A Glimpse of Chinese Culture Chapter 4 Arts

Calligraphy

Painting

Beijing Opera

本章教学的目的 1. 了解中国艺术瑰宝; 2. 有关艺术分类基本名词的掌握; 3. 进一步理解传承和保护中国传统文化的意义。

本章教学的重难点 1. 书法、绘画 2. 京剧与脸谱知识 3. 民间艺术 4. 有关传统与现代剧种的讨论

本章教学的时间安排 教师课堂讲解（60 minutes） 师生讨论 (10 minutes) 学生课件展示 (30 minutes) 1. Calligraphy and painting (20 minutes) 2. Traditional operas (20 minutes) 3. Folk performing arts (10 minutes) 4. Traditional musical instruments (10 minutes) 师生讨论 (10 minutes) 学生课件展示 (30 minutes)

Calligraphy and Painting (20 minutes) Calligraphy (10 minutes) Painting (5 minutes) Four treasures of the study (3 minutes) How to practice Chinese calligraphy (2 minutes)

How do you understand Chinese calligraphy? Chinese calligraphy is also called the art of lines. Calligraphy’s purpose is to retain the beauty of nature and illuminate man’s spiritual beauty. It stresses the overall layout and harmony between words and lines. The Chinese saying “The handwriting reveals the person” (字如其人), is directly related to calligraphy.

Strokes (笔画) of Chinese Characters There are 6 basic categories: dian—dot stroke heng—horizontal stroke shu—vertical stroke pie—curved stroke zhe—angular (角形的) stroke gou—hooked (钩形的) stroke

Chinese Radicals Strokes form Chinese radicals (偏旁) A radical is the prefix of the word. Some basic character components are standalone characters (独立成字), like “土” and “山”, but most are just parts of them.

The most complicated Chinese character ? The number of strokes within a single Chinese character ranges from a few to more than 30 strokes. Biang, 二声 (56 strokes )

Five categories of Chinese scripts the seal form (zhuan 篆书) the official form (li 隶书) the cursive（草写的）form (cao 草书) the regular form (kai 楷书) the running form (xing 行书)

The Seal Form (篆书) Soft lines of strokes and upright rectangular shape keep the seal form characters more close to pictography (象形文字). Each of the characters has a balanced and symmetrical (对称的) pattern.

The Official Form (隶书) It was the turning point in the evolution of Chinese scripts and is the foundation of the later script forms. It turned the remaining curved and round strokes of the seal form into linear (直线的) and flat square (扁方形) shapes.

The cursive Form (草书) This style of calligraphy is smooth and lively with strokes flowing and characters linking together. The characters are often joined, with the last stroke of one merging into the initial stroke of the next. It is executed freely and rapidly so that parts of the characters appear exaggerated (夸张的).

The regular form (楷书) It is still today’s standard writing. It is square in form, and non-cursive in strokes. Size: Larger Regular Form ( more than 5cm ) Smaller Regular Form (smaller than 2cm) Medium Regular Form (in-between)

The running Form (行书) The running form is somewhere between the regular and the cursive forms allowing simpler and faster writing. the running regular form 行楷 the running cursive form 行草

Famous Chinese Calligraphers in History Wang Xizhi —the sage of Chinese calligraphy The Preface to The Lanting Collection of Calligraphy （《兰亭集序》）

How do you understand Chinese Painting ? Chinese Traditional Painting refers to ink - wash painting (水墨画) Traditional Chinese paintings are not “purely” paintings. They combine fine art, poetry, calligraphy, and seal engraving to achieve an artistic unison (一致). Human figures, landscapes, flowers, birds, and pavilions are the most important themes of traditional Chinese painting.

Do you know any Chinese famous painters ? Xu Beihong

Qi Baishi

Four treasures of the study Four treasures of the study : brush , ink, paper and ink stone The best of each of these items is represented by: Hu brush (湖笔), Hui ink stick (徽墨), Xuan paper (宣纸) , and Duan ink stone (端砚).

Hu brush Hu brushes are produced in the city of Huzhou, Zhejiang Province. Made from the hair of a goat or wolf, they are round, neat, strong, and pointed. The goat hair is soft, suitable for the writing of big characters, while the wolf hair is hard, suitable for the writing of small ones.

Hui ink sticks Hui ink sticks are produced in Hui City, Anhui Province. They are made from the ash of burnt green pine from Mount Huangshan and then mixed with glue.

Xuan paper Xuan paper is a special type of high quality paper produced in Xuancheng and Jing County of Anhui Province. Made in an 18-step process from the bark of the wingceltis (青檀) tree and rice straw, the paper is snow-white, soft, durable, absorbent (吸收性的) and moth-proof.

Duan ink stones Duan ink stones were first introduced in Duanzhou, now are produced in Zhaoqing City, Guangdong Province. They have a fine, solid texture and a glossy sheen (光泽). Ink prepared in them does not dry quickly.

How to practice Chinese Calligraphy? Choosing a good copybook (字帖) is a good beginning. Different strokes are the first you should pay attention to. The regular form is usually taken as the standard form for beginners to practice because it is the basic form for other inscriptions. Furthermore, in order to develop this skill you must practice regularly and train hard.

“Eight Ways of Writing Chinese Characters”(永字八法) There is an old method passed down from generation to generation, practicing the character “永” repeatedly because it contains the eight basic dots and strokes.

Traditional Operas (20 minutes) Beijing Opera (10 minutes) Other Major Traditional Chinese Opera(10 minutes)

Beijing Opera Originally Beijing Opera was a form of local theatre. It then spread across the country and became the national opera of China. Singing, recitation, acting, and acrobatic fighting (唱、念、做、打) are the four artistic means and the four basic skills of Beijing Opera. Each action by the performer is highly symbolic. Feelings and ideas are often expressed through these symbolic motions.

Sheng, Dan, Jing, and Chou The characters of Beijing Opera are classified according to sex, age, disposition, profession, and social status. There are four major roles in Beijing Opera today: sheng (male), dan (female), jing (painted face, male) and chou (clown).

Sheng The sheng roles are generally positive and can be divided into laosheng (老生: elderly men), wusheng (武生: military men), xiaosheng (小生: young men), and wawasheng (娃娃生: children).

Dan Dan refers to various female roles, including laodan (老旦), qingyi (青衣), huadan (花旦)，wuadan (武旦) and caidan (彩旦).

Jing The Jing is a romantic, exaggerated Beijing Opera role. The characters are mostly cheerful, honest, gallant (豪侠的), and intrepid (刚毅的) men or treacherous (奸诈的) and cruel men.

Chou The chou characters are sharp-witted, clever, humorous, honest, and kind men. There are wenchou (文丑: comic civilian roles) who speak, act, and sing and wuchou (武丑: arcobatic fighting comic roles) whose performance involves both speaking and acrobatic fighting.

Facial Makeup and Costumes There are two ways to distinguish a character’s personality or role type. The first is to understand the color code of the painted face. The second is to distinguish the lines and patterns drawn on the face.

The colour code of the painted face Red defines loyal and upright persons Purple for loyal, brave, just, and noble characters Black face makeup for faithful, brave, and straightforward characters Green indicates stubborn, irritable (急躁), and not easily controlled characters

Yellow for fierce, brutal, and calculating characters White for imperious (专横的) and treacherous (奸诈的) people Gold-silvered faces for ghosts and gods A distorted face, drawn with asymmetrical (不对称的) lines, generally represents a villain (反派角色) or accomplice (同犯) or someone whose face has been wounded.

Other Major Traditional Chinese Opera (10 minutes) Kunqu Opera Shaanxi Opera Chuan Opera Yue Opera Huangmei Opera

Kunqu Opera Kunqu Opera is known for its gentle and clear vocals, beautiful and refined tunes, and dance-like stage performance. In 2001, it was listed in the Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO联合国科教文组织).

Shaanxi Opera Shaanxi Opera (秦腔), the oldest of all the Chinese operas that are still in existence today, is the typical opera of Shaanxi province. The Shaanxi Opera is of great fun and the elderly residents of Xi’an take particular delight in it even today.

Chuan Opera In the mid-18th century, in Sichuan Province and some parts of Yunnan and Guizhou Provinces, Kunqu Opera and High-pitched Opera (高腔) were commonly performed together with the local operas; Influenced by each other, they blended into a new opera category designated as Chuan Opera.

Face changes The technique of “face changes” is most often used in Chuan Opera. In some cases multiple layers of masks are torn away for each change in facial expression.

Yue Opera It is popular throughout Zhejiang Province and Shanghai as well as in many large and medium-sized cities throughout the country. The soft and gentle music of this opera evokes sentimental emotions, and the acting style is likewise graceful and refined.

Huangmei Opera Huangmei Opera has been performed for over 200 years. It is a local opera in Anhui Province and evolved from the “Caicha Tune” (tea-picking tune) of Huangmei County, Hubei Province. Huangmei Opera is easy to understand and learn because it employs simple words and literary traditions.

Yue Opera Yue Opera is one type of traditional local operas, popular in Guangdong and Guangxi provinces and in Chinese communities in South Asia and America.

Folk Performing Arts (10 minutes) Acrobatics Quyi Puppet Show Shadow Play Ghost-Exorcising Opera (傩舞)

Acrobatics Chinese acrobats have been successful in many international competitions over the years. As a result, foreign audiences have eulogized the art form as mythical and engrossing and China is playing a dominating part in acrobatics.

Quyi Cross-talk (相声) Clapper talk (快板) Storytelling (评书) Xiaopin (小品) Shuanghuang (双簧)

Cross-talk (相声) Cross-talk is one of the most popular and influential types of quyi. Its performance is characterized by talking, imitation, fun-making, and singing（说、学、逗、唱）. Satire is its main purpose.

Xiaopin Xiaopin are short, light comedies in the Huaju (spoken drama) style. About 15 minutes in length. The short, brisk, humorous, and often poignant comic skits have been regular popular items on Chinese television’s New Year Gala Show.

Puppet show Chinese puppet show combines elements of song, dance, painting, and sculpture. In puppet shows, actors or specially-trained operators manipulate the puppets in performances.

Shadow Play The performers manipulate colorful leather or cardboard figures whose silhouettes（侧面影像）are reflected on a screen by lantern light. A light is shone on to a screen, behind which performers operate the silhouettes while singing to the accompaniment of music.

Ghost-Exorcising Opera (傩舞) The Ghost-Exorcising Opera originated from a sacrificial ceremony for driving away evil spirits and pestilence (瘟疫) in ancient times.

Traditional Musical Instruments (10 minutes) Plucked Instruments (弦乐器) Percussion Instrument (打击乐器) Wind Instrument (管乐器)

Plucked Instruments (弦乐器) Pipa (琵琶) is an ancient plucked (拨动的), four-stringed instrument made of wood, with the fingerboard shaped like a melon-seed, and a long beautiful neck bent backward.

Zither (古筝) is also a plucked string instrument, and it is one of the main ensemble and solo instruments of traditional Chinese music. The present-day zither usually has 21-25 strings.

Erhu (二胡), sometimes known in the West as the "Chinese violin", is a two-stringed bowed musical instrument and is used as a solo instrument as well as for small ensembles and large orchestras.

Percussion instrument (打击乐器) Drum (鼓) is a percussion instrument consisting of a hollow cylinder or hemisphere with a membrane (表层) stretched tightly over the end or ends, and is played by beating the membrane with hands or sticks. Gong (锣) is a percussion instrument made of copper in the shape of a disk and beaten with a wooden hammer. Drums and Gongs are a general terms describing all sorts of percussion instruments.

Wind instrument（管乐器） Ceremonial horn (唢呐) is a woodwind instrument, with its mouthpiece made of brass, and its body made of wood. It has seven holes on the obverse (正面) and one on the reverse（反面） side of the tube. It can produce resonant sounds, becoming a principle wind and percussion instrument of folk bands.

Bamboo Flute (笛子) is a wind instrument made of bamboo, with a row of holes, bamboo membrane and a sound-adjusting hole. It is played by holding the instrument horizontally, covering the holes and blowing into one side. In ancient times, a vertical bamboo flute was called “xiao (箫)”.

Discussion (10 minutes) Which do you prefer, traditional opera or modern drama?

Students’ PPT Presentation (30 minutes) Group 1 Title Participants Presenter Presentation (10 minutes) Comments (5 minutes) Group 2 Title Participants Presenter Presentation (10 minutes) Comments (5 minutes)

Exercises Discussion topic for next class: What is your idea of a good teacher?