I I AS News| et t er [ #a [ Summer zoo6 z 8

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8
ooks on Chinoso visual cultuio
gonoially oxanino ono socilic
tino oiiod oi aichaoological oxcava-
tion, oi thoy tako tho loin ol an oxhili-
tion cataloguo. #PEZBOE'BDFJO$IJOFTF
7JTVBM$VMUVSF, howovoi, aioachos its
sulioct thonatically. Its analysis ol oi-
cotions ol lody and laco oxaninod
in z dilloiont ways ly as nany social-
ists in tho liold ol visual cultuio sans
Chinoso histoiy lion tho th contuiy
CE to tho iosont. Caso studios lasod
on aichaoological, visual and toxtual ovi-
donco intoi-wovon with anocdotal sto-
iios luio tho ioadoi lion ono oia to tho
noxt. Tho vaiiation in oia and aioach
nako loi an inloinativo voluno con-
taining ionaikallo insights into tho
ioality ol llosh and lono in Chinoso cul-
tuial histoiy.
Tho oditois onhasiso tho inoitanco
ol '...not sinly adoting Wostoin io-
concotions and discouiso in analysing
Chinoso ioiosontations ol lody and
laco`. Whilo tho 'lody and laco` in wost-
oin visual histoiy is soon as dovoloing
towaids tho ioiosontation ol individu-
ality, this look shows that Chinoso oi-
cotion disconnocts lody and laco lion
a oison`s individual loatuios, instoad
ioiosonting tho synlolic lunction ol
tho oison.
0SJHJOTPGBWJTVBMDVMUVSF
Tho ouost loi tho signilicanco ol lody
and laco logins in ait ono, 'Tho Roli-
gious Body`, and its ooning chatoi,
'On Tonl Figuiinos, Tho Boginning ol a
Visual Tiadition`, ly Wu Hung. Aichao-
ological ovidonco lion tho oaily oiiod
ol Chinoso civilisation allows Wu to givo
an ovoiviow ol scultuios doicting oi
ioiosonting tho hunan lody, covoiing
tho six contuiios lotwoon tho Zhou oii-
od and tho Han oiiod with its dynas-
tic tonls ol nollos. In tho oth contuiy
BCE, Conlucius citod tonl liguiinos as
a iocont dovolonont and donouncod
thoii liloliko loin that inliod hunan
saciilico. Wu, howovoi, aiguos using
iocont aichaoological ovidonco that tho
liguiinos woio sulstitutos: thoii 'onoi-
gonco. is associatod with a doclino in
hunan saciilicos` (.j.
Wu aiguos that changos in ioligious and
cultuial lilo aio iolloctod in tho vaiious
liguiino natoiials and sizos. Ho assigns
natoiial synlolisn a iolo in tho lalii-
cation ol tho scultuios whon ho aiguos
that 'tho uso ol thoso natoiials was not
lasod on individual choico lut dotoi-
ninod ly cultuial convontions` (.zoj.
Ho links tho Chu iogion in tho south
with wood and tho noithoin iogion
with ottoiy, lut I can`t hol lut wondoi
whothoi tho choico ol natoiial doond-
od noio on tho natuial onviionnont
and availalility ol thoso natoiials.
Wu`s caso study ol tho Fiist Enoioi
takos us anong tho gioat vaiioty ol aito-
lacts lound aiound tho tunulus ol Qin
Shihuang. Tho woild lanous toiia cotta
soldiois aio dosciilod in dotail, includ-
ing individual lacos and haiistylos
(.-;j. But Wu loavos tho ioadoi
with tho inago ol thousands ol soldiois
standing in lino as gioy toiia cotta ligu-
iinos (.oj, whon in lact thoso laigoi
than lilo-sizod scultuios ol anciont
waiiiois woio oiiginally aintod in lilo-
liko coloui, which would havo iondoiod
a totally dilloiont aoaianco. Wu also
loavos tho liguiinos` ioligious natuio
oon to ouostion.
3FMJHJPO
Roligion lays a noio ioninont iolo in
tho lollowing two chatois: Kathoiino R.
Tsiang addiossos visual asocts ol Bud-
dhist toxts, and Eugono Y. Wang locusos
on tho Fanon Rolics ol Tang couit lilo.
Thoso inagos aio undoultodly ioligious
in natuio and show tho doiction ol
tho Buddha as giadually shilting lion
ioiosonting his 'Tiuo Body` to a Bud-
dha ioiosontod in sconos lion his
lilo doictod on statuos in tho lato oth
contuiy CE. Wang aiguos, 'By idontily-
ing with tho Tiuo Body ol tho Buddha,
who is in lact lodiloss, noital loings
can inagino a sinilai stato ol loing loi
thonsolvos` (.8j. This nust havo loon
a voiy aoaling concot to Tang iulois
in thoii soaich loi innoitality.
Tho look`s socond ait, 'Body Inagoiy
and Soll-ioiosontation`, is concoinod
with a noio hunan asoct ol tho lody
and laco. Kathloon M. Ryoi iosonts
tho caso ol Xu Woi (z-oj, a aintoi
socialising in tho doiction ol llowois
and lants, whoso hysical and siiitual
disconloits taint his ionditions ol his
suliocts` loauty. Ryoi citos Xu`s oons
as ovidonco ol his illnoss and aiguos
that tho aintoi`s nind and hoait aio
diioctly connoctod to tho novononts ol
tho hand that oxioss his stato ol loing
diioctly on aoi.
Qianshon Bai conlionts us with 'Illnoss,
Disalility, and Doloinity in Sovontoonth
Contuiy Chinoso Ait`, and llanos tho
contios hoi aigunont aiound tho dilloi-
onco lotwoon wostoin and Chinoso iin-
cilos ol inago likonoss.
5IFQFSGPSNJOHBSUT
In tho louith and linal ait, 'Poiloining
tho Body and Faco`, 'Tho Piing ol Man`
ly Susan E. Nolson shows oxanlos ol
oolo doictod in a ainting as il thoy
aio listoning to tho wind. Accoiding to
tho Daoist toxt ;IVBOH[J, tho llow ol 'RJ`,
tho cosnic lioath, can lo iocognisod
in its owoilul nanilostation thiough
sound. Tho lonoly liguio ol a nan with
iotiuding lis whistling to tho sky is in
lact iactising connunication with tho
siiitual woild.
In tho linal chatoi Zhang Zhon dis-
cussos 'Song at Midnight`, a hoiioi liln
ioloasod in Shanghai in o;, which
tolls a stoiy ol lovo and loss aitly lasod
on 5IF 1IBOUPN PG UIF 0QFSB (ozj.
Whilo tho Chinoso oicotion ol sound
dosciilod in 'Tho Piing ol Man` doicts
nan in lalanco with natuio, Zhang
dosciilos tho oosito: haunting sound
ollocts cioato a shoio ol hoiioi and vio-
lonco. In oaily Chinoso liln, lody and
sound aio hysically soaiatod, locauso
tho lonalo actoi`s voico is in lact tho syn-
chionisod voico ol a nalo ooia singoi
laying a lonalo ait. Zhang convinc-
ingly aiguos tho inlluonco ol Goinan
oxiossionist cinona, whilo in his viow
'.tho visual stylo and tho acoustic con-
osition ol Song at Midnight".aio lai
lion a sinlo niniciy ol Hollywood`
(.oj.
In China, oaithly ioiosontation is olton
connoctod to tho suoinatuial, lut in
this look wo soo tho hysical tiacos ol
ast gonoiations in a down-to-oaith
way. Tho look`s contiast lotwoon Chi-
noso oicotion and wostoin oicotion
guidos tho ioadoi and iosonts a ioliosh-
ing, cohoiont oisoctivo ol Chinoso
visual cultuio. Tho voluno suiassos
what tho individual aois can achiovo
on thoii own, and tho chatois I havo
not nontionod aio lull ol intoiosting
aigunonts on tho thono ol lody and
laco. As a wholo, tho look nakos good
ioading loi anyono intoiostod in Asian
visual cultuio. It will also soivo 'wostoin`
ait histoiy as an oxanlo ol tho cuiiont
dovolonont towaids a noio glolal his-
toiy ol ait.

Luclen van va|en was a Fellow at IIAS in

zoozJzoo,. She recently Finished her PhD
at Leiden University with a thesis on '1he
Matter oF Chinese Painting, Case Studies oF
8th Century Murals'
L.van.valenOlet.leidenuniv.nl
wu Hung and katherlne R. 1slang, eds. zoo. #PEZBOE'BDFJO$IJOFTF7JTVBM$VMUVSF. Cambrldge: Harvard Unlverslty Press,
aa8 pages, IS8N o 6a o6 z
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3FQMJDBPGUIFQBJOUFETPMEJFSTBSFTIPXOBU
Iunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland GmbH
Museumsmeile Bonn, Friedrich-Fbert-Allee z
, Bonn, Germany
z April - z Iuly zoo6,
Xi'an Imperial Power in the AFterliFe
Burial Goods and 1emple 1reasures From China's Ancient Capital
Results oF German-Chinese cooperation in the Protection oF Cultural Property
Ming-Qing tiansition loi tho sonso ol
loss and hollossnoss in tho iooits ly
oots and calligiahois ol thoii hysi-
cal ailnonts. Physical iollons havo
layod a iolo in aitists` woik loloio, lut
in tho ;th contuiy thoy woio oxloitod
as notahois loi noial and onotional
issuos. By tho ond ol tho Ming oiiod
oxlicit clain ol hysical doloinitios in
calligiahy can lo intoiiotod as aliona-
tion lion tho loioign Manchu owoi.
Fion that oint onwaids, this concot
ol illnoss as notahoi is a iocuiiing
thono in Chinoso visual cultuio.
*OEJWJEVBMGBDFWFSTVT
SFQSFTFOUBUJPO
In ait thioo, 'Body-Faco Intoiactions
in Poitiaituio`, Jan Stuait considois
oitiaituio in 'Tho Faco in Lilo and
Doath, Minosis and Chinoso Ancostoi
Poitiaits`. Taking us lack to tho Ming
and Qing oiiod, Stuait outlinos what
distinguishos Chinoso oitiaits lion
tho wostoin standaid loi oitiaituio.
Tho wostoin aintoi is concoinod with
tho oxact likonoss ol a oison at a givon
nonont in tino. 'Unliko othoi cat-
ogoiios ol Chinoso oitiaituio`, Stuait
wiitos, 'ancostoi likonoss did not sook
to convoy a oison`s innoi siiit: iath-
oi thoy ainod only at tiansciiling tho
hoavon ondowod hysiognony ol tho
sittoi`s laco` (.zoj. It is not tho socil-
ics ol a oison, lut tho osition ol tho
oison that dolinos tho inago.
Tho inoitanco ol tho aintod ancostoi
is linitod ly custon: 'Whon iollod u,
tho oitiait was no noio alivo" than
a landscao ainting, lut iitual oi-
loinancos loloio a likonoss attiactod
tho siiit and onowoiod tho ainting
to iocoivo olloiings and in tuin ioci-
iocato ly llossing tho lanily` (.zoj.
Stuait concludos that thoso ancostoi
oitiaits aio cioatod as iitual oliocts
and disiovos tho notion that thoy all
look aliko.
Roloita Wu iovoals tho illuninating
stoiy ol a Chinoso hotogiahoi allo to
ioduco oitiaits ol his custonois with-
out using a canoia. Ho ossossod a laigo
sot ol nogativos lion which ho caiolully
soloctod tho nost litting likonoss. Piint-
ing tho ono ho thought was nost aio-
iiato loi tho occasion, ho iosontod tho
hotogiah to tho custonoi as a tiuo
inago. Hoio again, tho individual loa-
tuios ol tho oison soon loss inoitant
than tho uioso ol tho inago, and Wu
Archer wlth a green Face, tomb oF Qln Shlhuang,
Qln|lng mauso|eum, Qln Dynasty
zz- zo6 8CE, palnted terra-cotta,
z x 6o x ao cm.
{c) Museum oF the 1erracotta varriors and Horses oF
Oin Shihuangdi
1hree ma|e Flgurlnes, tomb oF Emperor jlngdl, Yang|lng mauso|eum, Han Dynasty zo6 8CE ~ zzo CE,
terra-cotta , 6z x o x o cm. {c) 1he Shaanxi Archaeological Institute
IIAS_NL#41.indd 28 23-06-2006 16:44:10