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The history of Chinese painting is ancient and richly creative. Since the first silk paintings appeared during the period called the epoch of the Warring States (475-221 BC) in the Kingdom of Chu, Chinese painting, distinctly different from its Western counterpart, has grown into a magnificent heritage of priceless value.
An approach to Chinese painting implies the renunciation of a number of concepts that are the foundation of our understanding of art in the West. Both on the levels of materials used and in its aesthetic approach, Chinese painting is a radical departure from our sense of art. Where Chinese painting attempts to approach the essence of things, occidental painting stops at apprehending the material world, the appearance of things.
Traditional Chinese painting is actually a synthesis of throe media: painting, calligraphy and seal Carving. This rare volume focuses on all three aspects of the art of Chinese painting, tracing its historical development and highlighting its special features at different junctures in history. A schelarly text, from the Chinese, details the provenance of these finest examples and provides a context in which to view them.
Nearly one hundred plates represent the various periods of painting: Hun, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing and the early years of the Republic. A unique feature is the inclusion of a special tipped-in illustration on silk. The works included in this distinctive volume are largely from the Palace Museum in Peking (Beijing), but also include some exceptional pieces from provincial museums in China.
More than two millennia of the visual history of this great tradition are brilliantly illustrated in this delicately beautiful book.The first edition was printed in 1984
Contents
Foreword
1. Captions for Paintings
2. The Development of Chinese Painting
3. Captions for Calligraphy
4. Chinese Calligraphy
5. Chinese Seals
6. Chinese Seals and Their Function
7. Editor’s Postscript
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