Cranes above Kaifeng or Auspicious Cranes is a hand scroll attributed to one of the most artistic important figure: Late Northern Song Emperor Huizong (Sturman, 1990). This painting was made to commemorate a “rare” phenomenon where 20 cranes flying on the sky above the main gate of the palace, Kaifeng, on the day of Lantern Festival on the year 1112. This phenomenon was believed as a Mandate of Heaven under the rule of Emperor Huizong (IBID). This auspicious phenomenon, however, might not be as magical as it seems since Cranes above Kaifeng mirrors Emperor Huizong’s 3 aspects of painting that shows Emperor Huizong’s power on art during his sovereignty. Firstly, auspicious phenomenon mentioned before is known as ruiying in Chinese. It is believed to be blessings and a mean of communication from Heaven in form of strange and wonderful responses towards, in this case, Emperor Huizong. Secondly, Emperor Huizong was a patron of arts and in his painting academy he highlighted 3 aspects of painting: realism, systematic study, and poetic idea. (source dri buku yg foto di library) These 3 aspects were clearly shown in Cranes above Kaifeng: Auspicious Cranes which indicates the amount of control Emperor Huizong had on the visualization of auspicious events. Before we get to those 3 aspects, why are these cranes significant in knowing that the event is auspicious? Cranes can symbolize longevity and are believed couriers of immortals. In other words, the cranes are sacred bird. (Ars orientalis) Thus, the phenomenon where 20 cranes came to the city gates was interpreted as auspicious event. Realism refers to about a true representation of a person or a thing. However, in Huizong’s case, Benjamin Rowland argues that the emperor’s style is “m... ... middle of paper ... ...Heaven’s Pond) to stress that this event too was a similar auspicious event. This inscription is the biggest support towards the idea of auspicious cranes that Huizong claimed that controlled the interpretation of the painting itself. If this inscription was not made, it might be easier for the audience to have other interpretation other than Mandate of Heaven. However, it was effective to be used to control the meaning of the painting and emphasize the event’s association with blessing from Heaven. Overall, putting the truth about Cranes above Kaifeng aside, this hand scroll containing a painting and a poetic inscription shows how Huizong with his control over art can dictate the meaning and message an art can convey. This will lead to a manifestation of certain belief to the people of Song dynasty, which in this case is a belief that it was a Mandate from Heaven.
After Mao Zedong’s death and the collapse of the Cultural Revolution Weiwei enrolled in the Beijing Film Academy. Film did not hold him long and in 1978 Weiwei became a founding member of an avant-garde group of artist called ‘the stars’, and an obsession with democracy and a deep critique of the Chinese government began to manifest. In 1981 Weiwei moved to the United States to practice and study art. One of Weiwei’s most iconic early pieces, Dropping Han Dynasty Urn (1995) depicts Weiwei holding, dropping, and the subsequent smashing of a Han Dynasty Urn. The performative gesture of this work is entrenched in Weiwei’s personal history, the significance of smashing a valued Chinese artefact symbolises the ‘desecration of cultural heritage (Delaney, 2016 p.30)’ that occurred during the Cultural Revolution and Weiwei’s
...y extraordinarily beautiful, it was also a wealth of information about the people and culture of ancient China during his reign.
Chinese Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses is a significant sculpture that represented the armies of Qin Shi Huang (the first Emperor of China). It is also known as the eight wonders of the world. It described a strong personality and specific characteristics from that era. This amazing artwork not only shows the remarkable historical value, but also the great artistic achievement. Qin Terracotta art is a great success in both sculpture and architecture.
Emperor, and First Grand Secretary, I would like to praise you both in your quick, and industrious actions taken for the welfare of the Empire. I would also like to thank you both for taking such meticulous consideration of our memorials. Your fervent attempts are well respected and I can see the ways of Confucius guiding these principles. I urge you now to take the next step, dear Emperor, and address the issue of succession here in the Forbidden City. Choose Changlou, your firstborn, to ascend to the throne after your departure, and remove Lazy Zheng from the Forbidden City. If you are to do this, you, Emperor Wan Li, will solidify your position here as a man of Confucius ideal, and as a powerful efficient ruler. This will establish most trust among ourselves here, and therefore create a more unified government.
Before launching into praises of the Song Dynasty 's many achievements, the matter of its origin
Beginning as early as the Shang dynasty, we have found evidence of the Chinese honoring and paying respect to their ancestors. The process of divination used turtle carapace or ox scapula in order to find out if their ancestors wanted certain rituals or sacrifices done. Evidence of honoring the deceased has also been found in tombs during the Shang dynasty. Lady Fu Hao’s tomb is a prime example of this, since hundreds of artifacts were buried with her, obviously denoting respect for the dead or that t...
Hung Liu is successful in creating a juxtaposing image that tells a story about the many aspects of her Chinese origins. According to the painting, not all life in China is surrounded by beauty and elegance, like many believe it to be based on the traditional historical customs. Liu makes her point using a brilliant yet subtle progression, moving from the ideal to reality. Making use of the various principles and elements of art in her work creates a careful visual composition that benefit and support the painting’s achievements as a whole. This oil painting, being approximately 13 years old now, will hold a special place in Chinese history for the rest of its existence. The ideas Hung Liu portrays in Interregnum may help reform a social movement in the country by making her viewers socially aware of the cruel conditions the Chinese are facing under Communist rule, and this is all made possible through the assimilation of the principles and
According to Art in China by Craig Clunas, the Wei Dynasty, which started in 386 and ended in 535, was an era in which Buddhism was central to the culture of both the noble and common people. For much of the Wei dynasty the artists and sculptors were slaves to the state. Different styles of Buddhist art were popular during this period. At first, the artists copied some elements from Indian Buddhist sculpture, but then they developed their own style. During the Wei most of the art produced had a connection to Buddhism, and the emperors spent a great amount of resources to have the Buddhist art pieces produced (Clunas 92-97).
...assistance. The man instructed him to make small dumplings, or Tāngyuán (湯圓), for the God of Fire. Also, he told him to tell the people to hang up lanterns and light firecrackers. The emperor obeyed the man’s commands and the city was saved. While the people were admiring the decorations in the city, Yuánxiāo was finally reunited with her family. During the Lantern Festival, the Chinese people enjoy eating Tāngyuán (汤圆). Tāngyuán are small, sticky dumplings filled on the inside with sweet stuffing. Eating these dumplings represent family unity and togetherness. After eating, the people enjoy the craft of making large, elaborate lanterns from colored paper. They enjoy watching the beautiful lanterns in the night along with the full moon. Another popular activity involves guessing lantern riddles. These riddles have messages that indicate good fortune and prosperity.
The Zhou Dynasty was the next influential time period in early Chinese history. During this era, the ideas of the Shang were built upon. The supreme being in the previous period, Shang-di, became more of an idea than a figure. Shang-di became Tian. Tian was considered a sort of heaven place. This place handed down the right to rule to the leaders, called “mandate of heaven” and was also the source of bl...
The Great Wall has come to signify archetypal Chinese attributes in modern-day society and is central to how China characterizes itself. However, it is not a single ‘Great Wall’ rather it is a set of walls, built intermittently over thousands of years by different dynasties for varying purposes. The idea of a singular Great Wall is a misnomer which developed after centuries of different cultural elucidations. The history of the Great Wall is a history of cultural encounters that have shaped modern ideas about China within the country itself as well as outside. (Huang, 2006)
The Great Wall of China, one of the world’s eight wonders, is one of the most famous feats of human architecture in the history of the world. This ancient marvel is not only a great spectacle, but is also significant in the shaping and molding of the China everyone knows today. The Great Wall of China allowed China to possess some of the longest lived governmental structures in the world by providing a means of protection against hostile nomadic groups and other warlike peoples. This allowed the lifespans of the dynasties-- lines of hereditary rulers who rule over a country for a long period of time-- inside the wall to be prolonged. This massive structure is therefore a key part of China’s history, influencing nearly every dynasty that ruled the region, since the rise of the first emperor.
With regard to the Han Dynasty, movement and religion seem to all relate to the “naturalistic” and anti-authoritarian ethos. At that time, Taoism is a natural characterization of the ideology ‘behind any non-Confucian or anti-conformist strains of thought, with its inherent focus on ways’ (Wang & Chanzit, 2004). It results in that it has become a deeply malleable concept which defers to scholars of religion, in ancient Chinese society, to sort out ‘the conceptual limits of Taoist religion and baldly focus on what philosophical content can be extracted from the classical exemplars: Laozi and Zhuangzi’ (Wang, 2011, pp.107). For instance, ‘The way which can be uttered, is not the eternal Way. The name which can be named, is not the ‘Eternal Name’ (Laozi., Waley & Laozi., 1998).
Traditional Chinese art is deeply rooted in its philosophy, encompassing Daoist, Buddhist and Confucian schools of thought. The goal of many traditional Chinese landscape artists, as described by Professor To Cho Yee of Michigan-Ann Arbor, is to “reveal the highest harmony between man and nature” through a balance of likeness and unlikeness (Ho). This metaphysical philosophy borrowed art as a vehicle to search for the truth or the “dao”, which is the path to enlightenment. As early as the 5th century, scholar artists such as Su Shi (1037-1101) of the Song dynasty realized that to create likeness, one must understand the object beyond its superficial state and instead capture the spirit of nature; only then can a point of harmony with nature
Chinese artwork is a form that contains and demonstrates many different meanings and morals that can be linked back to not only religion, but the overall meaning of life. This paper will discuss the sculpture titled Seated Buddha and how it represents peace, enlightenment, and the overall importance of how these two components influence the mindset of the people involved in the Buddhist religion. The Seated Buddha was created between the 5th and 6th century in China. The artist of this piece is unknown, but this does not hinder us at all from seeing what the artist was trying to portray through the different aspects that they included in the Seated Buddha sculpture. This piece is crafted from stone and a chisel was then used to create the