In this thesis, three chapters discuss the relationship between Chinese modern and contemporary art and the CCP. In my theoretical exposition, I argue that the artistic/intellectual subjectivity of modern Chinese artists gradually developed and changed during the conflict and struggle with the Communist rule.
In the first chapter, I introduce the biography and artistic creation of Chinese literati painters under the communist rule, exemplified by Wu Hufan吳湖帆. I analyze and demonstrate how the subjectivity of the traditional literati gradually lost strength under the pressure of nationalism, the disenchantment with modernization, and communism. In the second chapter, I focus on the Scar Art art movement of the 1970s to the 1980s, as well as representative artists and their works in this direction of art, such as Cheng Conglin程叢林 and Gao Xiaohua高小華. In this chapter, I use feminism and Foucault's political-philosophical theories to explain these visual expressions of the memory of historical trauma in Scar Art during this period. In Chapter 3, by discussing the works of two artists, He Gong何工 and Ai Weiwei艾未未, in the context of Foucault’s political philosophy, I argue that artists how to express their intellectual subjectivity and political resistance through their contributions to Chinese contemporary art.
from the Apocalypse, Saint Mary Magdalene from the New Testament, and the
Daughters of Mara from the Buddhist tradition are all accused of fornication or the
seduction of men. However, when artists have depicted these subjects, the women are
rarely shown transgressing in the ways the texts describe. The Great Whore is often
masculinized and shown as the equal of kings, Mary Magdalene assumes divergent
attitudes about prostitution in early Renaissance Europe, and the Daughters of Mara are
comparable to other Buddhist deities, recognizable only from the surrounding narrative.
Therefore, in this inquiry, I seek out the ways that artists have manipulated misogynistic
religious narratives and introduced their own fears, concerns, and interpretations.
Artistic deviations from the text indicate a sensitivity to cultural values beyond
the substance of their roles within the narrative. Both the Great Whore and her virtuous
counterpart, the Woman Clothed in the Sun, have agency, and the ways they are shown to
use their agency determines their moral status. Mary Magdalene, the patron saint of
prostitutes and a reformed sinner, is shown with iconographical markers beyond just
prostitution, and reveals the ways in which Renaissance artists conceptualized prostitution. In
the last case study, the comparison between the Daughters and the Buddhist savioresses,
the Taras, demonstrates that Himalayan artists did not completely subscribe to the textual
formulations of women as inherently iniquitous. Ultimately, these works of art divulge
not just interpretations of the religious traditions, but attitudes about women in general,
and the power they wielded in their respective contexts.
This dissertation explores the representation of female imagery associated with the Yuan pleasure quarters by examining a reservoir of Yuan sanqu. Previous scholarship has studied this topic using either historical material or zaju drama texts but has more or less ignored the voluminous corpus of sanqu. Furthermore, scholarly inquiries of Yuan sanqu either have emphasized its development from the Song ci lyrical tradition or its colloquial features. In consequence, the complexity of sanqu as an independent literary genre has been neglected. Using the representation of female imagery of the pleasure quarters in Yuan sanqu as an entry point, on one hand, this dissertation examines the dynamics of this urban and textual space. On the other, it focuses on rarely-studied sanqu pieces and analyzes them in a new light. The pleasure quarters and the production of Yuan sanqu are closely related to each other. In particular, the pleasure quarters are both revealed through the creative process of sanqu and have established sanqu as a distinctive aesthetic experience. The first chapter will focus on women of the pleasure quarters from the perspective of their hierarchical distinctions in terms of beauty, performative nature, and desirability as companions. Chapter two discusses the representation of women of the pleasure quarters in Yuan sanqu. Distinctive from the exclusive focus on privileged outstanding courtesans in poetic and lyrical tradition, Yuan sanqu depicted women from different registers of pleasure quarters. Thus, the genre formulated a diverse picture of images, rhetoric, and modalities. Chapter three examines a major literary tradition mainly sustained by the Yuan sanqu tradition, which is the story of Shuang Jian and Su Xiaoqing. As one of the most important and widespread literary traditions at play during the Yuan, Yuan sanqu writers’ representation of this pleasure-quarters-based story manifests the fulness and diversity of Yuan sanqu as a distinctive literary genre. In the epilogue, I focus on a zaju script by Ma Zhiyuan and an anonymous song suite in relation to this story. By so doing, I intend to show how Yuan qu lyrics incorporated the poetic, lyrical, and dramatic traditions in a somewhat promiscuous way.
Phoebus 6, Number 1: A Journal of Art History - Table of Contents
“Preface” p. 7-8.
“The Time of Qianlong (1736-1795)” by Wen Fong, p. 9-16.
“The Intellectual Climate in Eighteenth-century China: Glimpses of Beijing, Suzhou, and Yangzhou in the Qianlong Period” by Frederick Mote, p. 17-55.
“The Qianlong Emperor’s Skill in the Connoisseurship of Chinese Painting” by Kohara Hironobu, p. 56-73.
“An Overview of Stylistic Development in the Qianlong Painting Academy” by She Cheng, p. 74-90.
“Document and Portrait: the Southern Tour Paintings of Kangxi and Qianlong” by Maxwell Hearn, p. 91-131.
“Tangdai: A Biographical Sketch” by Ju-hsi Chou, p. 132-140.
“For the Love of God: Castiglione at the Qing Imperial Court” by Howard Rogers, p. 141-160.
“Approaches to Painting at the Qianlong Court” by Claudia Brown, p. 163-168.
“Notes” p. 169-198.
Phoebus 2: A Journal of Art History - Table of Contents
“Preface” by Jack Breckenridge, p. 3.
“Contributors” p. 4-5.
“Table of Contents” p. 6-7.
“The Problem of Antisolimenismo in Neapolitan Baroque Painting” by Donald Rabiner, p. 8-16.
“Mid-Fourteenth Century Painting in Suchou: Some Lesser Masters” by Claudia Brown, p. 17-30.
“A Re-Examination of the Cult of Demeter and the Meaning of the Eleusinian Mysteries” by Sherly Farness, p. 31-38.
“Arizona Portfolio” p. 39-53.
“Wooden Cross” by Mildred Monteverde, p. 40-43.
“Le Petit Tablier” by Rosalind Robinson, p. 44-47.
“La Réunion des plus Célèbres Monuments Antiques de la France” by Vicki C. Wright, p.
48-53.
“An Unpublished Rowlandson Sketchbook” by Anthony Gully, p. 54-74.
“Are We Ready for Shih-T'ao?” by Ju-hsi Chou, p. 75-87.
“A Conversation Between Adolph Gottlieb and Jack Breckenridge” transcribed by Jack Breckenridge, p. 88-96.
“Three Recent Art Reference Books” by Winberta Yao, p. 97-102
Chinese landscape painting has a long history and is one of the most practiced traditions in Chinese art. There are many different styles within this genre, from the larger and bold style of the Northern Song dynasty to the smaller, softer paintings of the Southern Song dynasty. Yang Yongliang is a contemporary Chinese artist that was born in 1980 in Shanghai, China. He was trained in traditional Chinese painting styles from a young age and, during his university schooling, he focused on digital art and graduated with a degree in Visual Communication. Yang combines these two distinct backgrounds in his art by creating pieces inspired by classical Chinese genres in a digital manner, using composite photographs. He creates different scenery by piecing small clips of pictures together to create one larger image. Yang takes the traditional style of work and changes it to comment on modern Chinese and global values. While many artists that focus on social or political messages create works that are not visually appealing, Yang has been able to create works that are powerful through their message while still being beautiful. Through his works, he successfully brings together both “New China” and “Old China” within every piece.
