Art and Political Expression in Early China [Hardcover]

Mr. Martin J. Powers (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0300047673 | ISBN-13: 978-0300047677 | Publication Date: January 29, 1992

Powers examines the art and politics of the Han dynasty (206 B.C. - 200 A.D.) and shows that both were influenced by the rise of an educated, non-aristocratic public who questioned the authority of the ruling class at all levels. The Han dynasty saw the establishment of many innovations in Chinese history and art, says Powers. As the first stable empire in China, the Hans incorporated a new bureaucratic system of government, implemented a meritocratic standard of official performance, and made available to commoners a greater number of resources and social prerogatives than they had ever had before - including freedom of political expression and social criticism. In this same period, Chinese art began to incorporate figure painting, narrative painting, and genre scenes for the first time, and landowners, lacking noble or official rank, began commissioning large-scale monuments that challenged rather than supported the status quo. Tracing issues of political expression in Han pictorial art, Powers examines the design and construction of local tombs and shrines, their mural schemes, subject matter, and style. He analyzes the rhetoric of social criticism seen in written work such as stone inscriptions, critical essays, and official memorials and shows how a similar rhetoric can be seen in the visual arts. Placing major trends in artistic taste within a narrative of political rivalries, Powers here reconstructs the existence and nature of a public that rejected the cultural standards of the feudal courts and established an alternative culture that influenced politics, taste, ideology and the visual arts.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 450 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (January 29, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300047673
• ISBN-13: 978-0300047677
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,854,854 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Eloquent Scholarly Study, November 28, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Art and Political Expression in Early China (Hardcover)

This is a beautiful look at one of the most fascinating periods of early recorded history.

The author, unlike many art historians, brings the reader to a real feeling for the works' affective impact on viewers then and now, and writes so beautifully that the subject matter becomes secondary to his overall sensitivity to art and human endeavor.

An original and eloquent book. In 1991 this book was named the best book in pre-twentieth century Chinese Studies by the Association of Asian Studies (AAS) in the United States and was awarded the body's Levenson Prize. Any reader, even a non-specialist, can enjoy it, however. If you cannot read the whole book, read a chapter... or a paragraph; or a short selection. The writing shines with sensitivity and a beautiful clarity of thought and expression.

The author's next published work, Pattern and Person, is forthcoming, and I greatly look forward to adding it to my collection of this scholar's writings.

5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A crucial work, April 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Art and Political Expression in Early China (Hardcover)

This is a crucial work of scholarship on early Chinese art. It overturns prior emphases in art historical methodology to examine issues of style and ornament. Powers is a very careful scholar, and his work will be regarded as seminal.