Outline of the Development History of Chinese Artistic Imagery: On the Relationship Between the Development of Chinese Aesthetic Consciousness and Artistic Imagery

Author: Chen Wei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-08-01
Features: The historical development of Chinese art has formed several historical types of artistic representations. These historical types of images both align with and diverge from the historical stages of aesthetic forms. , the image types of the pre-art period. The pre-art period is a general term referring to all image types produced before the era of artistic self-awareness—i.e., before works created solely for aesthetic purposes emerged. The pre-art period is not equivalent to the pre-aesthetic period. The emergence of consciously artistic works is a product of highly developed aesthetic spirit. Therefore, the boundary between the pre-aesthetic period and the consciously aesthetic period is much earlier than the boundary between the pre-art period and the era of artistic self-awareness. As previously mentioned, the dividing line between the pre-aesthetic period and the consciously aesthetic period—i.e., the early classical aesthetic form period—falls around the later feudal society period, corresponding to the Eastern Zhou period in Chinese history. After the formation of consciously aesthetic forms, they became the pursuit targets of Chinese people's social practice and aesthetic ideals, with basic categories such as "harmony" and "perfection" embodying these ideals. For a considerable period thereafter, under the premise of socially utilitarian practice, literary works, paintings, and musical works rapidly developed by taking aesthetic form requirements as ideal goals for practice. Although none of these works were created solely for aesthetic purposes, the images they contained gradually came to align with the spiritual essence of the early consciously aesthetic form—classical aesthetics.
Second, the image types of the classical art period. Continuous quantitative change inevitably leads to qualitative change. The continuous development of productive forces and the maturation of aesthetic forms ultimately ushered in the era of artistic self-awareness, marking the beginning of works created solely for aesthetic purposes and the creation of artistic images specifically designed for appreciation. This period roughly corresponds to the Wei and Jin dynasties in China. The arrival of the era of artistic self-awareness was primarily due to the development of productive forces, which allowed a segment of society to engage in activities unrelated to direct production and focus on artistic creation. During the Wei and Jin periods, after the large peasant uprising at the end of the Han dynasty and years of warlord conflicts that drastically reduced the national population and societal consumption, the ruling class, seeking to win hearts and consolidate their foundations, implemented policies of light taxes and reduced burdens, encouraging agriculture. This allowed society to support a group of members who did not directly engage in productive labor even in years without disasters.
Secondly, starting from Cao Pi of the Wei dynasty, the ruling class implemented the "Nine-Rank System" to curry favor with aristocratic clans, making it easy for scions of these families to obtain prestigious titles and generous salaries. However, the rulers remained wary of these aristocratic offspring, often keeping them idle while some of them, content with their wealth, had no desire to enter official circles. These idle individuals, among whom some were exceptionally talented, gradually developed into literary figures and artists who created works solely for aesthetic purposes. Prominent examples include Ji Kang, Xie Lingyun, and Zong Bing.
Third, the maturation of aesthetic activities led some people to separate their mode of understanding the world from utilitarian practice, transforming it into genuine works of art. Before the Wei and Jin periods, aesthetic activities were always intertwined with utilitarian practices, and the laws of beauty were primarily reflected in guiding socially utilitarian practices.