Course Schedule and Catalog

Long Title: BUDDHIST AND DAOIST VISUAL CULTURES IN TRADITIONAL CHINA

Department: Art History

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Language of Instruction: Taught in English

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: This seminar explores the visual materials and their context that shed light on pre-modern China's Buddhist, Daoist, funeral, and other diverse religious and ritual practices. Topics of discussion include methodologies, Dunhuang Buddhist grottoes and "library caves," Daoist body and cosmos, images of heaven, hell and rebirth, art and ritual, multi-cultural aspects, patronage, tombs, printing, women, and so on. Through careful examinations of the proposed topics and assigned readings, students will develop analytical skills, critical thinking, and holistic views regarding the meaning, function, and style of the arts of diverse religious traditions, as well as people from different social and ethnic backgrounds who participated in the making, spreading, and use of religious visual culture in traditional China. Graduate Students will be assigned additional readings and be required to write a substantial research paper (20-25 pages, excluding footnotes). Students should have some background in Chinese art, history, or religions. Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: HART 323. Recommended Prerequisite(s): HART372/ASIA372, ASIA211, HART371/ASIA371 Mutually Exclusive: Cannot register for HART 623 if student has credit for HART 323.