Editing Chinese art (section)

=== Period of division (220–581) ===

{{wide image|File:Gu Kaizhi 001.jpg|2400px|''Admonitions Scroll'' by [[Gu Kaizhi]] (348-405), heavily damaged after it was looted during the [[Second Opium War]]}}

==== Influence of Buddhism ====
{{Main|Buddhist art#China|l1=Buddhist art}}
[[Buddhism]] arrived in China around the 1st century CE (although there are some traditions about a monk visiting China during [[Asoka]]'s reign), and through to the 8th century it became very active and creative in the development of Buddhist art, particularly in the area of statuary. Receiving this distant religion, China soon incorporated strong Chinese traits in its artistic expression.

In the fifth to sixth century the [[Northern dynasties]], rather removed from the original sources of inspiration, tended to develop rather symbolic and abstract modes of representation, with schematic lines. Their style is also said to be solemn and majestic. The lack of corporeality of this art, and its distance from the original Buddhist objective of expressing the pure ideal of enlightenment in an accessible, realistic manner, progressively led to a research towards more naturalism and realism, leading to the expression of Tang Buddhist art.

<gallery widths="230" heights="230">
File:Mural Worshipping Bodhisattva.jpg|Mural from the [[Mogao caves]], [[Western Wei]], (535-556 A.D.)
File:Dunhuang mural flying apsarasa.jpg|[[Dunhuang]] mural, mid 6th century  
File:Sogdian whirl with large pipa.jpg|Buddhist cave art, a dancer spins while the orchestra plays. 
File:Vairocana, Fengxian Temple, Longmen Grottoes (10240207654).jpg| Vairocana, [[Longmen Grottoes]], 500-900AD
File:FireLanceAndGrenade10thCenturyDunhuang.jpg|An illustration of Sakyamuni's temptation by Mara
File:Grotta nr 158.JPG|Reclining Buddha, High Tang period 
</gallery>

==== Calligraphy ====
In ancient China, painting and [[calligraphy]] were the most highly appreciated arts in court circles and were produced almost exclusively by amateurs, aristocrats and scholar-officials who alone had the leisure to perfect the technique and sensibility necessary for great brushwork. Calligraphy was thought to be the highest and purest form of painting. The implements were the brush, made of animal hair, and black ink made from pine soot and animal glue. Writing as well as painting was done on silk. But after the invention of paper in the 1st century, silk was gradually replaced by the new and cheaper material. Original writings by famous calligraphers have been greatly valued throughout China's history and are mounted on scrolls and hung on walls in the same way that paintings are.

[[Wang Xizhi]] was a famous Chinese calligrapher who lived in the 4th century AD. His most famous work is the ''[[Lanting Xu]]'', the preface to a collection of poems. The script was often celebrated as the high point of the [[Semi-cursive script|semi-cursive]] "Running Style" in the history of Chinese calligraphy.

[[Wei Shuo]] was a well-known calligrapher of the [[Eastern Jin dynasty]] who established consequential rules about the [[regular script]]. Her well-known works include ''Famous Concubine Inscription'' (名姬帖 Ming Ji Tie) and ''The Inscription of Wei-shi He'nan'' (衛氏和南帖 Wei-shi He'nan Tie).

==== Painting ====
{{multiple image| align = right | direction = vertical | header = | header_align = left/right/center | footer = Mural paintings of court life in Xu Xianxiu's Tomb, [[Northern Qi dynasty]], 571 AD, located in [[Taiyuan]], [[Shanxi]] province | footer_align = left | image1 = Paintings on north wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width1 = 250 | caption1  = | image2 = Paintings on east wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width2 = 250| caption2  = | image3 = Paintings on west wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width3 = 250| caption3  = }}
[[Gu Kaizhi]] is a celebrated painter of ancient China born in [[Wuxi]]. He wrote three books about painting theory: ''On Painting'' (畫論), ''Introduction of Famous Paintings of Wei and Jin Dynasties'' (魏晉名畫記) and ''Painting Yuntai Mountain'' (畫雲臺山記). He wrote, "In figure paintings the clothes and the appearances were not very important. The eyes were the spirit and the decisive factor."
Three of Gu's paintings still survive today: ''[[Admonitions Scroll|Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies]]'', ''Nymph of the Luo River'' (洛神賦), and ''Wise and Benevolent Women''.

There are other examples of Jin dynasty painting from tombs. This includes the ''Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove,'' painted on a brick wall of a tomb located near modern Nanjing and now found in the Shaanxi Provincial Museum. Each of the figures are labeled and shown either drinking, writing, or playing a musical instrument. Other tomb paintings also depict scenes of daily life, such as men plowing fields with teams of oxen.

<gallery>

File:Funerary panels, from the tomb of Sima Jinlong, 484 CE. Datong, Shanxi Province.jpg|Funerary panels, from the tomb of [[Sima Jinlong]], 484 CE
File:Riders on Horseback, Northern Qi Dynasty.jpg|A scene of two horseback riders from a wall painting in the tomb of Lou Rui at [[Taiyuan]], Shanxi, [[Northern Qi]] dynasty (550–577)
File:China ceramics lotus vessel.JPG|Lotus-patterned vase from [[Northern Qi]], 6th century CE
File:Hangzhou Nansong Guanyao Bowuguan 20120518-08.jpg|Lion-shaped candle holder from Western Jin c. 4th century CE
File:Buddhist paintings Yungang.jpg|[[Northern Wei]] murals and painted figurines from the [[Yungang Grottoes]], dated 5th to 6th centuries.
File:Datong 146.jpg
File:Datong 145.jpg
File:Yungang cave9 dougong.jpg

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