Young woman on a horse, C8 1/2

Lyon, Musée Guimet. MA 6116 à 6121

This image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Joueuse_de_polo_Tang_Guimet_29101.jpg

Through four millennia of continuous civilization, China has had quite a few artistic golden ages. One is spoilt for choice! 

We are going to focus on five distinctive periods, starting with the astounding bronze art of the Shang and Zhou dynasties. We will go on to explore the artistic legacy of external contact and invasion, focussing in particular on the artistic responses to Buddhism and the development of calligraphy as one of the supreme arts.  

The later Sui and Tang periods are witness to a new mastery of figurative painting and sculpture as well as other cultural flowerings. The Song and Ming dynasties add further masterpieces, especially in ceramics and landscape painting. 

We will end our journey in the nineteenth century with China’s artistic responses to the domination of the West.

RJW F2434 Online course (via Zoom)

5 weeks, Monday 4 November - Monday 2 December

£65 (individual registration); £117 (for two people sharing one screen).