Beyond European Tradition:
China and Korea
BY:
ANJANA SRINIVAS
TONI BRONARS
AILEEN SEO
Army of Emperor Shi Huangdi, terra cotta
Army of Emperor Shi Huangdi, terra cotta
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Name: Army of Emperor Shi Huangdi, terra cotta
Date: 210 B.C..E
Period/Style: Qin Dynasty
Artist: Created by an army of 700,000 sculptors and painters.
Material/Technique: The statues were life-size painted terra-cotta figures. It is
speculated that molds were used over and over again to produce thousands of
identical soldiers. Hand modeling of the certain body parts before firing however
allowed sculptors to differentiate the soldiers. The soldiers were then colorfully
painted.
Function: The statues were buried with Emperor Shi Huangdi and represented the
fierce and confident Chinese army.
Context: The statues were buried in the tomb of Emperor Shi Huangdi, filled with
treasures.
Details: There were 8,000 terra-cotta warriors, 100 wooden chariots, 2 bronze
chariots, 30,000 weapons buried as a part of the tomb. The soldiers are 6 feet tall
each with unique details.
Ideas: The uniqueness of each soldier represented a balance between uniformity and
individuality.
Crown from North Mound of Tomb
Crown of Silla
 Name: Crown of Silla
 Date: fifth or sixth century
 Period/Style: Silla kingdom
 Artist: Silla artists
 Material/Technique: Spangles, band, and uprights cut from sheet gold and
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embossed along the edges.
Function: The crown testified to the wealth and power of its rulers and justified
the city’s name Kumsong, which means city of gold.
Context: This gold-and-jade crown was found in a Silla tomb that attested to
the wealth of that kingdom and the skill of its artists.
Details: Gold rivets and wires secure the whole as do the comma shaped pieces
of jade further embellishing the crown.
Ideas: Archaeologists interpret the uprights as stylized tree and antler forms
believed to symbolize life and supernatural power.
Yan Liben, The 13 Emperors
The Thirteen Emperors
 Name: Yan Liben, The 13 Emperors
 Date: 618-907
 Period/Style: Tang Dynasty
 Artist: Yan Liben
 Material/Technique: Ink and color on silk
 Function: The scroll represents the thirteen emperors
arranged chronologically .
 Details: China enjoyed unequaled prosperity during this time
under the Tang emperors and this painting is one of the only
lasting works commissioned by various Chinese emperors.
 Idea: To illustrate historical figures as exemplars of Confucian
ideal.
Neolithic China
 Identify the innovations and artwork of Neolithic China
 The Neolithic Chinese had been settled in villages since the 7th
millennium B.C.E. and lived in multiple family homes
constructed from wood, bamboo, wattle, daub, and mud
plaster. They likely domesticated animals, had hearths and
kilns for pottery, and cemeteries for the dead.
 Neolithic Chinese art featured Yangshoa pottery, in which
fourth century B.C.E. potters would shape intricate
earthenware bowls without the use of the pottery wheel
(invented in the third century B.C.E.). Although most vessels
were found in graves, their varying shapes suggest unique
functions. The pottery was primarily decorated with abstract
designs, but also featured some animal motifs.
 Other examples of Neolithic artwork include impressive jade
and clay pieces.
Architectural Elements of Dynasties
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Describe the significant artistic and architectural elements of the dynasties prior to the Period of Disunity
(Shang, Zhou, Qin, and Han)
Shang Dynasty- first great Bronze age dynasty
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Zhou Dynasty- increased trade during the Zhou dynasty increased their prosperity and allowed them to
harness more valuable material, like gold and silver, for artwork.
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Perfected jade carving, evidenced in the bi disks, which were thin circular disk with a hole in the center that symbolized the
circle of heaven. Bi disks served both as burial items and status symbols in life.
Qin Dynasty- largest, geographically, Chinese dynasty. Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi was responsible for linking
the Great Wall and standardizing written language, weights and measures, and coinage to create an extremely
successful bureaucratic system.
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Kings and queens received elaborate burials, equipped with a wealth of jade, ivory, lacquer, and bronze objects, like the guang
vessels used in sacrifice to ancestors as well as funerary ceremonies.
Developed the most sophisticated casting technique of any ancient civilization, known as bronze piece molds. They would
create a clay model of the object to be cast, and then make a clay mold from the model. The model and mold, together, would
form a casing for the molten bronze to be poured into.
Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi was buried with over 6,000 life-sized painted figures to guard his tomb. The figures were
assembled from many different pieces (each piece had multiple varieties), allowing many different combinations of statues.
This allowed a balance between uniformity and individuality.
The tomb became a model for later Chinese tombs, which utilized the Emperor’s idea on a smaller scale.
Han Dynasty
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Marquise of Dai—a well-preserved painted silk T-shaped banner covered the Marquise’s coffin. The banner depicts the
unification of Heaven, earth, and the Underworld and represents the Marquise herself on the fringes of earth and Heaven.
The portrait of the Marquise of Dai is one of the first examples of Chinese portraiture.
Wu family shrines—were crafted to honor the Wu family’s dead male family members and serve as an example of the
emergence of non-aristocratic private patronage. The scenes of loyalty and homage that pervade pertain to the Confucian
ideals of the period.
Although no architecture survives, ceramic models of houses remain preserved in tombs. Homes were characterized by
sharply projecting tiled roofs on timber posts, a style that is still used in China today.
Buddhism and the Chinese
 Impact of Buddhism on Chinese Art and Architecture
 -China fell into a period of disunity as a civil strife divided China into
several states. During this time however, China was connected to India by
the Silk Road allowing Buddhism to take root in China during the Han
Dynasty. The organized system of Buddhism attracted scholars and
intellectuals, and therefore had a profound effect on Chinese art and
architecture.
 -Buddhist statues depicting the Buddha and his characteristics began to
appear. The serenity and radiating choice of material of the sculptor
celebrated the qualities of the Buddha which were admired. Later, the new
dynasty continued to build huge monuments for Buddhist worshipers.
Inspired by those in India, cave complexes with relief paintings and
sculptures of the Buddha were prevalent.
 -Mogao Grottoes, a cave containing sculptured images, are known for
housing Buddhist related art. The Paradise of Amitabha is an example of a
religious peace of art which displays a powerful image of the Buddha and
his teachings.
Materials and Formats by the Chinese
 Materials and Formats by Chinese Painters
 Formats used by Chinese painters include album leaves, fans, murals and
scrolls. The scrolls can be split into two sub-formats, the handscroll and the
hanging scroll. The handscroll is depicted horizontally while the hanging
scroll is vertical and meant to be viewed on the wall.
 Despite their purposes however, scrolls were meant to be stored away and
viewed only occasionally. The material used for these scrolls were usually
silk attached to dowels and secured at the ends. As these scrolls are
unwound the viewer first sees the title panel, followed by the main scene,
usually consisting of text and paintings.
 In the last panel called colophon, commentaries praising the art are
written. In a hanging scroll the main scenes is on the front while the title is
located on the top of the back.
 Another popular materials for Chinese paintings were porcelain vases
which were painted on with imaginative designs and subjects. After
finishing the painting, artists usually apply a glazing technique over it to
give the vase a finish and protect it from fading over time.
Accomplishments of Tang and Song Dynasties
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Tang dynasty took place from 618-906.
Brick and stone architecture gradually became more common and replaced wooden edifices.
Building projects like the Zhaozhou Bridge completed in 605, or the Xumi Pagoda built in 636
are the most well known in terms of architecture. Stone and brick architecture is known to have
been used in subterranean tomb architecture of earlier dynasties.
The tombs and mauseoleums of imperial family members can also be counted as part of the
imperial tradition in architecture. These above-ground earthen mounds and pyramids had
subterranean shaft-and-vault structures that were lined with brick walls.
Beginning in the Tang dynasty, the primary subject matter of Chinese painting was
the landscape known as shanshui (mountain-water) painting. In these landscapes, usually
monochromatic and sparse, the purpose was not to reproduce exactly the appearance of nature
but rather to grasp an emotion or atmosphere so as to catch the "rhythm" of nature.
The Silk Road increased cultural diversity in cosmopolitan Chinese cities had a marked
influence on the Chinese arts of the Tang. Many designs that were enjoyed with the upper
classes of imperial China became common even in everyday art.
The Nine Pinnacle of Pagoda of Shandong, completed by 756 and crowned with an unusual set
of miniature pagodas; it is also unique for its octagonal base, which was rarely seen in Tang
pagodas which often had square base plans
Korean Contribution to Art and Architecture
 Korea had a pivotal location in influencing the understanding of art
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between China and Japan.
Korea had three native kingdoms and during this era maintained
continuous contact with both China and Japan.
The Koreans were introduced to Buddhism through the Chinese and
went on to transmit it to the peninsula in Japan.
Near Sokkuram, near the summit of Mount Toham, a splendid
granite Buddhist monument was preserved in its turbulent history.
This was erected by Kim Tae Song, a member of the royal family.
Koryo potters produced the famous Korean celadon wares.
Celadons feature highly translucent iron-pigmented glazes, fire in
an oxygen deprived kiln to become gray, pale green or brownisholive.
Incised or engraved designs in the vessel alter the thickness of the
glaze to produce elegant tonal variations.
Comparison
 Maebyong Vase
 Hermes and the infant
Dinoysos at Nysa
Comparison
Maebyon Vase
Similarities
Hermes and infant
Dionysos at Nysa
•Koryo dynasty
•Celadon featuring highly
translucent ironpigmented glaze with
incised designs.
•Decorated with engraved
cranes highlighted by
white and colored slip in
the incised lines.
•Decorated using inlay
technique
•Not a narrative.
•Both polished, smooth
surface.
•Bottom registers
employs a constant motif.
• Bottom is much
narrower than the midsections or the top.
•Fifth century art
•Use of diluted brown to
color and shade the rocks
reflects the work of
Polygnotos.
•Includes narrative;
subject is Hermes
handing over his half
brother, the infant of
Dionysos to Papposilenos.
•Use of registers to insert
designs and patterns.