art of china Essay examples - 1219 Words

China has the worlds oldest living civilization. Its written history goes back almost 3,500 years, and the history told by its artifacts and artwork goes back much farther. The oldest known works of Chinese art include pottery and jade carvings from the time of 5000 BC. Jade is a general term used to describe either jadeite or nephrite, known as true jade. Its composed of several minerals. Its smooth and rich in texture, but its also extremely tough. It can be off-white, or dark green, and sometimes has a reddish tint. Authentic jade is cool and never translucent. The philosopher Confucius described jade perfectly when he said: quot;It is soft, smooth and shining- like intelligence. Its edges seem sharp but do not cut- like†¦show more content†¦Although other countries also created China, the pottery originated in Asia. French porcelain was inspired by the delicate white work from the Ting dynasty, and Clue and white Dutch Delft porcelain was modeled after pottery from the M ing dynasty. Pottery started out as functional, but became more ornamental as the centires continued. the themes of the painted and carved porcelain were mostly nature scenes, but they were also from folklore. Artrists originaly molded the clay with their hands and set it in the sun to try. Eventualy they began to use a potters wheel, and they used a glaze at the same time as the romans. During the Tang dynasty, Chinese pottery began to develop its own distict style. They used the first colored glazes, and underglaze painting. The best pottery came from the time between the Sung dynasty and the Ming times, when the King hired officials to work in his court strictly as potters. When these artists made mistakes in their work (cracks or drips), they used the mistakes to create a picture, such as turning a crack into a tree, or a drip into a teardrop. Although painting was not Chinas first form of art, it is probably the most important and dominating form today. Chinese paintings have always tried to capture philosophy as well as details. 1,400 years ago, Hsieh Ho, made six basic laws for painting, which artists in China still follow today. TheyShow MoreRelatedCommercialization Of Art And China2364 Words   |  10 PagesCommercialization of Art in China Introduction Commercialization of art is a global trend in the 21st century, which makes the artworks known to the public as everyone is able to see it in auctions, galleries and media. Commercialism in the recent days has an important presence in the 20th century and contemporary Chinese art market, since money is no longer an option while people are buying, selling, collecting and dealing artworks not only in China but also all over the world. In less than twenty-year’sRead MoreEssay about Arts and Recreation in Song Dynasty China1645 Words   |  7 Pagesstudying the rich history of arts and recreation in the Song Dynasty, it is evident that there were many newly pioneered practices that completely captivated the populous and became the epitome of several long-established genres. When one observes the progression of visual arts through the Song Dynasty, landscape painting established itself as the most prevalent and important of the multitude of forms in this genre. Close examination of entertainment reveals that the dramatic arts, with emphasis on shadow-puppeteeringRead MoreHow significant is feminist art in China and what is the future of it?1932 Words   |  8 Pagesintroduced into China during the May Fourth Movement and Feminist Art rose up in the Chinese contemporary art scene around 1990s. Chinese Feminist Art is not only different from traditional Chinese female art as it clearly emphasises on female characteristics, but also distinctive from western feminist art in the way that it embraces Chinese culture to the greatest extent. Unlike Western Feminist Art which is tightly attached to the ideologies of the feminist movement, Chinese Feminist Art does not haveRead MoreAn Analysis of Art in Ancient China, Rome, and Northern Europe2290 Words   |  9 PagesAn Analysis of Art in Ancient China, Rome, and N. Europe Introduction One thing is permanent about art throughout the ages and civilizations of time: it always expresses some aspect of the culture that produced it. So it may be seen in Renaissance Italy in Michelangelos David, or in Hellenistic Greece in the Dying Gaul. The Egyptian statue of Anubis reveals something about the spiritual belief of those ancient people, and the abstract expressionism of Kandinsky in the 20th century representsRead MoreThe History of Art951 Words   |  4 PagesThe uniqueness of Japanese art, especially in terms of Chinese art, depends on the historical era. As Lee (1962) points out, There are periods in Japanese art where the artist is either copying, or is heavily influenced by, Chinese art. At such times it can be said that Japanese art is a strong reflection of Chinese art, (p. 3). At other times, though, small differences between the arts of China and Japan are magnified to such an extent that they become fully developed and original styles, (LeeRead MoreComparing Chinese Imagery And Art1602 Words   |  7 PagesNeolithic cultures throughout China†(Heritage East Group, 2012). Chinese writing, lacquer, a substance that gives wood a polished finish and solidifies to form a hard and clear layer begins to be used in practise, with sculptures and pottery being produced. Additionally, animal themes, similar to the patterns used in bronze casting, like the use of the dragon can be seen, which later grow into what I believe, to be a very stereotypical idea of Chinese imagery and art. During this period technologyRead MoreHow Art Can Be Used As An Expansive Instrument Essay1433 Words   |  6 PagesArt can be used as an expansive instrument, as a passport to the public, and it opens up the people’s interpretative view and culture (Meldone, Sontag). Political art can pose as a threat to the government, because we see imagery as pieces of reality (Sontag). It can create a culture and can influence people’s ideals and acts. Mao Zedong recognized this and in his attempts to turn China around culturally, he needed the arts and intellectuals on his side t o influence the people of China. With thisRead MoreThe Chaos and Division of Asias History Essay1324 Words   |  6 PagesAsian history lead a unified conclusion that the past (history) of Asia was characterized with chaos and internal divisions. â€Å"China, once again entered an era of divisiveness and chaos. Competing warlords dominated China for the next 350 years† (The Golden Age of China: 79). China is a perfect symbol of Asia’s history because if studied from the past, the history of China demonstrates how divisions took place in the country’s political and economic spheres. China’s history reveals how the religionRead MoreJapanese And Japan s Influence On Chinese Culture751 Words   |  4 Pagesmissions to China; they established a trade and tribute based relationship. This initial relationship gave way to the later Chinese influence that would shape Japan. From these encounters, and maybe even from before, the Japanese developed a writing syste m similar to Chinese. In fact, according to Vogler, the earliest known examples of Japanese writing are proper names inscribed in Chinese characters. Nevertheless, Chinese influence didn’t just stop with language; it extended to art, literature,Read MoreEssay on Individuality in Korean Art1050 Words   |  5 PagesIndividuality in Korean Art Considering the ancient art of Korea, unfortunately, not much is known. The country of Korea has been constantly shaped and reshaped by existing civilizations, namely, China. Koreas vulnerability geographically, has made Korea constantly throughout history open to many influences- namely China. Despite this overwhelming influx of alien influence from China, Koreas art forms indeed had maintained its individuality. The Chinese and Korean peoples are very different;

Essay on 8 Ball Chicks by Gini Sikes - 1955 Words

8 Ball Chicks by Gini Sikes The book 8 Ball Chicks, written by Gini Sikes is a thrilling yet shocking book about girls in gangs. The book explains in horrific detail the roles and existences of the girls in these gangs. Sikes traveled to several different cities to experience the life of girl gangsters. She traveled to Los Angeles, San Antonio, and Milwaukee. Through these travels, she became immersed in the lifestyles of each gang and had first hand accounts on what it was like to be in a gang. Sikes met many girls whom she could not believe what had persuaded them to live like they did. Most of the girls wanted to just fit in with something, to have power or be safe. Sikes recognized that all these girls were victims of†¦show more content†¦They would call it a â€Å"train†. Most girls would choose that option. Once in a lot of these girls who joined gangs were basically viewed a sex objects. These girls would end up a pregnant at a young age . They were raped and beaten by their boyfrien ds. The abuse was endless , violence was just a way of life for them. By the end of the book some or most of these girls quit these gangs due to motherhood or the desire to want more. Here is one of their stories. TJ was a member of the Lennox gang and the â€Å"Play Girl Gangstas.† When TJ was in the 9th grade, her mother moved to Lennox for cheaper housing due to her parents split. TJ was a good student until she moved to the Lennox, because TJ didnt like her new school her grades dropped. When her grades dropped, she was put into lower classes. In these classes, she meet Lennox gang members and so became influenced by them. Soon some male gang members began to notice her because of her looks. She enjoyed the attention she received so soon enough TJ began partying and hanging out with the guys at night. She felt love in comfort with them. She met a guy named Shotgun ( who beat her up so bad once that she had endured a miscarriage), which in turn made her even more popular w ith in the gang. As a result of her growing popularity she had a choice either to join the Play Girl Gangstas or get beaten up. Soon after she wasShow MoreRelatedThe Book 8 Ball Chicks1979 Words   |  8 PagesEight Ball Chicks concise By Laura Anderson The book 8 Ball Chicks, written by Gini Sikes. It is a thrilling yet shocking book about girls in gangs. The book explains in horrific detail the roles and existences of the girls in these gangs. Sikes traveled to several different cities to experience the life of girl gangsters. She traveled to Los Angeles, San Antonio, and Milwaukee. Through these travels, she became immersed in the lifestyles of each gang and had first hand accounts on what it

The Meaning of Jazz in African American Culture Particularly free essay sample

The Meaning of Jazz in African American Culture Particularly In Harlem During the essays In the Baldwin story, sonny Blues, the author portrays African ;Americans In the urban life. Even though he writes about reconciliation of two brothers, who are trying to overcome their differences and to come to understand each other, the story shows the meaning of Jazz In African American culture, particularly In Harlem during 1950.The urban life in Harlem has being described by many authors, including James Baldwin. The life of an African American man in this place during the sasss was a disaster, faces and bodies were trapped in the darkness (Baldwin n. Page). It was a time prior to the Civil Rights Movement, the time of segregation and unjust. Baldwin writes about black and very poor neighborhood In Harlem, where people were struggling to survive in the racist society.The author describes Harlem as a place where the wages of sin were visible everywhere, in every wine-stained and urine-splashed hallway (Baldwin n. Page).. The living conditions were horrible and not safe: Safe, hell! (Baldwin n. Page). In the sass most whites and black middle class ad left Harlem, the crime and drug addiction rates were higher than anywhere in the United States.Baldwin portrays Harlem as a place where people can feel danger- in every clanging ambulance bell, in every scar on the faces of the pimps and their whores, In every helpless, newborn baby being brought Into this danger, In every knife and pistol fight on the Avenue, and In every disastrous bulletin: a cousin, mother of six, suddenly gone mad, the children parceled out here and there; an indestructible aunt rewarded for years of hard labor by a slow, agonizing death in a rebel small room; someones bright son blown into eternity by his own hand; another turned robber and carried off to Jail.Crime became real, for examplefor the first timenot as a possibility but as the possibility. (Shearer n. Page) The story explains that there was not much hope for black people living there to beat the limits that were placed on their opportunities. It was very difficult to survive as a human being, keep your own Identity and social morals In the society that tolerates racism and discrimination. Baldwin refers to young African Americans as These boys (Baldwin n. G) that were growing up with a rush and their heads bumped abruptly against the low ceiling of their actual possibilities (Baldwin n. Page). The author explains why they were filled with rage. All they really knew were two darkness, the darkness of their lives, which was now closing in on them, and the darkness of the movies, which had blinded them to that other darkness, and in which they now, vindictively, dreamed, at once more together than they were at any other time, and more alone ( Baldwin n. Gag). James Baldwin Sonnys Blues is being told by the one of the main characters brother, which the author never names. He teaches Algebra in school, in the same place, Harlem, where he and his brother 1 OFF strongly believes that if he works hard he can improve his living standards and save himself and his family through assimilation of the values of the white myth (Reid n. Page). The narrator tries to play a father figure to his younger brother Sonny after the death of their mother.However, when he realizes that Sonnys plans for the future are impractical Sonny wants to become a musician he criticizes him. The difference between brothers is in their perception of life. The narrator worries that is brothers goals are dangerous because Sonny doesnt want to follow the footsteps of someone elses success. Sonny believes that people ought to do what they want to do, what else they alive for(Baldwin n. Page). In the story Sonny leaves the respectful world of his older brother: first, he Joins the Navy and then he returns to live in Greenwich Village.He struggles to survive as a musician and remove himself from the misery of ghetto once he used to live in. The story portrays that the conflict between two brothers is more complex than it seems to be. Sonny tries to prove that living by another mans definition of success, or worse, being hemmed in by discrimination that deprives one true freedom, is like being dead. Music, art, and even drugs are avenues out of that social death, even as they are, in their own ways, dangerous or subversive (Class Lecture). Sonny becomes a drug user and gets arrested for possession of narcotics. Those who try to escape on the streets find themselves encircled by disaster (Baldwin n. Page). In his adolescence, Sonny succumbs to the streets and ends up hooked on dope and in prison (Filbert n. Page). Even though, Sonny tries to explain himself, the narrator chooses not to be involved. Later in the story he reconciles with his younger brother after the death of his daughter. The pain of loss made him more sensitive to his brothers feelings. The narrator in the beginning assumes that he has escaped the underclass(Baldwin n. Gag), but what he discovers later is that his younger brother is still stuck there addicted to heroin, and he will never find a peace until he saves him(Reid n. Page). What he begins to discover with Sonnys arrest and literal imprisonment is that he cannot free himself from responsibility for his brother. He is his brothers keeper and the vision that will make life and freedom from bondage possible is not the Platonic, Apollonian vision of his white brothers inheritance, but the vision that grows out of the darkness to which he is condemned.The darkness lived is transformed into the tragedy that is the story. The vision provides the experience of the spirit of the people in their finite struggle and transcends the death inherent in the bondage (Reid n. Page). One of the major themes in the story is music, especially jazz music in Harlem. The author shows that music is not only as a symbol of African American identity, heritage, and racial issues in society, but also as a means of communication between people. Historically Harlem is rich in history and culture. Throughout its development it has seen everything from poverty to urban growth (Hilliards n. Page). Many black people have migrated to this community, bringing with them heritage and traditions of their own(Hilliards n. Page). One of these traditions was music blues and spirituals. This tradition deeply rooted because of their African heritage provided a source of employment for on the Harlem streets, at house parties, bordellos, or Just about anywhere for a meal, a alular or two'(Hilliards n. Page).During these years many musicians who have migrated In the story Baldwin tries to explain why music plays such an important role for people living in Harlem. In the opening paragraph, the narrator reads about Sonny in the newspaper while riding the subway from Harlem to the school where he teaches: l stared at it in the swinging lights of the subway car, and in the faces and bodies of the people, and in my own face, trapped in the darkness which roared outside (Baldwin n. Page). The image of the narrators face reflected in the window of the subway car, along with the indication of the roaring sound of the darkness (Baldwin n. Gag), which implies that roaring sound is Jazz music, and the darkness is Harlem in which the story takes its place. Or else, the subway itselffor Baldwin words comprise a curious moment of kinesthesiacertainly points to the transience of the railway Juncture as unique to the matrix of the blues, they always already of African American experience and culture (Shearer n. Page). The authors description of the movement inside the subway suggests the rhythm of change, movement, action, continuance(Ticktack n. Gag) of the always anatomically wandering(Ticktack n. Gag) blues; however, the narrator of Sonnys Blues does not feel the unsure hope, the possibility of unrestrained mobility and unlimited freedom that, according to Class Lecture from the US Davis University, the railway once symbolized to African Americans (Class Lecture n. Page). In the story Baldwin proves that music for black people was one of the most powerful tools to help them to deal with the reality of everyday life, and throughout the story he makes it possible to see the presence of music everywhere. One boy was whistling a tune; at once very complicated and very simple, it seemed to be pouring out of him as though he were a rid, and it sounded very cool and moving through all that harsh, bright air, only Just holding its own through all those other sounds (Baldwin n. Page). After the narrator listen to a boy whistling a tune he meats one of the Sonnys friends, who James Baldwin describe being always high and rag'(Baldwin n. Page), they commence a conversation about Sonny, which argues about his fate, along with a Jazz music on the background.The main theme of the story is a conflict between two brothers and their attempt to come to understand each other. Therefore, the portrayal of the sass Jazz music scene illustrates a division in the black commu nity represented by the brothers themselves. The division within the black community can best be described as between those of middle class, like the narrator, who downplay the barriers to their success[ ] who would readily assimilate into white society if given the chance(Class Lecture n. Page), and Sonnys group more radical and less accepting of the status quo.They suspect that as blacks their struggles will always be fierce, and that, unless drastic social change were to occur, they will always be shut out from the privileges most whites enjoy (Class Lecture n. Gag). Therefore; music was the only way for many black people to be able to express their hopes, pain, frustration, or sorrows. They would not want to hide from them by denial, they would rather to confront their pain and except the real life. In the story Baldwin emphasizes that all these boys leaving in Harlem are not bad: they may be wild (Baldwin n. Gag), but never hard, or evil or disrespectful, the way kids can, so quick, so quick, especially in Harlem (Baldwin n. Page). Baldwin tries to make us readers understand that people overcome their sorrows and sufferings in different ways some through unaffected, but dangerous also. The author explains that years of struggle living as an oppressed minority can be reclaimed only through the creation of some sort of original art, in this case, blues music(Class Lecture n. Page). In the story Baldwin talks about the new movement in Jazz called Bebop.This movement was known as the music that was forced underground. The music shifted from dancing to listening. Bebop was also known as modern reflected the resentment black musicians felt over the rewards and benefits reaped by white big bands from swing developed by blacks (Hilliards n. Page). Sonny admires the new Jazz, mainly because it as not accepted by mainstream culture. He wants to play music that will challenge the conservative status quad (Class Lecture n. Page). The culmination of the story is when the narrator agrees to go with Sonny to hear him play.He finally comes into his younger brothers world and start to understand what the blues all about. They were not about anything very new for, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new, it must always be heard. There isnt any other tale to tell, its the only light weve got in all this darkness (Baldwin n. Page). Moreover, with the understanding of the Jazz music, the narrator realizes that it is imperative in life to be able to leave the shoreline and strike out for deep water (Baldwin n. Page).He witnessed that deep water and drowning were not the same thing (Baldwin n. Page). The author proclaims that music is the greatest tool to help people to heal from sorrows, to come to understand each other, to evoke feelings in both performers and listeners, and make them to except changes. The jazz music up there were keeping it new, at risk of ruin, destruction, madness and death, in order to find new ways to make us listen (Baldwin n. Gag). In conclusion, Music in Sonnys Blues, specifically Jazz music helps examine questions of heritage, society, and racial relations in America.