Ten Thousand Things: Module and Mass Production in Chinese Art.

by Lothar Ledderose

A richly illustrated look at how Chinese artists have used mass production to assemble exquisite objects from standardized parts

Chinese workers in the third century BC created seven thousand life-sized terracotta soldiers to guard the tomb of the First Emperor. In the eleventh century AD, Chinese builders constructed a pagoda from as many as thirty thousand separately carved wooden pieces. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, China exported more than a hundred million pieces of porcelain to the West. As these examples show, the Chinese throughout history have produced works of art in astonishing quantities―and have done so without sacrificing quality, affordability, or speed of manufacture. How have they managed this? Lothar Ledderose takes us on a remarkable tour of Chinese art and culture to explain how artists used complex systems of mass production to assemble extraordinary objects from standardized parts or modules. As he reveals, these systems have deep roots in Chinese thought―in the idea that the universe consists of ten thousand categories of things, for example―and reflect characteristically Chinese modes of social organization.

Ledderose begins with the modular system par Chinese script, an ancient system of fifty thousand characters produced from a repertoire of only about two hundred components. He shows how Chinese artists used related modular systems to create ritual bronzes, to produce the First Emperor's terracotta army, and to develop the world's first printing systems. He explores the dazzling variety of lacquerware and porcelain that the West found so seductive, and examines how works as diverse as imperial palaces and paintings of hell relied on elegant variation of standardized components. Ledderose explains that Chinese artists, unlike their Western counterparts, did not seek to reproduce individual objects of nature faithfully, but sought instead to mimic nature's ability to produce limitless numbers of objects. He shows as well how modular patterns of thought run through Chinese ideas about personal freedom, China's culture of bureaucracy, Chinese religion, and even the organization of Chinese restaurants.

Ten Thousand Things combines keen aesthetic and cultural insights with a rich variety of illustrations to make a profound statement about Chinese art and society.

Genres: Art, China, History, Nonfiction, Art History, Reference, Academic

272 pages, Paperback

First published December 21, 1999

Reviews

[Mizumi · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a Japanese student, I had to take other courses in the South-East Asia department too, so I chose Chinese art and literature. This was the book for art, and I was surprised how much I enjoyed reading it. A generous amount of photos and illustrations help to visualize the artworks discussed, and I just have a thing for descriptions of how things are made. I suppose I could sell it, but I think I like this book on my shelf a bit too much for that.

[K W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course not without its controversies, Ledderose proposes a concept of mass production throughout the ages of Chinese Art production. Certainly an interesting read to perhaps understand a little more about Chinese culture (but with a grain of salt).

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started reading a few chapters for work. Professor Ledderose has an interesting thesis. Other projects have prevented me from finishing it for pleasure.

[Derrick Mccullough]

At first it was a little hard to follow. But for my art history course in Asian art this was a very interesting and helpful book and was detailed. I really enjoyed it!

[Dong-ning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great BOOK!!