Author Description

With almost 4000 years of artistic evolution - from the Shang Dynasty to the end of the Ch'ing in this century - the Chinese boast a longer span of cultural history than any other race. The abiding influence of tradition is stressed by both authors. Confucian restraint and Taoist escapism, among other religious and philosophical ideals, are constantly re-appearing and the importance of Buddhism in Chinese architecture is evidenced in the text and illustrations. But side by side with the world of the mind, conditions of material prosperity are also revealed as potent forces in art.