Unit 6 Chinese Inventions, Art, and Culture

Inventions  Gunpowder- explosives, weapons, and fireworks: changed wars page 485  Perfected the magnetic compass used in navigation  Paper which led to an invention for printing books: woodblock printing, then moveable type Led to paper currency Led to paper currency

The Culture of the Chinese  A prosperous economy of the Tang and Song Dynasties allowed for a rich culture filled with the arts.  Paintings, statues, temples, ceramics, calligraphy, and poetry were among their skills.  The Song saw the triumph and success of Chinese landscape painting.

 Calligraphy artistic handwriting; took pride in their handwriting artistic handwriting; took pride in their handwriting  Porcelain Tang Dynasty perfected the art of making porcelain: ceramic made of fine clay that is baked at a very high temperature Tang Dynasty perfected the art of making porcelain: ceramic made of fine clay that is baked at a very high temperature

 Tang Dynasty known as the Great Age of Poetry Expressed a Daoist appreciation of the world- beauty of nature, changes of seasons, and joys of friendship Expressed a Daoist appreciation of the world- beauty of nature, changes of seasons, and joys of friendship  Song Dynasty known for Landscape Paintings  Did not try to portray places exactly- tried to capture the idea of mountains, lakes, and other scenes  Left spaces on purpose- to express the Daoists belief that a person cannot know the whole truth about something; people are also shown as small figures (part of nature, but don’t control it)

Chinese Landscape Painting- page 487  Sought balance and harmony through the mastery of simple stokes and lines  Deep rooted in the Daoist tradition  Sought to capture the spiritual essence of the natural world  Felt that in order to paint you must have a harmonious relationship between heaven and earth.  Landscape artists often included: misty mountains, delicate bamboo forests, lively scenes of city life, flowing streams, dark woods, rushing waterfalls, and wild horses in their paintings.  Example: “Travelers Among Mountains and Streams”

Assignment  Your job is to create a Chinese landscape painting.  You will be graded on: How accurate your subject matter is How accurate your subject matter is The title of your painting The title of your painting Creativity Creativity How well you incorporate the concept of “balance and harmony” into your painting How well you incorporate the concept of “balance and harmony” into your painting