Largest creative work

The largest creative work is the largest or longest item in different fields of creative works. Some pieces were created with the specific intention of holding the record while others have been recognised for their size after completion.

Literature

A page from the largest general encyclopedia, the Yongle Encyclopedia .

• The largest known general encyclopedia is the Yongle Encyclopedia commissioned by the Yongle Emperor of China's Ming dynasty in 1403. It comprised 22,937 manuscript scrolls in 11,095 volumes, occupying 40 cubic metres (1,400 cubic feet).
• The longest poem in any language is the Mahabharata, with more than 100,000 couplets.^{[ citation needed ]}
• The longest epic cycle is the Tibetan Epic of King Gesar, which contains over 20 million words in more than one million verses.^{[ citation needed ]}
• The longest love story and comedy may have been written by French novelist Honoré d’ Urfé (b. 1568). When it was first published, the story L’Astrée occupied 5,399 pages and published in 60 books. ^[1]

Performing arts

Film

• Logistics , directed by Erika Magnusson and Daniel Andersson, is officially the world's longest film. Running 51,420 minutes (857 hours) in length, the film follows the production cycle of a pedometer in reverse chronological order.

Music

• The longest musical performance began on 1 January 2000 and is set to last for 1000 years before repeating. Composed by Jem Finer, Longplayer is played in a 19th-century lighthouse near Canary Wharf, London, and other public listening posts. ^[2]

Television

• The longest-running American television series is Meet the Press , a news program which started on 6 November 1947 and continues today.

Theatre

• The Mousetrap had been running continuously in London from 1952 to 16 March 2020, when it closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has by far the longest initial run of any play in history, with more than 25,000 performances taking place, ^[3] and the longest running show (of any type) of the modern era.

Visual arts

Painting

• The largest painting according to the International Guinness Book of World Records in 2019 was "Century Buddha" completed by Hung Chi-Sung. It measured 12,086 m² (130,090 sq ft) and was created in Hualien, Taiwan, between 2001 and 2018. ^[4] Previous record holders included Ðuka Siroglavic's 10,800 m² (116,000 sq ft) "Wave," (2007) David Aberg's 8,000 m² (86,000 sq ft) "Mother Earth," (2006) and Eric Waugh's 3,850 m² (41,400 sq ft), "Hero" (2002). ^[5]
• The largest professional oil painting by a single artist according to the International Guinness Book of World Records in 2024 was measued 243 m² (2,620 sq ft) completed by Gérard Di-Maccio from Di-Maccio Art Museum, The Forest of Taiyo, Japan. ^[6]

Sculpture

• The largest contemporary artwork and largest land art sculpture is "City" by Michael Heizer, located at 38.034°, -115.443° in rural Lincoln County in the U.S. state of Nevada. ^{[7] [8]} City measures approximately 0.48 km (0.3 mi) wide and 2.01 km (1.25 mi) long.

Textiles

• The world's largest hand woven carpet is a Persian carpet made in Iran and completed in 2007. ^[9] It has 2.2 billion knots, measuring 5,625 m² (60,550 sq ft). ^[10]

Ceramics, single fired object

This category is reserved for a single object fired within a kiln:

• Artist Frans Widerberg unveiled a 5.14 meter (16.8 ft) tall jar in 2001. His creation required 10 tons (22,000 lbs) of clay. ^[11] The jar is housed in Møllebyen (the Mill Town) the former city center of Moss, Norway. ^[12]
• Ceramist Kim Se-yong claims to have produced the world's largest celadon vase. It is 107 cm (42 inch) tall and weighs 157 kg (350 lbs). ^{[13] [14]} It reportedly took many attempts over a period of a decade to successfully fire the richly detailed Shipjangsaeng (十長生) (10 symbols of longevity) vase. ^{[15] [16]} It was created using traditional methods including hand/foot kneaded clay, foot driven potter's wheel and wood fired kiln. ^[17]
• Artist Mmala Oefile unveiled The Big Pot Africa in Molepolole, Gaborone, Botswana, on 12 December 2020. The 7.5 m (24.6 ft) tall ceramic piece was fired using cow-dung. ^[18] The object appears to have been fired in place where it was formed rather than being moved into a kiln.
• Ceramist Nguyen Hung and Huong Viet Ceramic Company unveiled the world's largest carved ceramic plate in 2018. The plate 137 cm (54 inch) diameter plate weighs 400 kg (881 lbs) and required 2,500 man-hours. The plate features a complex design of cedar trees, a pair of peacocks and Feng Shui elements. ^[19]

Game

• Taikyoku shogi, chess variant

See also

• Louvre – the world's largest art gallery
• List of largest buildings
• Unfinished creative work

References

1. "Celadon". Turncoat. Retrieved 18 March 2024.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
2. The Guardian. 4 September 2009. "" How to play music that lasts 1,000 years. Accessed 25 March 2014.
3. Marsden, Sam (18 November 2012). "Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap celebrates its 60th anniversary with star-studded show". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 19 November 2012. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
4. "Largest painting".
5. "World's largest painting confirmed - World news - Weird news". NBCNews.com . 8 November 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
6. "Largest professional oil painting by a single artist".
7. "Michael Heizer's The City to Open Following Half-Century Wait www.artforum.com. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
8. Dafoe, Taylor (2022-08-19). "After More Than 50 Years, Michael Heizer Is Finally Ready to Unveil 'City,' His Life's Work. Here's What It Looks Like Artnet News. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
9. "Photo in the News: World's Largest Carpet Woven for Worshippers". News.nationalgeographic.com. 28 October 2010. Archived from the original on 13 December 2007. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
10. "World's largest carpet unveiled in Iran". Payvand Iran News. 1 August 2007. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
11. "The worlds largest jar". www.visitnorway.com. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
12. "The Mill Town". www.visitoestfold.com. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
13. "'Story of a Thousand Years' makes it to Muckenthaler Cultural Center after 3 years". Daily Pilot. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
14. Berman, Lisa (2 August 2023). "Story of a Thousand Years - Master of Goryeo Celadon Ceramics exhibition in NYC". KGET 17. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
15. 조선일보 (28 August 2023). "뉴욕의 텅 빈 전시장 "청자는 바보가 인내로 만든다"". 조선일보 (in Korean). Retrieved 17 March 2024.
16. "Korean Cultural Center NY Opens Exhibition Next Week – Asia Week New York" . Retrieved 17 March 2024.
17. From Earth to Light, Korean Ceramic Master Hand, Seyong Kim's Life, 21 August 2023, retrieved 16 March 2024
18. Guinness Book. "Largest clay pot (baked)". Guinness World Records.
19. Vietnam News, VietNamNet. "Vietnamese ceramic artist sets two Guinness World Records". VietNamNet News (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 18 March 2024.