China+Korea: Imagery [CHRONOLOGICAL] Flashcards
When does the Gui (ritualistic vessel) originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Zhou Dynasty) (c. 1100-1000 BCE)
- Gui = ritual vessel, used for the preparation and serving of food = banquets; honoring, caring for, and maintaining connections with the decease–> providing practical items/food with the deceased for protection.
- Highly decorative; ornamental bands w/abstract floral motifs.–> vertical stripes accentuate curvature–> handles maintain an animal like form (beast/mythical creature.)
-Writing in the interior- inscriptions=Bronze vessels like this one are essential for early Chinese text. Inscriptions provide information about the deceased.
When does the Terracotta Warriors from the Tomb of the First Emperor Quin originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Quin Dynasty) (c. 210 BCE)
- Placing small figurines representing attendants in to tombs to serve the decease in the afterlife –> placed in burials as some kind of support/assistance for the emperor.
- Demonstrates the mass fabrication in the ancient world= speaks to high level organization in Quin’s bureaucracy and resources. However in production; details were individually modified and finished to create an impression of individuality–> painted
When does the Raising of the Cauldron, Rubbing of a Relief from Wu Family Shrine originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Han Dynasty) (c. 151 CE)
- Reverence for ancestors (Confucianism) - the shrines document the emergence of private non-aristocratic families as patrons of religious and mythological art with political undertones.
- Shrine rubbing = human endeavor inspired by history and legend –> cauldrons represented the realm and bestowed political legitimacy upon the owner–> Mandate of heaven
- Presented in an orderly manner, stylistically reflects the universal order sought under Confucianism.
When does the Courage of Lady Feng from Admonitions of the Imperial Instructions to Court Ladies originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
( Six Dynasty period) (Gu Kaizhi) (c. 5th-8th CE)
- Scrolls read as an individual or a in a small group of people –> tells seven stories around themes of wifely virtue–> Lady Feng placed herself between bear and emperor –> calm, composed demeanor contrasted with scared concubines.
When does the Meditating Buddha originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
( Six Dynasty period) (c. 338 CE)
- Style= abstracted, rigid, and geometric description. Bilateral symmetry= calm and control
- Lakshana transfer–> mudras also consistent feature but now meld with Chinese gestures for reverence= make the figures familiar and appealing to Chinese audience by combining foreign gesture with Chinese.
- Remade: base w/ two lions and a lotus flower, halo, and parasol.
When does the Shakyamuni and Prabhutaratna originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
( Northern Wei Dynasty) (c. 518 CE)
- Art comes from the lotus sutra- contains teachings of Shakyamuni–> two buddhas convert the idea of the continuity of Buddhist law over time–> has numerous artistic representation.
- Norther Wei Style: Elongated, slim profiles, abundant drapery–> casual conversation nature of the figures.
- Half lotus siting pose= similar to the pensive bodhisattva
When does the Seated Buddha from Seokguram Grotto originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Silla Dynasty) (c. 751 CE)
- Depature from Chinese example: Granite Masonry construction (complaining stones together and shaping it from there) Halo behind= unusual as it usually is attached, allows for circumambulation of the statue.
- Mundra= Bumist mantra or the earth touching mantra –> cosmic buddha? adaptation of the Buddhas identity (?)
When does the Water-Moon Avalakiteshvara (Seated Willow-Branch Gwanse’sum Bosal) originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Goreyo Dynasty) (Late 14th century)
- Buddhist artworks under royal patronage- religious beliefs and signaling the taste and refinement of Goryeo nobility–> pure land buddhism –> rebirth in wester paradise.
- The water moon = Goryeo art- delicate details, exquisite garnments, translucent veils, elegant effortless posture- included security;ar or mythological figures in the form of worshippers or patrons that reflect the piety and elegance of the ruling class
- Issues of elite patronage and courtly taste
When does the Travelers Among Mountains and Streams originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Fan Kuan) (Northern Song Dynasty) (Early 11th century)
- Song artist influenced by Neo-Confucianism; study from the physical reality rather than detach from it–> Buddhist/ daoism ideals in subject matter, style, and composition.
- Not a specific place that is represented, but seems like it through details –> perfection representation; rational ordered composition, express intelligence of the universe and its logical ordered design –> mountains represent confucianism notions of social hierarchy –> buddhist motif of the Buddha flanked by the Bodhisattva
- nature is a realm corrupted by humans; human made things minimize in relation to nature- uninterrupted natural world in harmony with humans= daoist ideals
When does the Melon-Shaped Ewer with Bamboo decoration originate? What does the piece provide to the context of China+Korea art?
(Goryeo Dynasty) (Beginning of the12th Century)
- Celadon; typically hold wine or other liquids; Tea ceremonies (?). Shapes and designs were often drawn upon nature for inspiration.
- Bamboo motif= referenced the natural world and carried important symbolic associations= referenced the natural world and carried important symbolic associations- resilience: four season symbols; integrity, strength, and humility expected from Goreyo elite.
- Alluded to confucianism ideas: bamboo= symbols or qualities as a confucianism scholar=natural world and philosophical backdrops
