The architecture of China and Japan was very advanced during the early ages of the world. Some examples of architectural achievement were the the Kinkaku-ji, Golden Pavilion, and the Forbidden City, both significant for their time. Different and similar influences created major contrast and resemblance. Chinese gardens created a natural beauty throughout the country. The Japanese made elegant profiles to their buildings along with plain interiors to create a simple elegance. In sum, the vibrance and elegance throughout China and Japan was highly innovative and astounding for their time.
During the Yuan Dynasty, architectural arts of Tibetan Buddhism and Muslim had influenced architectural styles throughout China. The most significant developments
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Almost every building in China had a garden constructed when it was built. Ironically, gardens were works of art to the Chinese. For example, as you may see in many paintings, gardens were traditionally crafted with small, craggy mountains and patches of undisturbed water. Each garden had its own rock element. Some designers chose to place small, simple rock sculptures of widespread varieties across the garden. On the other hand, architects could also chose to put miniature mountains from colossal collections of rocks. Also, most gardens had walls that surrounded them. As seen in Chinese paintings, these walls were usually white. White created a deep contrast between the trees, rocks, flowers, and water. Architects didn’t just make gardens. With careful planning and precision, many thoughts and ideas were put into each garden. Sketches and blueprints were used to make exact angles and cuts. Annie Wu writes, “Chinese gardens aren’t laid out in a way that you see the entire garden all at once, instead small scenes are set up so you wander through the garden.” No doubt, the Chinese went overboard on their gardens. They constructed two types of variations, some were meant to keep animals, and others for plants and gardening. Kings and members of the nobility during the Shang Dynasty planted varieties of fruits and vegetables in their gardens. Additionally, stone lions and other statues were added as a …show more content…
Most of Japan experiences long, hot, and humid summers which is reflected through their architecture. Consequently, buildings were constructed of wood. This was the material of choice because it was cool in the summer and warm in the winter. With the abundance of timber in Japan, almost all the buildings were constructed of wood. Furthermore, wood was flexible and could withstand the harsh forces of earthquakes and tsunamis. Earthquake-resistant construction is still a leading problem in Japan’s architectural standpoint, especially with its abundance of major storms and natural disasters. Whereas exposed wood in Chinese buildings is painted, Japanese architects decided not to paint the excess wood in their buildings. Next, the interior of Japanese architecture was virtually open. Rooms flow from one to another, and not even screens separated individual spaces. Over time, architecture was redesigned with the idea of self standing screens that portioned off rooms for common everyday functions such as eating, sleeping, or dressing. In Japan, people didn’t want walls with joints, so architects decided to make walls that could be taken apart then reassembled. Japanese liked their homes plain. Hence, the floors were fitted with earthy rice mats. Web-Japan.org states,“To the Japanese a house was somewhere to escape the troubles of the world, a place of calm and contemplation.” Even though
The founder of the Qin dynasty was Qin Shi Huangdi, a title meaning “First Emperor.” He was a brutal ruler, but he brought about many changes. However, in addition to all the new, some old ideas were continued from the Zhou, such as the emphasis on the wheat and rice staple foods, and the philosophies, Confucianism and Daoism. The old continuities tended to have been deeply embraced by China, and, just as the Zhou did, the Qin would create some ideas that lasted, and some that did not. Qin Shi Huangdi enforced a tough autocratic rule and, as a result, opposed formal culture that could make people counter his rule. This meant that he burned many books and attacked Confucian ideas in order to keep the people from generating rebellious ideas. When the Qin dynasty fell, so too did the opposition towards education, because it took away from the civilization culturally. Despite the fact that the Qin dynasty was very short and had little time to fully develop its systems and ideas, it did pump out a vast quantity of new and lasting concepts, such as the Great Wall and a central government. One of the biggest contenders for the most well-known feature of the Qin dynasty is the Great Wall. This architectural masterpiece extends over 3,000 miles, and was mainly a
There is a great art that can be found in being able to describe the world of an ancient civilization. Especially in one where large man made walls form because of the creases of a sleeping dragon’s back, or that the layout of the fields and streams of a small village create the image of a galloping unicorn when looked from up above. Yet, this is Imperial China, or as Barry Hughhart writes in his Novel Bridge of Birds, “an Ancient China that Never Was” (Hughhart 1984). This novel explores the history and the world of Ancient China, and the tales of the people who have walked across the land. Offering a summary of the book, we will be able to analyze
Chinese culture has been evolving for more than one thousand years with one of the most significant influences being the development of the Han dynasty. This paper analyses the ways in which the development of the Han dynasty influenced Chinese culture, to what extent, and why. Knowledge of the Han period’s impact on Chinese culture, is obtained through the analysis of written and archaeological sources depicting the Western Han dynasty (206 B.C.–9 A.D) and Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 A.D).
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).
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.
Polo fell in love with the Quinsai’s architecture and location. He highlights the cities size, alongside side the idealistic location between a freshwater lake and river (Marco, 134). Not only did Polo find the size and location to be impressive, he also thought Quinsai had beautiful architecture. He notes the beautiful main street, buildings, and 12,000 bridges (Marco, 134-35). With the impressive city of Quinsai, Polo also grew to find the Chinese city life very impressive.
The iron and steel development, the scuba suit, building orientation, and many others, were all things that influenced these designers to not only create glorious buildings that would become famous, but to inspire them to create what they desired most to see in a building.
The Tang and Song Dynasties are both pertinent to China’s development. During the Tang period, which is also considered the “Golden Age”, art and literature was embraced and thrived. During the Song Dynasties, many technical inventions allowed China to grow as a nation, and emerge as one of the greatest nations in the medieval world. Both dynasties played a key role in the history of China.
Before this exquisite garden became the Master of Nets garden, it was known as the Ten Thousand Volume Hall. This iconic garden was constructed in 1140 by a Deputy Civil Service Minister of the Southern Song Dynasty government, Shi ZhengZhi. Shi ZhengZhi was inspired by the Daoist philosophical writings of living a simple and solitary life as a Chinese fisherman. Unfortunately, after the death of Shi ZhengZhi, the garden was passed through several apathetic ownerships before falling into complete disarray until around 1785 when it was finally restored by a retired government official in the Qing Dynasty known as Song Zongyuan. Song Zongyuan was a gift to the garden as he renovated the garden to retain the original spirit of the garden; this
Japanese Gardens The role of gardens plays a much more important role in Japan than here in the United States. This is due primarily to the fact the Japanese garden embodies native values, cultural beliefs and religious principles. Perhaps this is why there is no one prototype for the Japanese garden, just as there is no one native philosophy or aesthetic. In this way, similar to other forms of Japanese art, landscape design is constantly evolving due to exposure to outside influences, mainly Chinese, that effect not only changing aesthetic tastes but also the values of patrons. In observing a Japanese garden, it is important to remember that the line between the garden and the landscape that surrounds it is not separate.
In China, urbanization is at dramatic pace but in static patterns. This leads to the Chinese cities losing their own styles, and being built in the static architecture modes which are introduced from developed countries. Moreover, the traditional architecture cultures are being eroded by the static modern architecture patterns. Some of them are even on the boundary of extinction. Recently, architects in China have shown an increasing interest in the issue of traditional architecture in the modern era. This paper studies on the causes and effects of the erosion of the modernity to the traditional architecture and the possible solutions. It will be divided into three parts: the first part focuses on the causes and effects; the second part presents the combination of modern architecture and traditional culture; the third part concerns the cultivation enhancement of Chinese architects.
Sweeping curved areas replace orderly rectangular areas and sculpture and painting played a greater part in building design, helping create an illusion of great space. Interest in the relationship between buildings and their surroundings led to a greater emphasis on city planning and landscape design. This emphasis was used greatly in the construction of the palace at Versailles. Baroque buildings in Austria, Spain, and Latin America were especially ornate and elaborate. Baroque architecture in France was more classical and ordered (pg 85, World Book Encyclopedia).
Architecture of the Geometric and Orientalizing periods had mostly made out of a simple structure made of mud bricks and rubbles. They were generally built on an east-west axis with an entrance and a columned entry. However, in rectangular temples, the two sidewalls stood beyond the front wall to form an entrance. In the rooms, a single row of wooden columns with the main axis supported the wooden beams of the gable roof. (J. J. Coulton, 1977) Not only the temples and houses were built with mud brick, but also the graves erected in the Geometric and Orientalizing periods were also built in the similar style and method. The small rectangular earth mounds in the Geometric period assumed as a monumental form with walls of mud-brick protected by a jutting cornice of slabs and surmounted by a flat or shallow pitched roof. (M. Andronikos) The whole structure was coated with mud painted decoration.
Architecture from 10,000 B.C.E to 1 C.E was somewhat unique. During this time period Architecture varied greatly due to the fact there were so many civilizations out there with totally different cultures and locations therefore changing the way structures were built. In Egypt due to the scarcity of wood Egyptians had to rely more on mud brick and stone to build their structures. Ancient Egyptian houses were made out of mud collected from the Nile River. It was placed in molds and left to dry in the hot sun to harden for use in construction. Most of Egyptian structures and monuments are based upon religion. Massive structures characterized usually by thick, sloping walls with few openings, was a method used to stabilize the mud walls. Since the arch wouldn’t be invented for another hundred years, they relied on closely spaced columns and external wal...