resigned several minor posts before his ultimate decision to renounce public life and “return to his gardens and fields” (Owen 1996, 312). As the founder of the poetry of “fields and gardens,” Tao’s writing revolves around nature as a philosophy and as a way of life that embodies the simplicity of living in recluse, away from the chaos of high society. He uses the philosophy of nature not only to retell

The Mingqi (standing dog) is earthenware, terracotta, or a fired clay that is porous. This type of ceramic results in an earth tone of orange and brown and the lower half of the artwork shows the original hue of the terracotta. Revealed because of deterioration, the vibrant orange creates a contrast of color to the dull green of the glaze. Terracotta can be without glaze but this Han artist finalized the work in glaze and covered the original coloration with a more impacting

Here in California we are constantly exposed to the richness and grandiose of Chinese culture from buildings inspired by Han Dynasty architecture to simply the material of silk first utilized in China during the second millennium BCE. Growing up in a place with so much Chinese influence has broadened my understanding on such a unique style and heritage.

The Sichuan Qin Player (fig. 1) stands twenty-five inches tall by sixteen inches wide by eleven and a half inches deep; she is also under life-size. This seated female statue is made of red clay that has faded into a dark grayish-yellow color. On top of the female, lies a flower headdress. The headdress

The purpose of the relics and the reliquaries were to symbolically transform the dying emperor’s body into a new state of being, which highlights the lack of clarity in the view of reliquaries as objects or subjects and furthers our understanding of the agency of the form. His statement that the reliquary set is “the most revealing visual documentation of a programmed throne succession scheme in Chinese history” also gives a deeper view into the role of reliquaries as a visual technology that has made looking and touch a means of acquiring and distributing knowledge and an indicator of what a culture prioritizes (Wang 55). The reliquaries in the Farnen Temple crypt provide insights into the connection between the object and ritual, as the reliquary casket sets spell out a succession of changing bodily states (Wang 68). Furthermore, this example demonstrates how the significance of the reliquaries can be overshadowed by the relics they hold, as Wang laments how often “the mystique of the relics trumps any interest in the richly decorated reliquaries that housed them” (Wang 51)

Yue’s text challenges traditional studies that tend to focus on colonial aspects and focus on more of a “socially, culturally, and politically based discussion.” Through this direction she explores how theatres, gardens, print shops, and refugee intellectuals influenced Shanghai to become the “Paris of the East.” One of her most important discussions is how influential the printing industry was on the society through producing the guidelines for primary education. This discussion exposes how various external factors could play roles in industries that may not be normally connected. This idea can also be tied

The collaboration of the Chinese and the Jesuits can be found in art since the Kangxi period (康熙帝, r.1654-1722) in Qing China, and continued throughout the Yongzheng period (雍正帝, r.1722 - 1735) as well. Although the purpose of the missionaries was the spread their religion in China, the Kangxi emperor was quick to realise that some of them were good artists. He being a progressive thinker, thought it would be a good way to introduce his court artists, the Han Chinese court painters (artisans), to new styles and techniques of painting from the west. This might have been his way of glorifying his rule, and at the same time, embellish the palace with new forms of art. The Jesuits had perfect knowledge of various techniques previously unknown to the Chinese artists; the depiction of light and shade to suggest volume, theories of colour, the anatomy of the human body, and a scientific perspective of the art of drawing and painting.

Famous Chinese Poet, Tu Fu advocates appreciating the loveliness one could be surrounded by while it exists because he believes beauty may not earn its deserved value. The poet was born into a life of wealth and familial connections until his life was changed by a rebellion in 755. When the T’ang dynasty’s days of glory came to an end, the artist spent his days on the road. Towards the end of his life, Tu Fu was in poor health and suffering from many hardships. Tu Fu’s poems reflected his life; he did not appreciate the luscious life he had until it was gone, and Tu Fu’s work was not appreciated until he passed away (Elements of Literature 873). Tu Fu’s “Jade Flower Palace” utilizes figurative language and sound devices to portray his negative feelings of uncertainty about the future.

Chinese culture and art flourished in many ways during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Scholar-painters (Southern School), also known as the literati, thrived in many artistic aspects during this period, largely changing the creative world of imperial China. The medium of choice for these artists was a brush, monochromatic ink, and various scrolls. The intentions of the literati painters weren’t to illustrate environments realistically; instead they were more focused on producing art in ways to express their opinions and views. Some artwork was formed near nonrepresentational.

Especially after visiting the NARC, designed by I.M. Pei, I received a strong feeling of the Chinese garden principles and philosophy. As you mentioned, the Closeness

Zhang Zeduan’s masterpiece depicts the landscape of his hometown, Kaifeng and the life of its people during the Song dynasty. Nearly 500 years later, Qiu Ying portrayed his hometown Suzhou in a similar way, but in his version, the scenes are different to the original version. Compared to Zhang, Qiu Ying added more blue-and-green landscape patterns, and the feeling of the artisan is not strong in this work. The most important thing is that both artists show different visual perspectives of the culture and customs of the city.

Coming to the United States for college from China was already quite eye-opening to me. The study abroad program to Italy opened up my horizon even more – I designed a memorial hall dedicated to the Nanking Massacre during WWII, and the moment that a dozen architects coming from Chinese, American, Italian, and other European backgrounds got together and shared their intelligent thoughts on the project really struck me. There were so many cultural and intellectual sparks colliding, and I felt substantial potential there. This is why I decided to take a summer off and travel around China to see different architectures and educate myself. Being a resident of three diverse environments has enabled me to integrate into other cultures, discover how they understand buildings, and imagine the greater potential for our built environment.

When studying the rich history of arts and recreation in the Song Dynasty, it is evident that there were many newly pioneered practices that completely captivated the populous and became the epitome of several long-established genres. When one observes the progression of visual arts through the Song Dynasty, landscape painting established itself as the most prevalent and important of the multitude of forms in this genre. Close examination of entertainment reveals that the dramatic arts, with emphasis on shadow-puppeteering, became the most enjoyed form of amusement in the Song Dynasty. Finally, nothing had become more delightful than the everyday life of a citizen, which never had a dull moment. Chinese art and recreation came to a