Lectures: MWF 12:10–1:10pm, 112 Houghton House

Office hours: Mondays 10:30am–12:00pm and Thursdays 2:45–4:15pm, or by appointment, in person or via Zoom

Course description:
This course will explore a thousand years of Chinese pictorial arts, from 907 to the end of imperial rule in 1911, focusing on painting, calligraphy, and printmaking. Calligraphy (which has a pictorial component) and painting are regarded as the highest art forms in the earliest Chinese histories of art, while prints are often connected to the publishing industry. Material will be presented chronologically, but broader topics will include why calligraphy is regarded as art; subject matter in Chinese pictorial arts, including figural topics and landscapes; art criticism and theories on painting; social classes of artists; and artistic patronage and collecting. No prerequisites or co-requisites. The course is cross-listed with Asian Studies.  It addresses two of the aspirational goals of the curriculum: a critical understanding of social inequalities (partially), and a critical understanding of cultural difference (substantially).

Learning objectives:
Students in this class will hone their critical thinking, research, and writing skills. In addition, they will gain practical skills useful in any study of art history, including an understanding of how meaning can be encoded in visual media and an understanding of works of art as historical artifacts that reveal current ideas on politics, religion, society, and culture. In addition, students will develop an understanding of Chinese pictorial arts as a creative endeavor with strong ties to literature.

Books (available in the Library):

• Barnhart, Richard M. et al. Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997. (REQUIRED; ISBN-13: 978-0300094473)
• Barnet, Sylvan. ed. A Short Guide to Writing about Art. 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson, 2015. (RECOMMENDED for students new to art history; ISBN-13: 978-0205886999)

Supplemental reading list:

• Bush, Susan. The Chinese Literati on Painting: Su Shih (1037-1101) to Tung Ch’i-ch’ang (1555–1636). Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1971. (excerpt)
• Delbanco, Dawn Ho. “The Romance of the Western Chamber: Min Qiji’s Album in Cologne.” Orientations 14, no. 6 (June 1983): 12–23.
• Fong, Wen C. “Northern Song Calligraphy: The Picture of the Mind.” In Images of the Mind: Selections from the Edward L. Elliott Family and John B. Elliott Collections of Chinese Calligraphy and Painting at The Art Museum, Princeton University, edited by Wen C. Fong, 74–93. Princeton: The Art Museum, 1984.
• Fong, Wen C. “Sacred and Humanistic: Five Hundred Luohans at Daitokuji.” In Art as History: Calligraphy and Painting as One, 215–70. Princeton: P. Y. and Kinmay W. Tang Center for East Asian Art, Department of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University, 2014. (excerpt)
• Four Song-era texts on Han Xizai, translated by Lara Blanchard.
• Hansen, Valerie. “The Mystery of the Qingming Scroll and Its Subject: The Case against Kaifeng.” Journal of Sung-Yüan Studies 26 (1996): 183–200. (available on JSTOR)
• Jing Hao. “Notes on the Method for the Brush.” Translated by Stephen H. West. In Ways with Words: Writing about Reading Texts in Early China, edited by Pauline Yu et al., 202–13. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000.
• Kraus, Richard Curt. Brushes with Power: Modern Politics and the Chinese Art of Calligraphy. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1991. (excerpt)
• Rossabi, Morris. “Kuan Tao-sheng: Woman Artist in Yüan China.” Bulletin of Sung-Yüan Studies 21 (1989): 67–84. (available on JSTOR)
• Strassberg, Richard E., trans. Enlightening Remarks on Painting. Pasadena: Pacific Asia Museum, 1989. (excerpt)
• Tsao, Hsingyuan. “Unraveling the Mystery of the Handscroll ‘Qingming Shanghe Tu.’” Journal of Song-Yuan Studies 33 (2003): 155–79. (available on JSTOR)
• Wong, Kwan S. “Hsiang Yüan-pien and Suchou Artists.” In Artists and Patrons: Some Social and Economic Aspects of Chinese Painting, ed. Chu-tsing Li, 155–58. Lawrence, Kans.: Kress Foundation Department of Art History, University of Kansas; Kansas City, Mo.: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1989.

Certain supplementary materials will be available via Canvas):

• Image sheets and other daily handouts will be posted in the folders Files | Handouts (parts 1 and 2).
• Links to supplemental readings will be posted in the folder Files | Readings.
• PowerPoint files will be posted in the folders Files | Image presentations (parts 1 and 2).
• Discussion questions that count toward participation will be posted on the Canvas Discussion Board.
• Assignments will be posted in the folder Files | Assignments.

Weekly schedule (please note: schedule may be subject to minor changes):

INTRODUCTION.

Aug. 23 (M).    Overview of the course.

Aug. 25 (W).    Approaches to Chinese painting.

• Richard M. Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997), 1–12.

Aug. 27 (F).   Understanding Chinese calligraphy.

• Richard Curt Kraus, Brushes with Power: Modern Politics and the Chinese Art of Calligraphy (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1991), 15–25, 45–52.

Aug. 30 (M).   Jing Hao and his “Notes on the Method for the Brush.”

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 92–93.
• Jing Hao, “Notes on the Method for the Brush,” trans. Stephen H. West, in Ways with Words: Writing about Reading Texts in Early China, ed. Pauline Yu et al. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000), 202–13.

Sept. 1 (W).   Tenth-century landscape styles in the south and north: Zhao Gan, Dong Yuan, Juran, Li Cheng, and Fan Kuan.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 93–102.

Sept. 3 (F).   An early cityscape: the Qingming scroll.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 102–5.
• Valerie Hansen, “The Mystery of the Qingming Scroll and Its Subject: The Case against Kaifeng,” Journal of Sung-Yüan Studies 26 (1996): 183–200 (available on JSTOR).
• Hsingyuan Tsao, “Unraveling the Mystery of the Handscroll ‘Qingming Shanghe Tu,’” Journal of Song-Yuan Studies 33 (2003): 155–79 (available on JSTOR).

Sept. 6 (M).   Research in art history.

Sept. 8 (W).   Religious and secular figure painting in the Song dynasty.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 106–14.

Sept. 10 (F).   Painting in the time of Emperor Shenzong.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 114–19.

Sept. 13 (M).   Calligraphy in the late Northern Song.

• Wen C. Fong, “Northern Song Calligraphy: The Picture of the Mind,” in Images of the Mind: Selections from the Edward L. Elliott Family and John B. Elliott Collections of Chinese Calligraphy and Painting at The Art Museum, Princeton University (Princeton: The Art Museum, 1984), 74–93.

Sept. 15 (W).   Painting in the time of Emperor Huizong.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 119–26.

Sept. 17 (F).   Night Revels of Han Xizai.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 110.
• Four Song-era texts on Han Xizai, translated by Lara Blanchard.

Sept. 20 (M).   Painters at the Southern Song court.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 126–33.
• RESEARCH PROJECT PROPOSAL due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

Sept. 22 (W).   Chan Buddhist paintings.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 133–37.

Sept. 24 (F).   Ningbo painting workshops.

• Wen C. Fong, excerpt from “Sacred and Humanistic: Five Hundred Luohans at Daitokuji,” in Art as History: Calligraphy and Painting as One (Princeton: P. Y. and Kinmay W. Tang Center for East Asian Art, Department of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University, 2014), 258–68.

Sept. 27 (M).   Loyalist painters in the Yuan.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 139–44.

Sept. 29 (W).   The politics of painting: Zhao Mengfu vs. Yuan court painters.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 144–50.

Oct. 1 (F).   The female painter Guan Daosheng.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 189–90.
• Morris Rossabi, “Kuan Tao-sheng: Woman Artist in Yüan China,” Bulletin of Sung-Yüan Studies 21 (1989): 67–84 (available on JSTOR).

Oct. 4 (M).   Daoist paintings in the Yuan.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 151–54.
• RESEARCH WORKSHEETS due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

Oct. 6 (W).   The Four Great Masters: Wu Zhen, Huang Gongwang, Ni Zan, and Wang Meng.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 157–60, 167–75.

Oct. 8 (F).   Natural subjects in Yuan painting: flowers-and-birds, bamboo, and plum blossoms.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 184–95.

(Oct. 9–12, FALL RECESS)

Oct. 13 (W).   Ming court painting: portraiture, landscapes, flower-and-bird painting.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 197–208.

Oct. 15 (F).   The Zhe School and the Jiangxia School.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 197–208.

Oct. 18 (M).   Literati painters of the Wu School.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 215–21.

Oct. 20 (W).   Professional painters Zhou Chen, Tang Yin, and Qiu Ying.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 221–27.
• FIRST TEST due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

Oct. 22 (F).   The art collection of Xiang Yuanbian.

• Kwan S. Wong, “Hsiang Yüan-pien and Suchou Artists,” in Artists and Patrons: Some Social and Economic Aspects of Chinese Painting, ed. Chu-tsing Li (Lawrence, Kans.: Kress Foundation Department of Art History, University of Kansas; Kansas City, Mo.: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1989), 155–58.

Oct. 25 (M).   “Impressionist” painters Chen Chun and Xu Wei.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 227–32.

Oct. 27 (W).   Dong Qichang and painting theory.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 232–36.
• Susan Bush, The Chinese Literati on Painting: Su Shih (1037-1101) to Tung Ch’i-ch’ang (1555–1636) (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1971), 151–79.

Oct. 29 (F).   Ming figure painting and portraiture.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 236–46.
• ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

Nov. 1 (M).   Ming printmaking and narrative illustration.

• Dawn Ho Delbanco, “The Romance of the Western Chamber: Min Qiji’s Album in Cologne,” Orientations 14, no. 6 (June 1983): 12–23.

Nov. 3 (W).   Writing workshop.

Nov. 5 (F).   Women of artistic families and courtesans in the Ming.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 246–49.

Nov. 8 (M).   Bada Shanren, monk painters, and responses to the fall of the Ming.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 251–58.
• RESEARCH PAPER DRAFT due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

Nov. 10 (W).   The paintings of Shitao.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 258.
• Richard E. Strassberg, trans., Enlightening Remarks on Painting (Pasadena: Pacific Asia Museum, 1989), 61–91.

Nov. 12 (F).   The Four Wangs at the Qing court.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 259–64.

Nov. 15 (M).   Gong Xian and masters of Jinling.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 266–69.

Nov. 17 (W).   Flower-and-bird painters: the family of Yun Shouping.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 264–66.

Nov. 19 (F).   Painters in 18th-century Yangzhou.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 273–81.

Nov. 22 (M).   Meticulous style of representing architecture and landscape.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 281–82.
• RESEARCH PAPER due via Canvas, 11:59pm.

(Nov. 24–28, Thanksgiving Recess)

Nov. 29 (M). Painting at the 18th-century courts of Yongzheng and Qianlong.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 282–85.

Dec. 1 (W).   Paintings of beautiful women.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 290–92.

Dec. 3 (F).   The Shanghai School.

• Barnhart et al., Three Thousand Years, 292–96.

(Dec. 4–6, Reading Days)

Dec. 7 (Tu).   SECOND TEST due via Canvas, 11:30am.

Communications:
I am happy to meet with you outside of class at a mutually convenient time, in person or via Zoom (see Office hours above). The best way to reach me to set up an appointment is by e-mail, but please note that I regularly read e-mail only between 9:00am and 4:30pm. If I need to contact students, I generally will do so via HWS e-mail and through Announcements on Canvas (see Websites below). You should develop the habit of checking both on a regular basis (I recommend doing so daily).

Attendance policy:
I expect you to attend class regularly; attending and engaging in class time with me and your peers is important for your learning. If, however, you need to miss a class (for reasons including celebration of your religion, athletic participation, field trips for a different class, or illness), I expect you to notify me as soon as possible.

In the event that you find yourself experiencing symptoms of illness, I request that you do the following:

• Stay home! This is best way to prevent spreading COVID-19 as supported by scientific evidence.
• Follow any guidance you may receive from the COVID-19 Daily Symptom Tracker.
• I expect that you will contact me to discuss missed coursework. In the case that you are not able to make up missed coursework by the end of the semester, we will need to consider options that may include a medical withdrawal or incomplete for the semester, which will be done in consultation with your class Dean.

In addition, those of us meeting in person all share responsibility for the health and safety of all in the classroom environment. Until further notice, all students, visitors, faculty and staff (regardless of vaccination status) must be masked when indoors during class times, teaching fellow hours, and when present in any building on the Arts Campus (Houghton House, the Davis and Solarium Galleries, Goldstein Family Carriage House, and the Katherine D. Elliott Studio Arts Center). Masks are freely available in all buildings on the Arts Campus and at Campus Safety and must be worn properly, fully covering the wearer’s mouth and nose. Please ask a member of the Art & Architecture Department faculty or staff for assistance if needed. Anyone who refuses to comply with this policy will be asked to leave the premises. We thank you for your commitment to the maintenance of a healthy work and learning environment during this time.

Be assured that I will do what I can to work with students to facilitate their successful completion of the course. I encourage you to contact me if you have questions or concerns.

Course requirements:

1.         Class participation (30%). This includes participating in discussions in class meetings and/or responding to questions on the Canvas discussion board. I grade participation weekly, as follows: A (95) for thoughtful commentary in class or on the discussion board that is analytical in nature or synthesizes material from readings and/or other classes; B (85) for answering a discussion question very briefly or in a way that suggests some misunderstanding; C (75) for being a passive observer of class discussions; D (65) for not paying attention or being disruptive or disrespectful in class; zero (0) for lack of participation in any modality.

2.        Research project (30%), with multiple assignments due throughout the semester, culminating in a paper (1200–1500 words) due Monday, Nov. 22, 11:59pm, via Canvas. For this project, you will analyze and research a Chinese painting dating between 907 and 1911. More details to follow.

3.         First test (18%), due Wednesday, Oct. 20, 11:59pm, via Canvas. This take-home essay exam covers material through Friday, Oct. 8. More details to follow.

4.         Second test (22%), due Tuesday, Dec. 7, 11:30am, via Canvas. This take-home essay exam covers material from Wednesday, Oct. 13 to Friday, Dec. 3. More details to follow.

Format for written work:
Please follow these guidelines when you write your papers and tests.

1. Type all work in a 12-point font.
2. Double-space.
3. Leave one-inch margins on all sides.
4. Number your pages.
5. Put your name and the date on the first page.
6. Check that your spelling, grammar, and punctuation are correct—these are crucial to effective communication of your ideas. Your grade will drop if you have excessive errors.
7. If you cite another source, you must use a.) parenthetical references or footnotes, as well as
   b.) a list of works cited, as explained in The Chicago Manual of Style (http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html), the documentation style typically used by art historians. (See A note about cheating and plagiarism below.)
8. Include pictures (with captions) of works of art that you discuss.

You can submit written work via Canvas. Please upload a Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx) or a Portable Document Format file (.pdf): these are the only formats that Canvas will accept. PLEASE NOTE: I do not accept papers via e-mail.

A note about cheating and plagiarism:
I will not tolerate any form of academic dishonesty. It destroys the trust that I have in you to do your best, it is unfair to the other students, and you will not learn anything if you resort to cheating. If I find that you have cheated on a test or on a written assignment, you will receive a zero for the assignment and I will contact the Deans and/or the Committee on Standards about your case. If a case goes to the Committee on Standards, I follow the Committee's recommendation; if it also finds evidence of cheating or plagiarism, the recommendation is usually failure of the course at a minimum.

Grading:
Tests and the research project assignments receive numerical grades. Class participation assignments will receive an A (95), B (85), C (75), D (65), or zero (0). If you are unsatisfied with a grade, please prepare a written statement explaining what grade you think you should have received and why, and submit it to me along with the assignment for review.

I mark down three points for each calendar day that an assignment is late. If you think you will need an extension, you should talk to me as early as possible before the assignment is due.

My grading scale is as follows:

The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL):
At Hobart and William Smith Colleges, we encourage you to learn collaboratively and to seek the resources that will enable you to succeed. The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is one of those resources: CTL programs and staff help you engage with your learning, accomplish the tasks before you, enhance your thinking and skills, and empower you to do your best. Resources at CTL are many: Teaching Fellows provide content support in 16 departments, Study Mentors help you manage your time and responsibilities, Writing Fellows help you think well on paper, and professional staff members help you assess academic needs.