by ART SUBJECT AREA
GO
by TIME PERIOD
GO
by COUNTRY / REGION
GO

Resources Organized by Time Period: 1000-1450 CE



Showing All Results (Text Only) | Back to 8 Results per Page
 
Amazing Tangka Stories
American Museum of Natural History
An Interactive website presenting two sets of Tibetan tangkas: Jataka Tales (past life stories of the Buddha) and Dipankara Atisha (famous Indian Buddhist monk). The tangkas are shown with their original Tibetan inscriptions and English translation(viewers can click on sections of each painting and see the story)The paintings that depict stories (avadanas) of exemplary people as told by the Buddha who fulfill the Buddhist ideal of the Bodhisattva, a person who always gives whatever he or she can to help others. Through such generosity, over many lifetimes, they will become enlightened. The Buddha tells each story and at its end he identifies the main characters in their present life, that is, as his own contemporaries. In some cases these are past life stories (jatakas) of the Buddha.

Go to Museum Resource: https://anthro.amnh.org/tangka_stories
 
The Artful Fabric of Collecting
Jordan Schnitzner Museum of Art, University of Oregon
Chinese textiles from the collection of Gertrude Bass Warner (1863-1951), who… was particularly drawn to silk textiles and the people who produced them, primarily the women in private households and commercial workshops. Techniques and patterns of weaving silk for Chinese robes are demonstrated on the site. It was only in the 17th century when the production of court orders began to overwhelm the imperial workshops that commercial workshops took over some of the production. In these commercial workshops, most of them located in the Jiangnan area, the center of China’s silk production, male weavers relegated women to the groundworks of silk production: the rearing of the silkworms and reeling the silk of the cocoons. Embroidery remained the domain of women. They were the master embroiderers who developed the art to its height in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Their legacy can be admired in the textiles from the Warner collection.

Go to Museum Resource: https://glam.uoregon.edu/s/fabric-of-collecting/page/welcome
 
Art of the Song Dynasty Lesson Plan - Head of a Bodhisattva
Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas
See site for lesson plans on this museum object.

Go to Museum Resource: https://spencerartapps.ku.edu/k12-lesson-plans#/k12/12731
 
Arts of the Samurai [PDF]
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
"The term samurai is derived from the word saburau, or “one who serves.” The evolution of the samurai from mounted guards to the nobility (during the twelfth century) and their subsequent ascent to military leaders of Japan (until imperial restoration during the nineteenth century) is chronicled in distinctive warrior arts and literary tradition. This packet examines the samurai through precious art objects from the museum’s collection. These include authentic military equipment (arms and armor), paintings depicting famed conflicts, ceremonial attire, and objects created for religious and cultural pursuits strongly connected with the samurai class."

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/ArtsofSamurai...
 
The Asian Art Digital Teaching Project: Japan
Columbia University, Media Center for Art History
A module for "classroom presentation or student study" of two important scrolls from the Kamakura Period – Illustrated Legends of the Kitano Shrine (Kitano Tenjin Engi) and Illustrated Sutra of the Miracles of Kannon.

Go to Museum Resource: http://www.learn.columbia.edu/nehasian/html/neh_geo_con_japan.html
 
A Brief History of Samurai Armor
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Learn about samurai armor in this video by exploring artworks in the Asian Art Museum’s collection.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/a-brief-history-of-samurai-armor/
 
Bu and Bun: The Arts of War and Peace
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
In addition to superior strategic and military ability, most elite samurai were expected to be versed in the cultural arts. The warrior’s ideal balance of military and artistic skill is captured well in this description of the sixteenth century daimyo Hosokawa Yusai (1534–1610): “Renowned for his elegant pursuits, he is a complete man combining arts [bun] and arms [bu]. A man of nobility, a descendant of the sixth grandson of the emperor Seiwa, he was a ruler endowed with awesome dignity and inspiring decorum…He built a splendid castle, which was majestic, beautiful and high…He discussed Chinese poetic styles and recited by heart the secret teachings of Japanese poetry…" See also Archery Practice.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/bu-and-bun-the-arts-of-war-and-peace/
 
Chado: The Japanese Tea Ceremony
The Cleveland Museum of Art
This lesson introduces students to the Japanese tea ceremony to consider the art and the tradition of the tea ceremony and study the serving pieces used in the ceremony by participating in a tea ceremony. Students will learn the importance of the performance of tea ceremony through the history of how it became what it is today.

Go to Museum Resource: http://www.clevelandart.org/lesson-plan-packet/chado-japanese-tea-ceremony
 
China: The Glorious Tang and Song Dynasties [PDF]
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
From a workshop for Teachers. During the Tang (618–906) and Song (960–1279) dynasties, the Chinese empire enjoyed a blossoming of foreign exchange as trade expanded along the Silk Road and sea routes. In this era China also witnessed the flourishing of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism and saw the development of porcelain making and reproduction printing. This packet examines the trade, commerce, religion, philosophy, literature and art of these dynasties. Student handouts include readings and activities on Tang and Song dynasty literature, art and science. See also China: An Introduction to the Tang Dynasty (618-906) and China: An Introduction to the Song Dynasty (960–1279).

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/glorious_tang...
 
Chinese Landscape Painting During the Song Dynasty
Princeton University Art Museum
“Landscape painting dominated Chinese painting beginning in the tenth century. The word for landscape painting in Chinese, shan shui hua, literally means “mountain (shan) water (shui) painting (hua).” Mountains are hard and unyielding; water is soft and fluid. These opposites are an example of the concept of yin and yang—the idea that everything in nature is composed of complementary but opposing forces that interact and change. Complementary opposites is one of several core cultural concepts of the Song dynasty that are encapsulated in many of the period’s landscape paintings.”

Go to Museum Resource: https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/asian-art/china/resources/landscape-painting/
 
Chinese Rubbings Collection of the Field Museum
Ackland Art Museum, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
For more than 1,500 years rubbings have been a vital medium for preserving China's art, culture, and history. These beautiful works are made by pressing thin sheets of wet paper into carvings or inscriptions cut in stone or other hard materials and carefully inking the surface to create a copy of the original. The resulting rubbing has white impressions where the paper was pressed into the carving surrounded by a typically black ink field. Because they are easily transported, rubbings quickly became the primary means to faithfully reproduce and share historical data, poetry, scholastic texts, calligraphy, and art throughout China.

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.fieldmuseum.org/node/4986
 
Choson Dynasty, 1392-1910
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"The rulers of the Yi, or Choson, dynasty (1392-1910) adopted Confucianism as their governing ideology and withdrew official support for Buddhism." A brief one-paragraph overview, with four objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/korea-choson-dynasty.cfm
 
Courtship and Calligraphy in “The Tale of Genji”
The Cleveland Museum of Art
The purpose of this lesson is to discover through an examination of The Tale of Genji and other Japanese literature, the importance of calligraphy to courtship rituals in the Japanese court culture of the late Heian period (794-1185).

Go to Museum Resource: http://www.clevelandart.org/lesson-plan-packet/courtship-and-calligraphy-tale-g...
 
The Development of Landscape Painting in China: The Song through the Ming Dynasties
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Invasions in the north by the Jin Tartars in the 12th century forced the Song dynasty to retreat to the south where a new court was established at Hangzhou in 1127. Under the Emperor Hui Zong the Imperial Painting Academy already was moving in the direction of closer views of nature, both in landscapes and in images of birds, flowers, and insects. The intent was to capture the vital life spirit of these subjects as well as an understanding of their true form, texture, and movement in space. See also Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) Education and Tradition.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/the-development-of-landscape-painting-...
 
Educator Resource Packet: Shukongojin
The Art Institute of Chicago
"The Art Institute’s figure of Shukongojin, with his demon-like body, flaring eyes, and mouth stretched in a scream, might have originally terrified an oncoming visitor to the temple he guarded, but might have also instilled a sense of protection and reassurance for the visitor who hoped nothing would disturb his meditations once inside. For the viewer today, Shukongojin looks down from his rock-like pedestal, imposing both a sense of awe and curiosity about the target of his aggressive presence. This teaching packet includes an essay, discussion questions, activity ideas, a glossary, and an image of the artwork."

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.artic.edu/collection/resources/educator-resources/34-educator-resou...
 
Exploring Chinese Painting: A Test Module for Undergraduate Teaching
Columbia University, Media Center for Art History
A workspace allowing students to view and compare a group of important Chinese hand scrolls and hanging scrolls from the 10th to the 17th centuries. Uses Flash.

Go to Museum Resource: http://projects.mcah.columbia.edu/nehasian/zoomify/scrolls/swf/start.html
 
Exploring the Qingming Scroll: What does an idealized image of society tell us? [PDF]
The Field Museum
In this lesson plan students will learn about the contradictions contained within the Qingming Scroll and compare it to present-day representations of idealized societies.

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.fieldmuseum.org/sites/default/files/qingming.pdf
 
Getting Started with Zazen (Seated Meditation)
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
In Zen Buddhism, zazen (pronounced: zah-zen) is a sitting meditation. Zazen is not focusing on a specific object or thought. Instead, it is the liberating of one’s mind of all thought into a state of emptiness (a complete emptiness that is also complete fullness) from which the practitioner hopes to experience spontaneous awakening to the inner self (enlightenment). Download Includes a glossary.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/getting-started-with-zazen-seated-medi...
 
Goryeo Dynasty: Korea’s Age of Enlightenment [PDF]
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Few people are aware that the name Korea is derived from the name of the Goryeo (previously tranliterated as Koryo) dynasty. It was during this period (918–1392) that Korea became known to the world outside East Asia. This packet provides an overview of aspects of Goryeo society and Goryeo Buddhism as depicted in the arts of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/GoryeoDynasty...
 
A Guide to Decoding Buddhist Symbols in Tibetan Art
Asia Society
“Buddhist thangka paintings are visually captivating and impressive — but there is more to them than meets the eye. Thangkas often focus on a specific deity and scene, and their form and surrounding details are often rich with symbolism, turning them into a medium for religious storytelling. Because of this, extracting all the intricacies and meanings from the paintings requires training.” Site has visuals of symbols with annotation on their meaning.

Go to Museum Resource: https://asiasociety.org/new-york/guide-decoding-buddhist-symbolism-tibetan-art
 
Heian Period, 794-1185
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"With the transferal of the capital from Nara to Heian-kyo (modern Kyoto) in 794, a new era began." A brief one-paragraph overview, with one object representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/japan-heian-period.cfm
 
Heiji Monogatari Emaki (Tale of the Heiji Rebellion) Scrolls with A Night Attack on the Sanjo Palace
Princeton University Art Museum
The Heiji disturbance, which occurred late in 1159, represents a brief armed skirmish in the capital. ...The Heiji scrolls date from the thirteenth century and represent a masterpiece of "Yamato" style painting. The scene appearing here, entitled "A Night Attack on the Sanjo Palace," is the property of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, provides an excellent introduction to the genre of picture scrolls. The scrolls read from right to left, and all action flows to the left. They can be documented as being treasured artifacts in the fifteenth century, when nobles mention viewing them, but they now only survive in fragmentary form.

Go to Museum Resource: http://digital.princeton.edu/heijiscroll/
 
History and Traditions of the Samurai
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Students will use images of samurai armor and weaponry to learn related vocabulary. They will describe the functional and aesthetic aspects of armor through focused viewing and reading, and they will draw conclusions about the changing code of the samurai over the course of 800 years. Download includes a lesson plan, a number of guides, and slideshows.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/history-and-traditions-of-the-samurai/
 
Illuminated Manuscripts: The Sacred Art of Narration
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Students will: 1.) Identify the format and elements of a sutra. 2.) Examine why sutras (the teachings of the Buddha) are important historical and religious documents. 3.) Analyze why the writing of sutras is considered an important religious act. 4.) Construct and illustrate an accordion book manuscript based on the sutra format used during the Goryeo dynasty. Downloads include Visual Guides, a Lesson Plan, and Teachers Packet.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/illuminated-manuscripts-the-sacred-art...
 
The International Dunhuang Project: The Silk Road Online
The British Library
The International Dunhuang Project is "a ground-breaking international collaboration to make information and images of all manuscripts, paintings, textiles and artefacts from Dunhuang and archaeological sites of the Eastern Silk Road freely available on the Internet and to encourage their use through educational and research programs." A truly comprehensive resource for teaching about the Silk Road; see especially the education section for pages on various topics, including Buddhism on the Silk Road, medicine on the Silk Road, and cultural dialogue on the Silk Road.

Go to Museum Resource: http://idp.bl.uk/idp.a4d
 
An Introduction to Japanese Buddhism
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Buddhism was officially transmitted to Japan in 525, when the monarch of the Korean kingdom of Baekje sent a mission to Japan with gifts, including an image of the Buddha, several ritual objects, and sacred texts. Buddhism’s journey from India to China, Korea, and Japan had taken about a thousand years. See also An Introduction to Japanese Buddhism video with Professor Robert Sharf, University of California, Berkeley, discusses Japanese Buddhism at the Medieval Japan Teacher Institute at the Asian Art Museum.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/an-introduction-to-buddhism-in-japan/
 
The Invention of Woodblock Printing in the Tang (618–906) and Song (960–1279) Dynasties
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Among the most globally significant innovations of the Tang and Song dynasties were the inventions of woodblock printing and moveable type, enabling widespread publishing of a variety of texts, and the dissemination of knowledge and literacy.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/the-invention-of-woodblock-printing-in...
 
Kamakura Period, 1185-1333
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"In 1185, Minamoto no Yorimoto proclaimed himself the Shogun (military dictator) of the country and moved the seat of government to Kamakura, a small village in Eastern Japan that gives its name to this historical period." A brief one-paragraph overview, with two objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/japan-kamakura-period.cfm
 
The Kitano Tenjin Engi Emaki
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
A multimedia learning website about a 13th-century Japanese handscroll that illustrates the legends of the Kitano Shrine (Kitano Tenjin Engi). Included are a short introduction to the Kitano Tenjin Engi Emaki and audio introduction to the pieces.

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/45428
 
Korean Celadons of the Goryeo Dynasty
Smart History
Celadons are ceramics with a distinctive green-blue glaze. The color, coupled with intricate inlaid ornamentation, are part of what has made Goryeo celadons desirable and recognizable objects for centuries. Korean potters adapted and refined celadon technology from China to create distinctively Korean ceramics revered by elites in Korea, China, and Japan alike.

Go to Museum Resource: https://smarthistory.org/korean-celadons-goryeo/
 
Koryo Dynasty, 918-1392
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"The last Silla king abdicated the throne in the early 10th century and married the daughter of the upstart General Wang Kon, who founded the Koryo dynasty (918-1392)." A brief one-paragraph overview, with two objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/korea-koryo-dynasty.cfm
 
Lesson Plan: The Silk Road [PDF]
The Art Institute of Chicago
Grades 7–10 English Language Arts, Social Science. See also The Silk Road History Lab.

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.artic.edu/assets/43d01149-b415-2110-9102-f39931e27c7f
 
Life in China: Tang and Song Dynasties
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
This unit includes interdisciplinary suggested activities and downloadable handouts for approaching this subject through skill sets applied across world history studies. Download student hand outs, discussion points, comparisons, and activities. See also a spotlight on the art object, Camel, approx. 690–750.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/life-in-china-tang-and-song-dynasties/
 
The Life of a Chinese Scholar
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Students will learn about Confucianism and Chinese scholar poets through exploring art and literature. Students will read the works of Confucius and see the effect that Confucian teachings had on Chinese government and culture.

Go to Museum Resource: http://www.clevelandart.org/lesson-plan-packet/life-a-chinese-scholar
 
Look for the Symbol in the Sculpture
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Uses a 12th-century wooden sculpture of the Japanese Buddhist deity Fudô Myô-ô to demonstrate the role of symbolism in art.

Go to Museum Resource: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1975.268.163
 
Ming, 1368-1644
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"The last of the outstanding dynasties, the Ming was vibrant during its first half but racked with internal discord during its second." A brief, one-paragraph overview, along with a map, a video clip featuring an MIA curator, and 129 objects from the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/dynasty-ming.cfm
 
Muromachi Period, 1392-1573
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"Following the fall of the Kamakura military government, the Ashikaga family established a new military a regime in Kyoto." A brief one-paragraph overview, with three objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/japan-muromachi-period.cfm
 
The Outsiders Inside: What does it mean to belong to a community? [PDF]
The Field Museum
In this lesson plan students will analyze the concept of “outsiders,” or ethnic minorities, in Chinese history through artifacts in the museum. They will connect the concept to present experiences.

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.fieldmuseum.org/sites/default/files/outsiders.pdf
 
Painting (during the Song and Yuan dynasties)
University of Washington, Visual Sourcebook of Chinese Civilization
"This unit covers not only developments in painting as a fine art, such as the development of landscape painting, but also looks at paintings for evidence of social life, both the commercial life of cities and private life at home." A Visual Sourcebook of Chinese Civilization was prepared by University of Washington history professor Patricia Buckley Ebrey. With questions for discussion, timelines, maps, and suggested readings. Select HOME to find link to teachers' guides for all topics featured on the website.

Go to Museum Resource: http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgintr.htm
 
Playing with Shadows: An Introduction to Shadow Puppetry
The Kennedy Center, ArtsEdge
"Discover the secrets behind the art of shadow puppetry in this multimedia exploration, designed for grades 5-8, which explores this age-old art form through animations, videos, interactive activities, and more." With questions for discussion and two related lesson plans (see left-hand column): "Puppets on the Move: China and the Silk Road" and "Shadows & Light, Science & Puppetry." Uses Flash.

Go to Museum Resource: https://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/multimedia/series/AEMicrosites/playing-with...
 
Puppets on the Move: China and the Silk Road
The Kennedy Center, ArtsEdge
This lesson is part of the unit: 'Teaching Shadow Puppetry.' Through map-making, research, and class discussions, students will gain an understanding of the dynamics of trade in China along the Silk Road and the role of trade in urbanization throughout the Han, Tang, and Song dynasties. The lesson will culminate in student-produced and student-created shadow puppet performances that demonstrate students’ understanding of Chinese culture during the days of the Silk Road and of the connection between trade and urbanization.

Go to Museum Resource: https://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/educators/lessons/grade-6-8/Puppets_on_the_...
 
Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China
Pacific Asia Museum of USC
"Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China is an educational and interactive exploration of how the Chinese elite in the Ming and Qing dynasties expressed status through insignia of rank and the robes and accessories that went with them. It draws on the extensive collections of the Pacific Asia Museum as well as several private collections." Includes a glossary of textile terms and symbols, a chronology, discussion questions, and a reading list. Teaching Unit at the link below. See also Introduction.

Go to Museum Resource: https://pacificasiamuseum.usc.edu/exhibitions/past/exhibitions-at-usc-pam-prior...
 
The Samurai (Vocabulary)
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
A guide to Medieval Japan and Samurai terms both online and as a download Word Doc.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/the-samurai-vocabulary/
 
Samurai Warrior Codes: Comparing Perspectives from the Kamakura, Muromachi, and Edo Periods
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
The term, bushido, is often used to describe the samurai warrior code during medieval and modern times. The definition refers to a late 19th century description and was actually quite different than codes from earlier times. Compare warrior codes from different times with the modern definition of bushido. Then, choose which code you think matches the samurai in the screen painting, the Battles at Ichi-no-tani and Yashima, from The Tale of the Heike. Downloads include a Lesson Plan, slide show, and Student Handout.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/samurai-warrior-codes-comparing-perspe...
 
Samurai War Tales: Battle of Awazugahara, from The Tale of the Heike
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Based on real events from the 900s to 1600s and then embellished over time to create powerful narratives full of good storytelling, sympathetic characters, and poignant and stirring events, War Tales provide information and insights into the lives of Japans warriors. The Tale of the Heike is among Japan’s most celebrated war tales. It traces the rise, brief glory, and fall of the Taira clan (also known as the Heike clan). “This scene illustrates an episode from the chapter 'The End of the Life of Kiso Yoshinaka' in The Tale of the Heike, a thirteenth-century recounting of the wars between two powerful clans, the Heike and the Genji (also called the Taira and the Minamoto).” Also see the video “The Samurai and the Storyteller” and Battles at Ichi-no-tani and Yashima.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/battle-of-awazugahara-from-the-tale-of...
 
Scrolls of the Mongol Invasions Annotated
Princeton University Art Museum
This site allows you to view individual scenes depicting the Mongol Invasions of Japan. Takezaki Suenaga, a warrior who fought against the Mongols in both 1274 and 1281, commissioned scrolls recounting his actions. This unique record of the invasions, and important eyewitness account, was heavily damaged in the ensuing centuries – according to lore they were even once dropped into the ocean! By the time of their rediscovery in the eighteenth century, the scenes and text of the scrolls were scattered into separate sheets. See also the partner site: Mongol Invasions of Japan - 1274 and 1281.

Go to Museum Resource: http://digital.princeton.edu/annotatedscrolls/
 
The Song Dynasty: China in 1000 CE, The Most Advanced Society in the World
Columbia University, Asia for Educators
In 1000, 1100, 1200, and 1300, China was the most advanced place in the world. Marco Polo (1254-1324) recognized this when he got to China in the late 13th century after traveling through much of Asia. In what is now Europe, this was the period now referred to as the “high” Middle Ages, which fostered the Crusades and witnessed the rise of Venice, the mercantile center that was Marco Polo’s home.A magnificent picture scroll painted by a Chinese artist in the 12th century provides us with a look at society and urban life in China during this time. **This scroll, which appears throughout this teaching module, is often referred to as the “Beijing Qingming scroll” because it is in the collection of the Palace Museum in Beijing. Painted during the Song dynasty by the artist Zhang Zeduan, this scroll is believed to be the earliest extant version of the famous Qingming shanghe tu 清明上河圖 (see 'Translations of the Qingming shanghe tu' for more about the translation of this title), of which there are many versions. Widely considered to be China’s best-known painting (it has even been called “China’s Mona Lisa”), this rarely displayed 12th-century scroll was briefly on view in Hong Kong in July 2007.

Go to Museum Resource: http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/songdynasty-module/index.html
 
The Spiritual Life of a Samurai: Meditation and Brushpainting
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
Students will discuss the ways in which spiritual belief supported and enhanced the military func¬tion and cultural values of the samurai. They will experience this practice through an ink painting activity. Downloads include lesson plan, slide show, and glossary. See also Code of the Samurai in Art and Literature.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/resources/the-spiritual-life-of-the-samurai-medi...
 
Sung (Song), 960-1279
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"Considered the third Chinese golden age, this complex dynasty was divided almost evenly into Northern (960 - 1126) and Southern (1127 - 1279) halves." A brief, one-paragraph overview, along with two maps (of Northern and Southern Song), a video clip featuring an MIA curator, and 72 objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/dynasty-sung.cfm
 
Symbolism in Cloisonne (Ming)
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
Students will be able to interpret the significance of the li (tripod) incense burner, both in its design and function.

Go to Museum Resource: https://asia.si.edu/learn/for-educators/teaching-china-with-the-smithsonian/les...
 
Takezaki Suenaga's Scrolls of the Mongol Invasions of Japan
Bowdoin College
This excellent interactive website is now hosted on Princeton University.

Go to Museum Resource: http://digital.princeton.edu/annotatedscrolls/
 
Technology and Tea Culture (Song)
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
Students will be able to identify, explain, and analyze the technique behind producing the tea bowl with “oil spot” glaze and relate this work to the cultural and historical context of tea culture in the Song dynasty as well as the Song’s Commercial Revolution.

Go to Museum Resource: https://asia.si.edu/learn/for-educators/teaching-china-with-the-smithsonian/les...
 
Temple, Palace, Scholar’s House: Three Settings of Traditional Korean Culture [PDF]
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
This packet introduces teachers and other readers to several traditional settings of Korean culture: Buddhist temples, palaces, and scholar’s houses, as well as Confucian academies where scholars were trained. These settings provide a framework or backdrop for many of the historical art objects on display at the museum.

Go to Museum Resource: https://education.asianart.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/09/Temple-Palace...
 
“Tree of Heaven” Hanging Oil Lamp (Java, Indonesia)
Princeton University Art Museum
14th-15th c. Bronze. “… The climbing figure may be related to figures climbing floral scrolls toward a man and woman riding a bovine found on other oil lamps of this period. This may represent an episode from a legend that has yet to be identified. The design of the present lamp could also represent a figure climbing the "tree of heaven" and reaching for the elixir of immortality.”

Go to Museum Resource: https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/asian-art/southeastasia/models/tree-lamp-model
 
Understanding Chinese Characters (Ming)
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
Students will how to write some Chinese characters and understand how Chinese characters are grouped together to create words.

Go to Museum Resource: https://asia.si.edu/learn/for-educators/teaching-china-with-the-smithsonian/les...
 
Ways of Seeing – Poetry and Painting (Ming)
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
Students will analyze and interpret works of art according to events, places, cultures, and historical periods. They will evaluate how social, cultural, and historical context contribute meaning in works of art and examine narratives in artwork and poetry.

Go to Museum Resource: https://asia.si.edu/learn/for-educators/teaching-china-with-the-smithsonian/les...
 
Wine Jar, with Fish and Aquatic Plants: China, early 14th c. Yuan Dynasty
The Brooklyn Museum
This jar is a masterpiece of fourteenth-century porcelain and an example of a naturalistic style of surface decoration that was gaining popularity in China at the time. The rich blue color is produced by cobalt-oxide pigment imported from western Asia via the Silk Road. The vessel was created not long after the Chinese had perfected the process of making blue-and-white ceramics. It was produced in the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen and was probably a gift for a government official. The fish is an auspicious animal in Chinese culture, and the carp in particular was considered lucky during the Yuan Dynasty, when this jar was created. Fish were kept in ponds for enjoyment and for food, and there are many Chinese myths and stories that include them as characters. The Chinese names of the four types of fish depicted on the jar—qing yu (black carp), bai yu (silver carp), li yu (carp), gui yu (perch)—sound like the Chinese words for “honest and incorruptible.” The lotus, a large, beautiful aquatic flower that often grows from mud, is a Buddhist symbol representing a human’s ability to overcome suffering. See also exhibition publication [PDF].

Go to Museum Resource: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/66256
 
Yuan, 1280-1365
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
"Mongol invader Genghis Khan and his hordes conquered much of Asia, including China; his grandson Kublai Khan established this dynasty, during which the Mongols reopened and expanded overland trade routes linking China, Central Asia, and the Mediterranean." A brief, one-paragraph overview, along with three maps (of the Mongol Empire, the Silk Road, and the Yuan Dynasty), a video clip featuring an MIA curator, and 20 objects representative of the period.

Go to Museum Resource: http://archive.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/dynasty-yuan.cfm
Showing All Results (Text Only) | Back to 8 Results per Page