Art of South and Southeast Asia Before 1200 Stupa and early Buddhist sculpture, narrative style and tribhanga pose Early iconography of the Buddha: from symbols to icon Buddhist Cave Shrines of Ajanta and Bodhisattva fresco Hindu sculpture and architecture: iconography of Shiva, and Northern Shiva Temple
Buddhist art - Not 1 but many Buddhisms - Originated in what is today India, then spread throughout Asia - In early forms (Theravada Buddhism, 5 th cent.bce), Buddha is a man. - As the religion changes (Mahayana Buddhism 1 st cent. CE), Buddha is deified - Doctrine of the Middle Way: avoid both pursuit of worldly desires and severe, ascetic discipline
Axis mundi, (connection Cosmic Waters-Celestial realm) 4 toranas at cardinal points railing Plan = diagram of the cosmos Great Stupa, Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh, India. Founded 3rd century BCE, enlarged c. 150-50 BCE, c. 60 feet diameter, h. 25 feet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6vut2v6rus SAMSARA
- Subject: Buddha s life - Buddha not portrayed in human forms but through symbols
Yakshi (fertility goddess) East Torana,mid 1st Century BCE, stone Early Life, East Torana,mi d 1st Century BCE, stone Artistic conventions? - open registers - Rounded volumes - Tribhanga pose:(tri-bent pose) oppositely curved at neck, waist, knee, the most graceful/sensual
Standing Parvati, Chola period (ca. 860 1279), Tamil Nadu, India http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ works-of-art/57.51.3
Seated Buddha 1st to mid-2nd century, Pakistan (ancient region of Gandhara), Bronze with traces of gold leaf, H. 6 5/8 in. 1st cent. CE: earliest images of Buddha Mahayana Buddhism (more social)! need of worshippers to establish relationship, Buddha substitutes the STUPA Iconography: - monk s robe, - yogic posture, - Bulge on top of the head = spirituality - Halo: light (Buddhahood = enlightenment) Contacts with Roman art (halo to represent Emperor, Roman toga) right hand in abhaya mudra (a gesture of approachability and reassurance)
Most common hand gestures: Setting into motion of the wheel of the law
Fear not
Meditation
Touching the earth
Standing Buddha Offering Protection, Gupta period, late 5th century, India (Uttar Pradesh, Mathura), Red sandstone, H. 33 11/16 in.
Frontal pose, Well-placed flat-footed feet, Feet well set on the ground, Body frame tall and straight, Arms that reach to the knees when standing, Genitalia withdrawn, Hairs on the head and arranged in soft curls that point to the right, Hairs of the body point upwards, Skin smooth and delicate, broad hands, Broad neck, Torso like a lion, Shoulders gently curved, Chest wide, Body circumference has proportions of a fig tree, 40 teeth rather than the normal 32, Long eyelashes, A bump on the top of the head, Elongated ears and earlobes, The Wheel of Law
Buddhist Cave shrines Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra India, 1 st cent BCE - 5 th Cent. CE http://whc.unesco.org/en/ list/242/video http://whc.unesco.org/en/ list/242/video
Chaitya hall interior, Ajanta Cave 27, Maharashtra India circa 475
Bodhisattvas 475 CE Details of mural in Cave 1 Ajanta fresco, Gupta period
SUBJECT MATTER: - Bodhisattva as prince - Bodhisattvas postpone the nirvana to help others achieve Buddhahood Bodhisattva 475 CE Detail of mural in Cave 1 Ajanta fresco, Gupta period FORMAL? tri-bent pose, clear outline, hieratic scale, overlapping, modeling Modeling/ chiaroscuro: in painting, the process of creating the illusion of volumes threedimensionality by use of light and shade
- Hinduism increasingly popular (as opposed to Budd.) during the Gupta period - But more ancient origins (no single founder or prophet); Based on Vedas texts (1200-800 BCE) mixed with many local beliefs http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=ix85uig86ra
Shiva: Lord of Existence, embodies the universe & represents creative energy Often depicted as Lord of the Dance Cosmic dance is the symbolic cycle of death/ rebirth, destruction/creation Composition: symmetry + a- symmetry, static + dynamic, frontal + profile " opposites iconography: Dances on the body of a dwarf symbolizing becoming Shiva Nataraja, 11th cent CE, bronze, ca. 27, Metropolitan Museum
right left Holds drum = rhythm of creation Holds fire = destruction
right left Points to dancing foot = promise of liberation Gesture: have no fear
Northern Temple: Kandariya Mahdeva Temple, Madhya Pradesh, India, c. 1000 CE, dedicated to Shiva tp://www.youtube.com/ user/ AsianArtMuseum#p/u/ 47/ circumambulation
Northern Temple: Kandariya Mahdeva Temple, Madhya Pradesh, India, c. 1000 CE, dedicated to Shiva
GARBHAGRIHA