Chinese art is visual art that originated in or is practiced in China, Greater China or by Chinese artists. Art created by Chinese residing outside of China can also be considered a part of Chinese art when it is based on or draws on Chinese culture, heritage, and history. Early "Stone Age art" dates back to 10,000 BC, mostly consisting of simple pottery and sculptures. After that period, Chinese art, like Chinese history, was typically classified by the succession of ruling dynasties of Chinese emperors, most of which lasted several hundred years. The Palace Museum in Beijing and the National Palace Museum in Taipei contains extensive collections of Chinese art.
Ink wash painting ; is a type of Chinese ink brush painting which uses washes of black ink, such as that used in East Asian calligraphy, in different concentrations. It emerged during the Tang dynasty of China (618–907), and overturned earlier, more realistic techniques. It is typically monochrome, using only shades of black, with a great emphasis on virtuoso brushwork and conveying the perceived "spirit" or "essence" of a subject over direct imitation. Ink wash painting flourished from the Song dynasty in China (960–1279) onwards, as well as in Japan after it was introduced by Zen Buddhist monks in the 14th century. Some Western scholars divide Chinese painting into three periods: times of representation, times of expression, and historical Oriental art. Chinese scholars have their own views which may be different; they believe that contemporary Chinese ink wash paintings are the pluralistic continuation of multiple historical traditions.
The Mogao Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes or Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, form a system of 500 temples 25 km (16 mi) southeast of the center of Dunhuang, an oasis located at a religious and cultural crossroads on the Silk Road, in Gansu province, China. The caves may also be known as the Dunhuang Caves; however, this term is also used as a collective term to include other Buddhist cave sites in and around the Dunhuang area, such as the Western Thousand Buddha Caves, Eastern Thousand Buddha Caves, Yulin Caves, and Five Temple Caves. The caves contain some of the finest examples of Buddhist art spanning a period of 2,000 years.
Chinese painting is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as guó huà, meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western styles of art which became popular in China in the 20th century. It is also called danqing. Traditional painting involves essentially the same techniques as calligraphy and is done with a brush dipped in black ink or coloured pigments; oils are not used. As with calligraphy, the most popular materials on which paintings are made are paper and silk. The finished work can be mounted on scrolls, such as hanging scrolls or handscrolls. Traditional painting can also be done on album sheets, walls, lacquerware, folding screens, and other media.
The Portraits of Periodical Offering were tributary documentative paintings produced by various Chinese dynasties and later as well in other East Asian dynasties, such as Japan and Vietnam. These paintings were official historical documents by the imperial courts. The term "職貢圖" roughly translates to "duty offering pictorial". Throughout Chinese history, tributary states and tribes were required to send ambassadors to the imperial court periodically and pay tribute with valuable gifts.
Tang dynasty art refers to Chinese art created during the Tang dynasty (618–907). The period saw significant advancements in arts such as painting, sculpture, calligraphy, music, dance, and literature. During the Tang dynasty, the capital city Chang'an, was the most populous city in the known world, and the era is generally regarded by historians as a high point in Chinese civilization and a golden age of Chinese literature and art.
Wu Daozi, also known as Daoxuan and Wu Tao Tzu, was a Chinese painter of the Tang dynasty. The British art historian Michael Sullivan considers him one of "the masters of the seventh century," Some of his works survive; many, mostly murals, have been lost.
The Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum are six Tang (618–907) Chinese stone reliefs of horses which were located in the Zhao Mausoleum, Shaanxi, China. Zhao Mausoleum is the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong of Tang.
Chang Dai-chien or Zhang Daqian was one of the best-known and most prodigious Chinese artists of the twentieth century. Originally known as a guohua (traditionalist) painter, by the 1960s he was also renowned as a modern impressionist and expressionist painter. In addition, he is regarded as one of the most gifted master forgers of the twentieth century.
Zhou Fang, courtesy name Zhonglang (仲朗), was a Chinese painter during the Tang dynasty. Zhou lived in the Tang capital of Chang'an during the 8th century. He came from a noble background and this was reflected in his works, such as Court Ladies Adorning Their Hair with Flowers (attributed) and Court Lady With Servants. Zhou Fang's artistic activity is long, up to three to four decades, running parallel to the Dàlì to Zhenyuan era (766–805), his artistic activity was mainly concentrated in Chang'an and Jiangnan.
Yan Liben, formally Baron Wenzhen of Boling (博陵文貞男), was a Chinese architect, painter, and politician during the early Tang dynasty. His most famous work, possibly the only genuine survival, is the Thirteen Emperors Scroll. He also painted the Portraits at Lingyan Pavilion, under Emperor Taizong of Tang, commissioned in 643 to commemorate 24 of the greatest contributors to Emperor Taizong's reign, as well as 18 portraits commemorating the 18 great scholars who served Emperor Taizong when he was the Prince of Qin. Yan's paintings included painted portraits of various Chinese emperors from the Han dynasty up until the Sui dynasty (581–618) period. His works were highly regarded by the Tang writers Zhu Jingxuan and Zhang Yanyuan, who noted his paintings were "works among the glories of all times".
Zhou, known in historiography as the Northern Zhou, was a Xianbei-led dynasty of China that lasted from 557 to 581. One of the Northern dynasties of China's Northern and Southern dynasties period, it succeeded the Western Wei dynasty and was eventually overthrown by the Sui dynasty.
The Qian Mausoleum is a Tang dynasty (618–907) tomb site located in Qian County, Shaanxi province, China, and is 85 km (53 mi) northwest from Xi'an. Built in 684, the tombs of the mausoleum complex house the remains of various members of the House of Li, the imperial family of the Tang dynasty. This includes Emperor Gaozong, as well as his wife, Wu Zetian, who assumed the Tang throne and became China's only reigning female emperor from 690 to 705. The mausoleum is renowned for its many Tang dynasty stone statues located above ground and the mural paintings adorning the subterranean walls of the tombs. Besides the main tumulus mound and underground tomb of Emperor Gaozong and Wu Zetian, there are 17 smaller attendant tombs, or peizang mu. Presently, only five of these attendant tombs have been excavated by archaeologists, three belonging to members of the imperial family, one to a chancellor, and the other to a general of the left guard. The Shaanxi Administration of Cultural Heritage declared in 2012 that no further excavations would take place for at least 50 years.
Zhang Sengyou was a Liang dynasty painter in the ink style in the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang.
The Four Masters of the Ming dynasty are a traditional grouping in Chinese art history of four famous Chinese painters that lived during the Ming dynasty. The group consists of Shen Zhou (1427–1509), Wen Zhengming (1470–1559), Tang Yin (1470–1523), and Qiu Ying (c.1494–c.1552). They were contemporaries, with Shen being the teacher of Wen, while Tang and Qiu was taught by Zhou Chen (1460–1535). All five of the aforementioned painters were part of the Wu School. Their styles and subject matter were varied. Qiu was solely a painter, while the other three developed distinct styles of painting, calligraphy, and poetry.
The Tang dynasty (618-907) was one of the most prosperous dynasties in Chinese history. During this period, people from Central Asia frequently traded with people who lived in the Tang capital Chang'an through the Silk Road.
Viśa Īrasangä (Khotanese: Viśa Īrasangä; in traditional Chinese: 尉遲乙僧; simplified Chinese: 尉迟乙僧; pinyin: Yùchí Yǐsēng; Wade–Giles: Yü4-chʻih2 I3-sêng1; fl. 7th century) was a Khotanese painter during the Tang dynasty. He was also a Khotanese nobleman, but sometimes he is considered to be a Tocharian originated from the north of Afghanistan. His father Viśa Baysūna (尉遲跋質那; Yùchí Bázhìnà) was well known by his paintings during the Sui dynasty, he was referred to as "Yuchi the Elder" (大尉遲) by Chinese people. Thereby Īrasangä was known as "Yuchi the Younger" (小尉遲). His painting skills were often compared with Yan Liben, even the famous painter Wu Daozi was under his influence.
In Chinese painting, danqing refers to paintings on silk and Xuan paper. Danqing is painted with an ink brush, color ink, or Chinese pigments using natural plant, mineral, and both metal pigments and pigment blends. Danqing literally means "red and blue-green" in Chinese, or more academically, "vermillion and cyan"; they are two of the most used colors in ancient Chinese painting.
The Sogdian Whirl dance or Sogdian Whirl was a Sogdian dance imported into China in the first half of the first millennium AD. The dance was imitated by the Chinese and became popular in China, where it went on to be performed at court.
The Western Paradise Illustration, also known as the Western Pure Land Illustration, is a Buddhist mural painting located on the south wall of Cave 220 of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, China. The 5.3 m × 3.5 m artwork was painted in the early Tang Dynasty and funded by the "Zhai" family. Its style is similar to that of the ancient Chinese painter Wu Daozi. The Western Paradise Illustration features the earliest and the most spectacular scenes of the Pure Land among all mural paintings in the Mogao Caves.
