Art in China

China can boast a history of art lasting 5,000 years and embracing a huge diversity of images and objects - jade tablets, painted silk handscrolls and fans, ink and lacquer painting, porcelain-ware, sculptures, and calligraphy. They range in scale from the vast `terracotta army' with its 7,000 or so life-size figures, to the exquisitely delicate writing of fourth-century master...

China can boast a history of art lasting 5,000 years and embracing a huge diversity of images and objects - jade tablets, painted silk handscrolls and fans, ink and lacquer painting, porcelain-ware, sculptures, and calligraphy. They range in scale from the vast `terracotta army' with its 7,000 or so life-size figures, to the exquisitely delicate writing of fourth-century masters such as Wang Xizhin and his teacher, `Lady Wei'. But this rich tradition has not, until now, been fully appreciated in the West where scholars have focused their attention on sculpture, downplaying art more highly prized by the Chinese themselves such as calligraphy. Art in China marks a breakthrough in the study of the subject. Drawing on recent innovative scholarship and on newly-accessible studies in China itself Craig Clunas surveys the full spectrum of the visual arts in China. He ranges from the Neolithic period to the art scene of the 1980s and 1990s, examining art in a variety of contexts as it has been designed for tombs, commissioned by rulers, displayed in temples, created for the men and women of the educated ilite, and bought and sold in the marketplace. Many of the objects illustrated in this book have previously been known only to a few specialists, and will be totally new to a general audience.

柯律格（Craig Clunas）

英国牛津大学艺术史系讲座教授，中国美术史及物质文明史重要学者。曾任职于伦敦维多利亚与艾伯特博物馆远东部，长期负责中国艺术品研究及策展工作。2006年，因在中国文化和艺术史研究领域中的成就和贡献，被提名为英国人文社会科学院院士。著有《长物志：早期现代中国的物质文化与社会地位》《雅债：文徵明的社会性艺术》《明代的图像与视觉性》等。

刘颖

中央美术学院博士，现任教于成都大学美术学院，从事美术史教学和中国宗教美术研究。