Framed Traditional Asian Artwork
Traditional Asian Art originated in China with the Chinese who had two main styles of painting: Gong-bi and ink and wash paintings. Gong-bi is an expressive painting type that includes very precise details. It is a realist type of art that began during the Han Dynasty. It was specific to royal families because of the high expense to own the framed Traditional Asian art. Ink and wash paintings are better known as water paintings. These were very well known during the Song dynasty.
Paintings from the Han and Tang dynasties were known for their depiction of individuals, whether it was for a wedding, an everyday life activity, or a staged setting. However, landscape paintings became extremely prominent in the Song era with hills, rivers and the beauty of the country becoming the highlight of framed Traditional Asian art pictures.
Katsushika Hokusai experimented with several different styles of art, but is most famous for his landscape framed Traditional Asian art wall pieces. He was also exceptional at capturing the everyday lives of people in their culture. He used the most vivid colors in his landscape paintings that almost made them seem real. Utagawa Hiroshige was one of the last of his genre and was most famous for his landscape imagery and the use of birds and flowers in his paintings.
Traditional Asian art, such as Gong-bi, encompasses the similar rules as calligraphy in that the significance is on lines and the expression that the painting presents through shading, not how vivid the colors are and or how real the landscape looks. However, there are so many different themes throughout the periods of Traditional Asian art that are completely different and must be understood to truly appreciate the artistic composition of each painting.