art of china Essay examples

| In the industry of hand crafted goods their pottery showed various types of patterns carved or painted onto them, even stones had fine pictures painted onto them. They usually wrote in a special ink, they had various forms of writing like hieroglyphics, and self-explanatory characters. They usually carved these onto animal bones or tortoise shells. Architecture was built into houses made of wood or carved out of the earth into rows. They listened to folk music and palace music. With their practice in bronze they made fine musical instruments, people engaged into music but they were divided into 3 sections; Wu, music slavery, and Gu.

Pottery can not only tell us about the past, but it can also tell us about people’s beliefs and what people did in the past. Pottery was used for many purposes. It was made in many different shapes and sizes. Some pieces of pottery had unique pictures and designs on them. The pictures and designs expressed different types of things that went on in the daily lives of ancient Greeks. Music and entertainment, religious beliefs, death and burial traditions are a few aspects of Greek life that are pictured on many different types of ancient Greek pottery.

The following are the Chinese dynasties in order from oldest to most recent: Xia, Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui, Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. The legendary dynasty is the Xia, which is believed to be around 2000 BC. The Shang (1700-1000BC) developed the first written Chinese language. The Zhou (1028-221BC) built the first roads, expanded trade contacts and trade routes, and also developed plows and irrigation systems. Trade at this time was expanding in China. The Qin Dynasty (221-207BC) built the famous Great Wall of China as a defense mechanism and also united all of China under one central government. Next is the Han Dynasty (207BC-AD220), which did a lot for China in terms of trading. They developed the Great Silk Road, a trading route that stretched from China all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. The Sui Dynasty (589-618) united almost all of China. Followed in suit by the Tang Dynasty (618-917) discovered one of Chinas' leading exports, porcelain. During the Tang Dynasty, the first block-style printing press was invented. The Song Dynasty (960-1279) came next, which took over all of China and later took the southern rule after being conquered by the Jin. The Song Dynasty is responsible for developing Chinese cuisine as we know it today. During this time period the compass and gunpowder were also discovered. The Jin Dynasty (1127-1234) took rule over Northern China from the Song. The Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) brought a long period of peace to

• Left writing records, though origins remain murky ( surviving records are from the latter part of the dynasty (12th century B.C.E.)

story is that according to a Chinese myth there were two brothers and one was very

In fact, the Chinese were the first civilization to have dynasties. A dynasty is a ruling family. New dynasties mean very new things for the people of China. Whenever someone new took over they would lower taxes, restore peace and rebuild the roads and irrigation systems. As the dynasty aged they would eventually raise taxes. This would get the people very mad. People revolted because they were mad at all the problems going on. Then a new dynasty will take over. This continues for every dynasty. This is also called the Dynastic Cycle. Another thing the Chinese invented was the compass. We still use the compass today to tell us what direction to go in. The Chinese civilization’s achievements had a large effect on our life

The Han China and Classical Athens’ culture also had a huge different to how the arts were created. The arts of the Athenians were more focus on themselves, the human body. For example, on the front cover page, there is a drawing or statue of a Greek man, the Greek man is standing in a weird position with his arms pointing down, there are a few lines emphasizing his muscles, torso, biceps, etc. (Front Cover). While the art of the Han China were more focus on the landscapes and scenes surround them, along with the serenity and balance of the world drawn on to canvases in great details (document L). In most paintings, the five Chinese elements called Wu Xing will most likely be included in the paintings; the five elements are wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. Looking at Ch’iu Ying’s painting, you can clearly see the how Wu Xing is being presented in the painting, how the trees and mountains were presented in the background (document L). However, as you can see in the painting, there are only two men in the painting, this could mean that humans were inconsiderable in their arts (document L). As a conclusion, the two artistic styles were complete different from each other, the Han’s arts were more focus on nature in great details, while the Athenians’ art were more focus on the human body.

Tracing back the history of China, Xia Dynasty of the second millennium BCE was the earliest dynasty in China, which was centered along the Yellow River. Before China was unified, it was the time during which most of China's cultural tradition arose. Chinese civilization ascended and developed in a vast area, one-third larger than the United States if such dependencies as Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet are included. For centuries China was almost completely isolated from the other centers of civilization by mountains, deserts, and seas. This isolation helps explain the great originality of China's culture. China has many mountain ranges and three river systems that rise close together on the high Tibetan plateau and flow eastward to

During the Tang Dynasty was China the most successful because they were known as the Golden Age of China. Firstly, the Tang Dynasty made important inventions and advancements that spread throughout the empire, such as the first ever wood block printing, an invention that allowed books to be printed in mass production, and helped increase literacy and to pass on knowledge throughout the empire. With the help of the invention, woodblock printing, it printed the Diamond Sutra, a text that is one of the most important sacred works of the Buddhist faith, which was founded in India. Another important invention was gunpowder. Although some people might argue that the other dynasties were the first to invent gunpowder, the Tang Dynasty was the first

the Northern Dynasty style. The mature period they produced many stone carving. Sui Dynasty has

While Qiu’s work depicts the prosperity of Suzhou in the middle era of the Ming dynasty, Zhang’s painting shows the daily life of people in Kaifeng during the Song dynasty. Qiu Ying’s buildings are more structured and grand, even the shops appear more spacious. The scenes in this painting represent an important page in Chinese history by combining the history and reality of a genre painting. So many landmark buildings in Suzhou are clearly recognizable which show the developed economy and traditions of the Ming dynasty and the artist’s own style. Qiu Ying uses the traditional blue-and-green style in this painting, leading to a beautiful picture which is filled with bright green mountains and clear blue

Chinese families are highly misunderstood and stereotyped in the United States. It is important to understand a different culture before one makes the assumptions produced by these stereotypes. In order to find a better understanding about Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans, one must do research on that countries heritage, traditions, and other customs before submerging one-self into a Chinese families home. I chose to experience and observe a Chinese family who was kind enough to let me be a guest in their home to share dinner.

China has about five thousand years history which is a very long period of time. Also, the Chinese civilization was growing with these periods of time and it will continues greater than ever. Many wars and unhappinesses were happening during this period. Although, the time has passed, the histories and the civilizations have not passed. These family virtues, serious, working attitudes, sense of justice and the great Confucian tradition have been deeply assimilated into the Chinese people. Some Chinese traditions are different from North American’s. The Chinese culture has many special characteristics which are very interesting for people to learn.

Paintings had little meaning compared to other arts such as sculpting and music. Artists turned to those arts to express themselves, and paintings rarely had meaning in them. China did not consider them very important compared to other civilizations.

When one comes into contact with a Chinese painting, the style is almost instantly recognizable. The attention to detail, craftsmanship, and vast depictions of elaborate landscapes appear to pay homage to mother earth in an attempt to reach a state of eternal balance with nature and life. Before this equilibrium could be achieved, one must attain internal discipline. This was required before one began mastering their brushwork in Chinese culture. In Mai Mai Sze’s “The Way of Chinese Painting,” 1959, New York: Vintage Books, Random House, Sze discusses the philosophy known as Daoism/Tao, or “the way.” Before one became a skilled painter, one trained in the personal disciplines of poetry, art, calligraphy, and internal