Lecture 8: How to read Chinese Painting

Misconceptions about Chinese Art

1. Chinese art is only painting

   • Sculptures exist

2. Chinese Art lacks naturalistic expression

   • Due to nature of mediums (ink & paper)

   • BUT naturalistic Chinese art does exist

     • e.g. Sketches of Birds and Insects (ca. 903-965), Huang Quan

       • E.g. Very small scale yet contains intricate detail

         = demanded close observation to record likeness realistically

   • Some Chinese Art was fundamentally naturalistic BUT in the immense extent of detail they depicted, became less convincing

     • E.g. The Water Mill (section) (ca. 970), unknown artist

       • Handscroll, ink and colors on silk

       • E.g. use of linear perspective, representation of 3-dimensional spaces, believable sense of depth

   • Conversely, many Western art movements were NOT naturalistic

     • E.g. Impressionism (late 19th century)

     • E.g. Abstract Expressionism (mid 20th century)

     • Were these fragmentary similarities sufficient to form a coherent movement?

       • Yes, because such artists in China received both great acclaim & criticism

       • Deng Chun (1167): “(such paintings) reach the point where no recognizable forms emerge at all’

       • ‘People react to them by saying derisively, “All an artist has to do is cut off a few feet of black silk and hang it on the wall, and he’s on his way to fame.”’

         = significant no. of records about such artists, suggesting there was a significant no. of them/their influence was great

3. There was a lack of public spaces for the display of Art in China

   • The nature of Art was entirely different in China

     • E.g. Many Chinese artworks were portable (scroll paintings)

       • Easy transportation facilities wide viewership

   • The modes of viewing art were entirely different in China

     • Did not necessitate public spaces for the display of Art

     • Instead, the viewing of art happened in more private settings

4. There was a lack of woman artists in China

   • In fact, female artists e.g. Ma Shouzhen received wide acclaim

The extension of Chinese scholarly painting through time & space

Through collaborative additions by:

• Artist

• Recipient(s)

• Collector(s)

1. Literature/handwritten text (colophons)

   (a) Can provide greater context for the artwork

   • E.g. Shen Zhou (1427-1509)

   (b) Can be a means of indicating ownership

   • E.g. Orchid and Rock (1572), Ma Shouzhen

     • Bears colophons & seals by both artist, recipient, & collector

   (c) Calligraphy as a pictorial art

   • Skillful calligraphy & poetry was also another way through which the artist could demonstrate his talents

   • Artists less skilled in this area would simply include less calligraphy/none at all

2. Seals

   • Used on objects to establish personal identification

   • With ink (unlike wax seals in the West)

   • E.g. Night White (742-756), Han Gan

Night White (742-756), Han Gan

• Original painting was only the piece in the middle

  • Paper was extended on the sides to accommodate seals & colophons

    = the painting physically changes

• As a collector, you definitely had the right to leave your seal

  • In this case, the collector was a King

  • The same person could have multiple different seals (all of which he could use)

  • Every time they opened the painting, they commemorated the experience/occasion of viewing the painting through the stamping of a seal ⭐

    = multiple different seals from the same person

• Depending on your status (or what you perceived your status to be), you would position your colophon/stamp differently

  • E.g. very near the actual illustration

• Seals can be used to certify authenticity, boosts value of work

  • People would bring works to connoisseurs/authenticators and have them stamped

Western & Chinese parallels

Abstract Expressionism

Jackson Pollock (20th century)

• Known for:

  (1) Drip technique: spontaneity, free movement

  (2) Alcoholism

• Form > content

Wang Mo (ca. 9th century)

• ‘In his nature, Wang Mo was rude and wild and he loved wine. Whenever he was about to paint a hanging scroll, he would first drink, and after he was drunk, then he would take ink and splash with it.’

Zeren (ca. 10th century)

• The monk Zeren […] was a habitual wine-bibber, whenever he got drunk, would splatter ink onto silk or a white-washed wall.’

• ‘When he sobered up, he would add and fill in (until there were) a thousand shapes and forms of the most extraordinary sort…Painters all paid homage to his inspired brush.’ ⭐

Western & Chinese parallels

Impressionism

Monet (late 19th-early 20th century)

• Talking about the fog in London: ‘How could the English painters of the 19th century paint brick by brick? Those people painted bricks that they did not see, that they could not see!’

• Capturing atmospheric essence > exact mimesis

  • Goal was anti-mimesis

    What is expressed on the surface of the painting > Content

Su Shi (11th century)

• ‘If anyone discusses paintings in terms of formal likeness (realistic representation), his understanding is close to that of a child.’

• Capturing essence > exact mimesis

Orchid and Rock (1548-1604), Ma Shouzhen

• Colophons & seals by both artist, recipient, & collector

• Woman artist

  • There was likely a market for her works given that a collector stamped it