The art of portraiture in China

This online specialist short course explores how portraiture became an art form in the history of dynastic China, and why it still constitutes and important artistic genre today.

Portraits of emperors and empresses, intellectuals, artists and religious masters, amongst many other people, are analysed in detail to understand how portraiture carefully construes real and imaginary identities. Similarly, the course examines how the advent of new technologies such as photography created new systems of patronage and audiences, changing the way in which portraiture functioned in society. Finally, ‘The Art of Portraiture in China’  introduces some of the most exciting contemporary artists working within the boundaries of this genre today.

In addition to studying the different pictorial techniques that were employed in portraiture by artists and craftsmen throughout the history of China, the course also examines some of the fashion and material culture, settings and architecture depicted within these artworks. Intricate garments, lustrous porcelain, carefully appointed pieces of furniture, gardens and palaces were rarely innocent or random elements. They frequently connoted literary allusions to the discerning viewer which in turn embodied notions of gender, ethnicity and class. 

These elements created what we will call ‘the subject of portraiture’ in the context of this course. Attending ‘The Art of Portraiture in China’, therefore, provides a unique opportunity to not only get to know the different subjects that have been portrayed throughout the history of China but also understanding the performative function of fashion and material culture in the art of portraying.

This online short course is offered by the SOAS-Alphawood Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art and convened by Dr Mariana Zegianini (Lecturer in Art History, SOAS University of London).