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World of Art

Chinese Art

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At a time when interest in China has never been greater, this revised edition of Mary Tregear's authoritative survey of the Chinese visual arts will be welcomed by art lovers, travelers, and students alike. Generously illustrated and eminently readable, it covers not only bronzes, jades, calligraphy, and painting, but also Buddhist sculpture, ceramics, textiles, jewelry, lacquer, garden design, and architecture. For the revised edition, Chinese names, places, and terms have been romanized to current international usage. Throughout, information has been updated in view of new finds; there is a new introduction, and the final chapter on twentieth-century art has been completely rewritten. Includes a chronology of Chinese historical periods and six maps.

218 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1980

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Mary Tregear

17 books2 followers

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Author 6 books253 followers
June 16, 2017
More like a 3.5 review, this nice, compact, if sorely lacking little art history of the oldest civilization on the planet suffices nicely in certain respects. The narrative moves back and forth between painting and ceramics, with all-too-brief bits on architecture and other plastic arts. Moreover, the focus is definitely on the arcane periods, with the last three centuries wrapped up in a few very brief chapters. That's the books flaw. For all its great discussion of classical Chinese artists and their works, with a profundity of plates, modern art gets the bamboo shaft. Despite that gripe, it is otherwise a fine work.
Profile Image for Olivio Sarikas.
68 reviews7 followers
October 11, 2019
A very nice book to read. Lots of interesting details about chinese visual arts and their history. At some moments you wish there would be a bit more visualization, like a timeline or more often showing maps to give you a better idea where things are happening and which regions these art genres occupied in their time. But it's a fun read
Profile Image for vuhumên.
24 reviews
December 19, 2015
هنر چینی به گمانی کهن‌ترین رسم باقی‌مانده در جهان است و با پیوستگی عجیبی در طول تاریخ حفظ شده و بر خلاف غرب که ظهور و افول مکتب‌های کلاسیک را تجربه کرد، دستخوش تغییرات گاه به گاه و بنیادین نشد.
Profile Image for Andrew.
72 reviews3 followers
December 23, 2017
A pretty good brief history for a nation with such deep, ancient roots. I wish it couldn't have longer and a little less pedantic. I also wish books like this kept images in line with the text so the reader doesn't have to flip pages to remember what the author is referencing.
45 reviews
January 2, 2021
While now becoming dated and missing any genuine insight to the contemporary movements, it is nonetheless still a great introductory text to Chinese art history.
184 reviews3 followers
May 20, 2022
This was a reasonably comprehensive study of the topic, although being brief it couldn't do justice to everything. It is a great introduction if you are looking for some basic information.
Profile Image for michaela.
78 reviews1 follower
February 23, 2023
i returned this to the library halfway thru reading and it was kinda boring so idk
99 reviews2 followers
November 22, 2023
کتاب مفیدی بود و یه نمای کلی از هنر چین دستم داد. ترجمه خوب و قابل‌فهمی هم داشت. فقط کاش تمام تصاویر رنگی بودن.
Profile Image for ReadingWithMoses.
3 reviews
June 1, 2025
I didn't anticipate this work going into a great bit of detail considering its short length, so I wasn't too disappointed with it. This book is a decent introduction to the concepts written.
Profile Image for Cherry Lemonade.
11 reviews6 followers
May 9, 2013
A great book that covers everything considered art in China, including Neolithic pottery. I had the good fortune of using this as a textbook while I took Asian Art. Easy to read and understand for artists, art history lovers, and history buffs. You won't regret picking up this book. The book is nicely laid out and flows in chronological order with amazing pictures!
Profile Image for Lian.
13 reviews8 followers
April 24, 2016
Very useful book on Chinese art complete with photographs that work well and help to explain the finer points on of the fantastic descriptions on the Chinese artistic period styles.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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