World Art Encyclopedia (Vol. 1-6)

Author: Zou
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-05-01
Features: "A people who have made cultural progress should, while implementing science education, also popularize art education." This was an appeal issued by Mr. Cai Yuanpei in his article "The Cultural Movement Should Not Forget Aesthetic Education" in 1919. In fact, the importance of art education for national quality had long been recognized by Mr. Cai Yuanpei. Two years earlier, in 1917, he proposed the idea of popularizing art education in his speech titled "Replacing Religion with Aesthetic Education," strongly advocating the dissemination of "pure aesthetic education" among the masses and pointing out the profound significance of implementing it for improving the national character. He also specifically outlined a beautiful blueprint for the spiritual civilization of the people, hoping that "everyone, regardless of who they are, has the opportunity to come into contact with art at all times." Mr. Cai Yuanpei's educational philosophy of making artworks "accessible to all" could not be realized in the old China plagued by internal and external crises, but it inspired generations of dedicated individuals to make persistent efforts toward this goal.
After the founding of New China, especially since the reform and opening-up, the material and social conditions for popularizing art education among the masses have been in place. The importance of art education has been recognized by governments and educational institutions at all levels, which view it as an essential component of quality-oriented education. Art education plays a vital role in developing people's intelligence and potential, cultivating their spiritual and moral character, and enhancing their overall quality—this has increasingly become a societal consensus.
Currently, in school education, the original art classes in primary and secondary schools have been expanded with additional class hours, while high schools have introduced art appreciation courses. Some well-equipped general universities have also offered elective courses related to art. Beyond the campus, in recent years, with the substantial improvement of people's living standards, the demand for a richer spiritual life has become increasingly urgent after material needs are met or at least partially fulfilled, naturally including the growing demand of the masses for art. Adapting to the demands of the times and promoting the popularization of art education and the enhancement of people's aesthetic qualities is the purpose of this book's compilers and publishers.
This is a large-scale publishing project to comprehensively and systematically organize the world's cultural heritage. The end of the 20th century marked the end of the paragraph in the 10,000-year history of human civilization. Before the threshold of the 21st century, everyone must obtain a visa to enter a new era. The basic qualification is to possess high quality, and aesthetic quality is indispensable. For the Chinese people, who constitute the largest population in the world, it is particularly unforgivable not to understand the artistic heritage of their own nation. We must cast our gaze back into the past, through the pearls of wisdom—artistic heritage—to appreciate the glory of art and absorb its nourishment. This is both a review of artistic heritage and a commemoration of its creators, as well as a sorting and extension of it.
This complete guide should hold special significance in the history of Chinese publishing. Using authoritative histories of painting, sculpture, architecture, calligraphy, folk arts, and applied arts as the historical framework, we have professionally categorized the classic works from different periods of artistic heritage, arranged them in chronological order, and constructed a comprehensive historical narrative. With images prioritized, mutual corroboration between text and image, and a combination of historical analysis and theoretical discussion, we have created a monumental work with 7,000 images and one million words, presenting a grand spectacle. Without this, it would be insufficient to reflect the depth and splendor of human civilization or to strongly reinforce aesthetic education through the charm of art.
The large-scale illustrated encyclopedia presented to readers has the potential to build a rich and vivid aesthetic education classroom, which would be a blessing for the Chinese cultural community of this generation. Mr. Cai Yuanpei's advocacy for making artworks accessible to all is fully realized here. We look forward to the participation of the readers to jointly promote the development of the art industry and the improvement of the aesthetic quality of the entire nation.