- Hardcover: 415 pages
- Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (Nov 30 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0520227840
- ISBN-13: 978-0520227842
- Product Dimensions: 31.5 x 24.9 x 3.9 cm
- Shipping Weight: 2.7 Kg
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #2,183,952 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Taoism and the Arts of China, the catalog for a blockbuster show in Chicago, represents an explosion of recent research into Taoism, China's most important indigenous religion and one of the world's oldest mystical traditions. Western scholars and Chinese intellectuals have tended to regard Taoism as folk religion, colored by magic and superstition, yet it is based on a sophisticated philosophy dating back 2,500 years to the teachings of Laozi. Taoism has no supreme being, though gods and goddesses were invented to put a recognizable face on the infinite Void of the Tao ("the Way"). Matter and energy are regarded as interchangeable (as in modern physics).
To represent the art inspired by Taoism over the millennia, the Art Institute of Chicago brought together 151 ritual implements, paintings, sculptures, and documents from 50 national museums, temples, and private collections worldwide. These objects are divided into three sections in the catalog and used to illustrate Taoism's philosophical origins; its organization and ceremonies; and its development into popular religion. Lively captions explain the significance of each item; for example, a 2,000-year-old stone panel showing the supposedly historical meeting of Confucius and Laozi, after which an awed Confucius described Laozi as a dragon (a symbol of the Tao). Essays by five leading scholars place religious Taoism in the context of Chinese art and history--a complex task, lucidly handled. This is a landmark study. With popular Taoism rebounding in modern China, Taoism and the Arts of China presents truly pioneering scholarship, expanding our appreciation of a once unfashionable area of research. --John Stevenson
From Library Journal
Taoism is one of China's primary spiritual exports. Yet although yin and yang, one of its main concepts, seems to appear on every American street corner, average Americans know very little about Taoism. This catalog to an exhibition by Little, Pritzker Curator of Asian art at the Art Institute of Chicago, serves as a fabulous introduction to China's major indigenous religion by examining the iconography and function of works of art made to serve Taoism. The exhibition explores the beginning of Taoist philosophy in the late Bronze Age (fifth to third centuries B.C.E.) and the transformation of Taoism into an organized religion during the East Jin and Six Dynasties (317-589 C.E.). With contributions from a group of experts in the field, the exhibition takes an interdisciplinary approach that draws upon architectural history, religious studies, literature, cultural history, and the history of science to convey a new understanding of Taoism. Works of the highest aesthetic order have been selected and are handsomely displayed here. An example of serious scholarship, this book is recommended for large public and all academic libraries. Lucia S. Chen, NYPL
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A scholarly and informative historical artwork survey,
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Taoism and the Arts of China (Paperback)
Enhanced with 190 color illustrations and 50 b/w photographs, Asian art expert Stephen Little's Taoism And The Arts Of China is an impressive, erudite compendium of art from one of China's most ancient and influential philosophical and religious traditions. This scholarly and informative historical artwork survey begins with the Zhou dynasty (fifth to third century B.C.E.) down to the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). With insightful essays by Kristofer Shipper, Wu Hung, Patricia Ebrey, and Nancy Steinhardt, Taoism And The Arts Of China is a core addition to any personal, academic, or community library art history, Asian Studies, or Taoism reference collection. This superbly presented art history is also available in hardcover (0-520-22784-0).
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Magical Art of the Tao,
By Catherine Orpet (Fairfield, IA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Taoism and the Arts of China (Paperback)
The book Taoism and the Arts of China was compiled to accompany the first major exhibit of Taoist art, which I saw at the Art Institute of Chicago. These centuries-old works are astonishing. I couldn't get enough of the exhibit, and now I can't get enough of the book. Considerable scholarship went into both.The curators begin with the sage Laozi and his cognition of an unmanifest source of creation, which is called the Tao, or "way." As the collection progresses, the viewer sees the universal principle of the Tao enter the weave of Chinese culture. The teaching becomes visibly more elaborate and eventually the Way becomes a religion, acquiring deities, priests, rituals, and magic elixirs. Like an alchemist in reverse, the cycle of time takes a transcendent reality and turns it into the denser element of doctrine, right before our very eyes. Some say the artists that served Taoism mixed potent elixirs into the paints they used. Whether or not this is true, I couldn't stop looking at their work. I wish the printed page could capture the exquisite detail, color and charisma of the originals. Still, Taoism and the Arts of China achieves its purpose. I showed the book to friends at a dinner party. They huddled over it a while, then resolved to drive off that very night to reach Chicago by morning, the last day of the exhibit. It was the right idea. This art should not be missed.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews) 12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Magical Art of the Tao,
By Catherine Orpet - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Taoism and the Arts of China (Paperback)
The book Taoism and the Arts of China was compiled to accompany the first major exhibit of Taoist art, which I saw at the Art Institute of Chicago. These centuries-old works are astonishing. I couldn't get enough of the exhibit, and now I can't get enough of the book. Considerable scholarship went into both.The curators begin with the sage Laozi and his cognition of an unmanifest source of creation, which is called the Tao, or "way." As the collection progresses, the viewer sees the universal principle of the Tao enter the weave of Chinese culture. The teaching becomes visibly more elaborate and eventually the Way becomes a religion, acquiring deities, priests, rituals, and magic elixirs. Like an alchemist in reverse, the cycle of time takes a transcendent reality and turns it into the denser element of doctrine, right before our very eyes. Some say the artists that served Taoism mixed potent elixirs into the paints they used. Whether or not this is true, I couldn't stop looking at their work. I wish the printed page could capture the exquisite detail, color and charisma of the originals. Still, Taoism and the Arts of China achieves its purpose. I showed the book to friends at a dinner party. They huddled over it a while, then resolved to drive off that very night to reach Chicago by morning, the last day of the exhibit. It was the right idea. This art should not be missed. 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A scholarly and informative historical artwork survey,
By Midwest Book Review - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Taoism and the Arts of China (Paperback)
Enhanced with 190 color illustrations and 50 b/w photographs, Asian art expert Stephen Little's Taoism And The Arts Of China is an impressive, erudite compendium of art from one of China's most ancient and influential philosophical and religious traditions. This scholarly and informative historical artwork survey begins with the Zhou dynasty (fifth to third century B.C.E.) down to the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). With insightful essays by Kristofer Shipper, Wu Hung, Patricia Ebrey, and Nancy Steinhardt, Taoism And The Arts Of China is a core addition to any personal, academic, or community library art history, Asian Studies, or Taoism reference collection. This superbly presented art history is also available in hardcover (0-520-22784-0).
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