Asian Arts Council 2024-25 - FY25 - General Meeting Lectures

The innovations in landscape painting that occurred during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) of Korea were explored by Allie Arnell, SDMA Docent, in True View Landscape Painting of the Joseon Dynasty. Prior to the Joseon period, Chinese culture and art were embraced by Korea, resulting in depictions of Chinese mountains in the landscape paintings of that time. With the advent of the Joseon, Korea’s interest grew in its own history and sacred places, especially the Diamond Mountains. Jeong Seon (1676-1759), known as the “father of true view” painting, repeatedly traveled to the Diamond Mountains to paint their riveting views of spiked peaks, plunging waterfalls and the boulder-strewn landscape, capturing not just their likeness, but their essence and the feeling of being a part of such compelling mountainscapes. His innovative style contrasted light and dark areas of the mountains, a birdseye panoramic viewpoint, and employed a series of vertical strokes to represent the vertical peaks and ink dots or short horizontal strokes to depict trees and plants. Later artists were influenced by his style and his ability to engender the longing to be in the presence of these mountains’ grandeur.

  Though Chinese art history has not included a formal genre of still life as in the Western tradition, depictions of fruit, objects of material culture such as knick-knacks or wealth such as antiquities, and flowers and plants as auspicious symbols have been portrayed with regularity in Chinese art. In her presentation of Treasured and Quotidian Objects: Still Life in Chinese Art, Heather Simmerman traced the aesthetic principles and examples of Chinese still life imagery from the Song dynasty (960-1279) to the modern/contemporary period.
  Early renditions of still life in China are found in Chan (Zen) Buddhist paintings from the Song period, which were used for meditation to gain intuitive insight “outside the scriptures.” Though flower paintings also originated with Buddhist art as representations of offerings, over the centuries flowers and plants acquired a rich range of associated meanings, largely from poetry, so scholar-painters (i.e. the literati) from the Song period and onward began to systematically exploit these possibilities for conveying meaning through their pictures. To satisfy growing demand from the prosperous middle class, urban studio masters in the Qing dynasty (1644-1912) updated and popularized the qinggong, 清供,”elegant offering” style of auspicious flowers and plants with added antiquities and scholar’s studio items in affordable prints for New Year wishes and other seasonal or personal well-wishes and gifts.
  Scholars appreciating antiquities were a popular painting theme during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasties, and featured displays of bronze antiquities, scholar’s rocks and studio implements, and other collectibles. Depictions of the objects became the sole focus of artistic renderings in various media with the “hundred antiques” pattern: porcelains, mixed media cloisonné and jade carvings on wood panel, a silk table valance, rugs, enameled teapots, opium boxes, and snuff bottles.
  Naturalistic ink and color paintings of flowers, plants, and rocks were created as far back as the Song dynasty in a style called xiesheng 寫生, or “painting from life.” Western techniques of three dimensional perspective and shading were introduced by Jesuit priests acting as imperial court painters in the late Ming – early Qing period. From the late Qing period, artists in China have embraced the still life motif, combining traditional Chinese stylistic elements such as the daxieyi freehand expressive brushwork with modern more vibrant colors and a focus on egalitarian rather than elitist objects.
  Heather Simmerman earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from Indiana University, then pursued a career in the biotech industry. In addition to being a Museum docent, and AAC Vice Chair, she has been accepted into the University of London SOAS-Alphawood program of study for the Postgraduate Certificate in Asian Art commencing Fall 2024.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here a month or two after the lecture is given.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here a month or two after the lecture is given. 

A summary of this lecture will be posted here the month after the lecture is given.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here the month after the lecture is given.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here a month or two after the lecture is given.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here the month after the lecture is given.

A summary of this lecture will be posted here the month after the lecture is given.