Crafting Early Modern China: Handicraft, Witchcraft and Statecraft

Catalog description

This course examines how Chinese cultural industry was shaped by socio-political institutions and religious practice between 1400 and 1900 CE. The course highlights the concept of craft, broadly understood as the ways of making artifacts and building social community by using environmental resources and through micro-political negotiations in everyday life. The course aims to equip students in ways to decipher the political, religious and gendered significance embedded in cultural products, including literature and decorative arts. We will explore artifacts from the following categories: literary illustration, painting and calligraphy, seals, ceramics, furniture, and textiles. Prerequisites: None.