The Classical Chinese Gardens as a Medium: Rethinking the Visual Transformation in Chinese Culture in the Twentieth Century

IF 1.1 4区 社会学 Q2 CULTURAL STUDIES
Qi Shen, Yan Liu
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe enormous diversity between the Chinese and Western cultures led to two different visual principles. Western visuality followed the perspective based on the retina, while the Chinese painters used the “far and near method” (yuanjin fa 遠近法). Before the twentieth century, the representation and dissemination of Chinese gardens at the visual level were dominated by traditional landscape painting. However, the Chinese gardens’ visual representation gradually shifted from traditional landscape painting to Western cartographic techniques (site survey and photography) after the Opium War (1840–1860). When studying the history of Chinese gardens, images provide a symbolic reference for interpreting the past of these gardens as crucial visual evidence. This article uses the visual evidence of classical Chinese gardens as a medium to reveal the influence and role of Western-centric theories on Chinese culture. Fundamentally, this paper attempts to analyse the impact of these changes on the inheritance of cultural memory from an intercultural and interdisciplinary perspective.KEYWORDS: VisualityChinese gardenlandscape paintinggarden surveygarden photography AcknowledgementsI would like to thank my colleagues and friends in CUHK for their comments and suggestions on my article.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Notes1 Mencius said, “When observing someone, there is nothing more telling than the pupil of the eye. In the pupil, one’s wickedness cannot be concealed. When one is correct within one’s innermost being, the pupil will be clear. When one is not correct within one’s innermost being, the pupil will be dull. If one listens to his words and observes the pupils of his eyes, what can a person hide?” See in (Mencius Citation2009, 84).2 In Zong Bing’s words, “Kunlun Mountain is huge, and (human’s) eyes are small. If the eyes are very close to Kunlun Mountain, then the shape of it cannot be seen. If there are dozens of miles away from Kunlun Mountain, the entire shape of the mountain will fall into the eyes. Because the farther eyes are from the landscape, the smaller shape painter sees, and the scenery will be contained within the range that the painter can see. Assuming a greater distance, the smaller the shape seen. Now we unfold the silk and draw the landscape in the distance. Then, such small silk can reproduce even the shape of high mountains like Kunlun Mountain and Langfeng Mountain (阆风山). If the painter draws a three-inch line vertically, he can express very high mountains; if the painter draws a few feet horizontally with ink, he can reflect a hundred miles away. When the painter looks at landscape paintings, the only thing he may be afraid of is that the painting skills are not good enough, but the scale will not affect the realism of the landscape images. It is a natural trend. Therefore, the beauty of Songshan and Huashan and the natural aura between heaven and earth can all be expressed in one frame”. This paragraph is translated by author, the original sentences see in (Zong, Wang, and Chen Citation1985, 5).3 “Our generation is born in this era, and fortunately, we have new materials from sites in addition to the materials on paper. Although our generation can supplement the material on paper with evidence, this material can also prove that some parts of the ancient book are records. The incorrect instruction of a hundred schools is not without a fact that only expresses one side. This double method of evidence can be done until today”. (Wang Citation1994, 1–3).
作为媒介的中国古典园林:对二十世纪中国文化视觉转型的再思考
摘要中西方文化的巨大差异导致了两种不同的视觉原则。西方的视觉遵循基于视网膜的透视法,而中国画家使用“远近法”(远进法)。20世纪以前,中国园林在视觉层面的表现和传播以传统山水画为主。然而,在鸦片战争(1840-1860)之后,中国园林的视觉表现逐渐从传统的山水画转向西方的制图技术(现场调查和摄影)。在研究中国园林的历史时,图像作为重要的视觉证据,为解释这些园林的过去提供了象征性的参考。本文以中国古典园林的视觉证据为媒介,揭示以西方为中心的理论对中国文化的影响和作用。从根本上说,本文试图从跨文化和跨学科的角度来分析这些变化对文化记忆传承的影响。关键词:视觉性中国园林山水画园林调查园林摄影致谢感谢我在中大的同事和朋友对我的文章提出的意见和建议。披露声明作者未报告潜在的利益冲突。孟子说:“观察一个人,最能说明问题的莫过于瞳孔。在瞳孔里,一个人的邪恶是无法掩饰的。当一个人的内心是正确的,瞳孔就会清晰。当一个人的内心不正确时,他的瞳孔就会变得迟钝。人若听他的话,观察他的瞳仁,还能隐藏什么呢?”参见(孟子引文,2009,84)用宗冰的话说:“昆仑山大,人的眼睛小。”如果眼睛离昆仑山很近,那么昆仑山的形状是看不见的。如果离昆仑山有几十里远,整个山的形状就会映入眼帘。因为眼睛离风景越远,画家看到的形状就越小,风景就会被包含在画家能看到的范围内。假设距离越远,看到的形状就越小。现在我们展开丝绸,画出远处的风景。然后,这样的小丝绸甚至可以复制高山的形状,如昆仑山和琅峰山(阆)。如果画家垂直画一条三英寸的线,他可以表达非常高的山;如果画家用墨水水平画几英尺,他就能在一百英里外反射。画家在看山水画的时候,唯一害怕的可能就是画法不够好,但比例并不会影响山水画形象的真实感。这是一种自然趋势。因此,松山和华山之美,天地之间的自然气场,都可以在一幅画面中表达出来”。本段由作者翻译,原文见(Zong, Wang, and Chen citation1985,5)“我们这一代人出生在这个时代,幸运的是,除了纸上的材料,我们还有来自现场的新材料。虽然我们这一代人可以用证据来补充纸上的材料,但这些材料也可以证明古书的某些部分是记录。百家不正确的教育并非没有一个事实,只是表达了一个方面。这种双重证据方法可以一直使用到今天”。(王引文,1994,1 - 3)。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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