CHINESE ART

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue CXXIII, 10 April 1937, Page 10

CHINESE ART

LOAN COLLECTION

LEGACIES OF ANTIQUITY

EVOLUTION TRACED

Bronzes, pottery, _and statuary, pieces of which were exquisitely fashioned by Chinese craftsmen many centuries before Christ, formed the basis of an instructive lecture today by Captain G. Humphreys-Davies, honorary curator of the overseas loan collection of Chinese art which is on display at the Dominion Museum. The absorption of outside influences' by the Chinese in their aft was discussed by the lecturer, who touched on religion, outlook, and burial customs in his tracing of the evolution of the art. . ; . The . lecture was given in the lecture hall, of the Dominion Museum. No one, said Captain HumphreysDavies, had a complete knowledge of Chinese history, but knowledge had gradually been.built up, and it all hinged on a knowledge of bronzes, about which very little was known. Displaying an example of bronze work from the Shang Yin period (1750 8.C.), Captain Humphreys-Davies said there was no such thing as a Chinese ornament. All articles made had a utilitarian value, and the Chinese workman .contented'himself with.ornamenting these. ■ ■:■:..- ■ . ■ ' .■ ' CHINESE OUTLOOK. The. Chinese, even today, could be three things at the same time—a Buddhist, Taoist, and a Confucianist. Buddhism was the only organised creed.' Taoism was the belief in spirits; spirits of Nature—the woods, winds, and flowers—spirits similar. to those often found; in, Scandinavian .mythology. Evil spirits such' as Europeans knew them did not exist. Confucianism was nothing but" philosophy. The Chinese outlook was entirely different from the Western outlook. A European's .conception was that everything went on. around him,' but a Chinese put himself outside mentally and looked in on the beautiful things of life without stressing the ugly features. In their paintings this difference of perspective was apparent. An artist would not takel out an easel and paint what he saw; he would spend hours and even; days absorbing the full beauty of the'scene, and would then conimit.it, not to paper, but to silk. ' '■■ '••' :... .- • V ' .' OLDEST TYPES KNOWN. ' Bronzes of the, Chou dynasty- .were the oldest types known. .It was /known that more than 2000 years ago the Chinese had mixtures of tin and copper for making various implements, plough-shares,' swords, drinking vessels, etc., the hardness depending on the proportions of the metals used. The-Chinese had for thousands of years, and probably would continue to do /so.for many thousands,of years, absorbed outside influences.,. They were ready to-...accept, them, but remained Chinese.- A .notable example was the effect of the art; of migrants from the Ordos.rSteppe, in Siberia. They-wer^ a pastoral, nomadic people, and their bronzes formed a phase.of the. Sino-Siberian development. A constant feature of , the :bronzes; was the use of animals for decorative purposes, and'a frequent, but not .constant, use of symmetrical designs, sometimes in a balanced-form. —■•-• A belt clasp from the Han dynasty, ornamented with two ; asses grazing, was shown as an example of the Ordos work. An exhibit of "unusual interest was a small bronze figure from the Tuan Feng altar dug up on the site of an ancient temple. This figure was from the Charles Rutherston collection, and the altar is. in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. The figure gave an impression of the utmost vitality. • Captain Humphreys-Davies described a portable censer made in 2500 8.C.. and went on to explain glazing methods used by the Chinese. , BURIAL CUSTOMS. The Chinese were very anxious when" their souls had* passed to heaven that they should have the same rights that they enjoyed on earth. Unlike the Japanese, '■ the Chinese did not appear to have a hell, but their heaven was the Western Islands; The first stage of burial customs was that when a man of standing died his wives, servants, and a. certain number:. of: his stock ,. were buried alive with him. La.ter, the wives were killed before burial, and a further development was the turn to representations. Amman's coffin would be ornamented with rfcpresentations of his earthly possessions so that when his soul arrived at the r Western Islands it cculd: revive, its memory by an inspection. of the representations and'then lay claim /to similar status in heaven.' ■ •' ." , ■ '<