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How to Read Chinese Paintings (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

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Author - Maxwell K. Hearn ... [Goo?] [Posters]

This Paperback Book item from Metropolitan Museum of Art was reviewed on 4-Nov-2008.

Search ISBN:0300141874 offer from Abebooks or used books from Alibris. How to Read Chinese Paintings (Metropolitan Museum of Art) Reference Book. Classifications : Criticism History & Criticism Arts & Photography Subjects Books Asian Regional History & Criticism Arts & Photography Subjects Books General History & Criticism Arts & Photography Subjects Books Gener . Click the following link to view the cover of How to Read Chinese Paintings (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

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1) Paperback Book How to Read Chinese Paintings (Metropolitan Museum of Art) by Metropolitan Museum of Art. I bought the soft cover edition of the book. At $16.50 (after discount), I feel it´s a good buy. The book is produced in a large format, and the paintings are reproduced superbly on good quality paper. There are 36 works (mostly paintings but also a few calligraphic scrolls) gleaned from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The earliest work is by Han Gan (active 742-56) and the last by Gong Xian (1619-1689). Most of the artists are represented by a single scroll, with the exceptions of Ni Zan and Zhao Mengfu, who have two and three works on display respectively. The paintings and calligraphy are first presented in its full format, with subsequent reproductions of close-ups to show details.

The text, however, is disappointing. It´s written mostly in a dry, academic style, and it hardly points the way to a deeper reading of the works of art. Most of the time it merely describes what´s in the picture. Buy the book to feast on its sumptuously reproduced scrolls but look elsewhere to learn how to read Chinese paintings.
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2) Paperback Book How to Read Chinese Paintings (Metropolitan Museum of Art) by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The Chinese often use the expression du hua, “to read a painting,” in connection with their study and appreciation of such works. This volume closely “reads” thirty-six masterpieces of Chinese painting from the encyclopedic collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in order to reveal the major characteristics and themes of this rich pictorial tradition. The book examines multiple layers of meaning—style, technique, symbolism, past traditions, and the artist’s personal circumstances—through accessible texts and numerous large color details. A dynastic chronology, map, and list of further readings supplement the text.

Spanning a thousand years of Chinese art, these landscapes, flowers, birds, figures, religious subjects, and calligraphies illuminate the main goal of every Chinese artist: to capture not only the outer appearance of a subject but also its inner essence.

Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 2-Dec-2008, 03001418749780300141870, 770-750-400-740-200-678-AMB-8

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