grad505-12-bianca-blog

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Wk 12 - Essay writing Continued

This week I finished off writing my essay and prepared it for submission.

I decided to focus my last paragraph on just the Art Deco movement rather than both that and the New Life movement because the two points weren’t connecting well. I felt that the Art Deco was a much stronger point as I had more research information on it. 

I used this image from the book “Chinese Graphic Design in the Twentieth Century” as it is a clear example of Art Deco inspired work with the bold lines and geometric shapes, as well as the intense colours.

I found referencing images to be really difficult because I was unsure if I was supposed to reference them as images or figures. When I searched online for examples, I got more confused because they all said something different. I ended up referencing using the example provided by AUT. 

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Wk 11 - Essay writing continued

This week we continued writing our essays, but we used the study technique which involved writing for 20min followed by a 5min break. My goal for that session was to finish my second paragraph, however I didn’t achieve this goal. Personally, this technique didn’t work for me because I kept getting distracted and wasting time finding research that wasn’t helpful for my essay. It was also difficult having my research in different places because often I couldn’t find the information or quote I was looking for which led time time wasting. Next time I would put all my information on one document so its all together and easy to find.

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Wk 10 - Essay writing

This week we reviewed each others essay and gave them feedback. My feedback was to expand on Art Deco and how it’s influence was evident in design throughout China.

Art Deco Research

“the intention (for Art Deco) was to create a sleek and anti-traditional elegance that symbolized wealth and sophistication.” 

“The distinguishing features of the style are simple, clean shapes, often with a “streamlined” look; ornament that is geometric or stylized from representational forms; and unusually varied, often expensive materials, which frequently include man-made substances (plastics, especially Bakelite; vita-glass; and ferroconcrete) in addition to natural ones (jade, silver, ivory, obsidian, chrome, and rock crystal). Though Art Deco objects were rarely mass-produced, the characteristic features of the style reflected admiration for the modernity of the machine and for the inherent design qualities of machine-made objects (e.g., relative simplicity, planarity, symmetry, and unvaried repetition of elements).”

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2021, February 2). Art Deco. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/Art-Deco

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Wk 9 - Researched Continued

This week I went to the AUT Library and found this book which is about Graphic Design in China. This is relevant to my topic/essay as it discusses ideas about Western influence through advertising, poster designs, and art movements.

Quotes:

“The most sensitive discussions centred on the extent to which Western influence was desirable in a country torn between respect for continuity and tradition and an intense desire for modernisation. Since the turn of the century, examples of Western art and design had begun to appear in China through the importation of illustrated books and journals for it’s foreign population.”

“Throughout the Twenties traces of the organic and curvilinear characteristics of the late Art Nouveau period could be recognised on the covers of popular Chinese books and magazines, making the re-cycling of what had originally begun in the West as an Asian-influenced design movement ironically complete.”

“As a great admirer of Western printmaking, Lu Sun also introduced the techniques of modern woodblock through a series of illustrated books and practical workshops. 

As Lu Xun proclaimed: “Art represents the thoughts of a period and the ideas of the nation’s spirit. If the spirit changes direction then art will follow the change as well.” 

“Art Deco found its place in the artistic traditions of China more as an outgrowth of an already existing geometric architectural tradition. Coming to a culture with such a strong decorative heritage, the geometric and patterned compositions of Art Deco only succeeded in fuelling further the renewed interests in China’s own past.”

“Many young Chinese of the burgeoning middle class were attracted to Art Deco deign for its representation of modern life. While the Western forms of Art Deco originally embodied the ideals of a predominantly wealthy and carefree society, the Shanghai Style proved applying to a more populist audience, who were drawn to it for its novelty and exotic flavour.”

“Using crisp lines geometric forms and a flattening of pictorial space, the Shanghai style borrowed freely from the formal techniques of the Cubists. In addition, many patterns and motifs found in traditional Chinese decorative arts were easily incorporated into these designs.”

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Wk 8 - Research Continued

New Life Movement 1934

Led by Chiang Kai-shek and his wife Soong Mei-ling

A movement that aimed to “halt the spread of communism by teaching traditional Chinese values.” “It was Kuomintang version of a “cultural revolution” for China.” The movement conserved certain aspects of Chinese traditions, such as ideologies of Confucianism with the “four virtues” (ritual, duty, honesty, and shame). However Chiang modernised many of these principles and values to match his vision of a “modern” world, and also combined them with aspects of Christianity as the ideologies were rather similar to Confucianism and tied well together. Ultimately, Chiang aimed to provide “a clear ideological alternative to Communism.” His approach of preserving tradition and Confucianism had potential for success, however it failed with no specific reason.

A partial Christian movement Chiang’s wife Soong Mei-ling had a major role in this being someone who grew up in the US.

New Life Movement - Christian Posters

Promoted New Life Movement by illustrated ideal behaviours and habits of the lifestyle.

https://ccposters.com/series/new-life-movement/

ast, the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) led by Mao Zedong aimed to completely eliminate Confucianism. However, by “attacking the oldest belief system in China, many started lashing out ultimately leading to the reversal of the Cultural Revolution by Deng Xiaoping after Mao’s death.”

Regardless, both movements had similar end goals but still failed at implementing everlasting change in China.

After losing the what is now know as the People’s Republic of China, Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan with his Nationalist government and modern development ideas.

“Under this climate, “body engineering” arguably reached its culmination during the New Life Movement (1934–1937) when CHIANG Kai-shek, collaborating with the Nazi government, began to adopt German Fascist ideology. The New Life Movement linked the elimination of loose morality and prostitution to a complete program of social reform, in which the effective regulation of the physical body, and especially the female body, was to play a crucial part. Mixing Confucianism and Christianity, the campaign endorsed an image of the Chinese citizen that accorded with the ideology of “chuantong yu xiandai yu yiti 傳統與現代於一體 (a modern yet traditional person)” (H. Chen and J. Liang 1997: 27). In a departure from the critiques of domestic culture that predominated in the 1920s and 1930s, intellectuals like LIANG Shuming 梁漱溟 now called for a synthesis of Chinese and Western cultures, with Chinese culture providing the spiritual basis."

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11712-018-9617-7.pdf 

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Soong-Mei-ling#ref784618 

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chiang-Kai-shek#ref216154 

https://www.jstor.org/stable/2054509?seq=1  

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Wk 8 - Researched Continued

The New Women + Modern Girl

“The use of the New Woman is always linked to the positive aspects of modernity. She symbolises the vision of a future strong nation and her character highlights the revolutionary qualities of the modern nuxing. As such, the New Woman sometimes deals with the search for female subjectivity, she does so only against the ever-present backdrop of the nation and socially progressive ideals.” Pg 87 “The New Woman has long been treated in Chinese and Western scholarship as the most crucial image of women in the 1920s and 1930s. Indeed, her appearance is quite important and marks an era in which women were envisioned to be equal political participants and give public roles as citizens in a new China.” Pg 88

“In contrast, the use of the Modern Air; highlights the problems associated with modernity and the search for female subjectivity. This aspect of her character appears in several different ways. The Modern Girl is sometimes used by (female) authors to explore the conflicts and fears of the modern woman struggling against society and tradition, lost in the midst of a changing cult. The Modern Girl us also used to symbolise the alienation and fears associated with the new urban lifestyle.” Pg 87 “The Modern Girl, on the other hand, occupies largely marginalised texts and has only recently been acknowledged as an important figure.”

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/009770040002600201

The modern woman first appeared “in China during the May Fourth Movement as a creative of the intellectual reformers’ radical challenge to confucian China and its “traditional woman”…”

“During the 1920s and 1930s, the modern woman moved from being purely the purview of the intellectual reformers and their political agenda into the realm of the commercial sector and its advertisements as well. This point is evident in the calendars and advertisements that relied on depicting the modern woman as a highly desirable individual, a glamorous consumer.”

“The qipao invoked modernity, as Antonia Finnane (1996: 113-14) has argued, because its imitation of the men’s single-piece changpao worn by traditional scholars claimed for women an equal status with men. Gradually, as the qipao became more tight-fitting in the 1930s (body-hugging and slit to the thigh), it symbolized the new sexual availability of China’s women and the desirability of the new-style woman. However, “real modern women” activists resisted this dress on the grounds that it was restrictive.”

The New Woman was a figure of hope for the women in China. It represented the ideals of social modernism for women, in which they were viewed equally and acknowledged as “citizens in a new China” with the same opportunities as men.

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Wk 7 SDL - Task 2

What did you find out from your selection that you didn't know before?

Chinese style design and architecture underwent major westernisation during the redevelopment of Chinatown in San Fransisco, which influenced the modernisation of some of the Chinese architecture we see today in the western world.  

How somehow relates to your topic?

Again emphasising how Western influenced Chinese art and design which created a new, more modern style and culture. In this case, traditions of Chinese design and architecture were reborn in the perspective of Westerners. For example, Chinese pagoda’s which in China were religious buildings that were used as a place of worship, however this meaning was not preserved in the US. This perception of Chinese architecture spread across the US with more Chinatowns being built in the same style, forming the new style of Chinese design and architecture that fused both Western and Chinese culture.  

What have you found out about your era or period from your choice?

It was a very tough period for Chinese across the globe. After escaping war and hardship in their home country and fleeing overseas seeking refuge and better opportunities, only to experience the same if not worse situations due to racism and inequality in the Western countries. The Chinese had to sacrifice so much and work so hard for their freedom.

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Wk 7 SDL

Points that may be discussed in my essay:

How the Civil War and Second Sino-Japanese War influenced the modernisation of Art and Design in China

What other influences were there that effected the modernisation of design in China?

How the start of international trading influenced Art and Design in China

The “modern” woman - Modernisation with Western influence

More resources:

Article: Visualizing the Growth of Christianity in China by Chinese Christian Posters, 1927-1942 Date: 2021 Author: Lingshu Liu https://digital.lib.washington.edu/researchworks/bitstream/handle/1773/46987/Liu_washington_0250O_22528.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

This article talks about the growth of Christianity in China during the 1930s. Using posters to promote and introduce the Chinese community to Christianity, artists expressed the religion through Chinese imagery so it would seem more familiar.  

https://ccposters.com/poster/prodigal-son-1/

Book: Chinese Propaganda Posters From Revolution to Modernisation Date: 2020 Author: Stefan Landsberger https://www.google.co.nz/books/edition/Chinese_Propaganda_Posters_From_Revoluti/hd8JEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover

This book provides a more in depth and detailed analysis about Chinese propaganda posters, such as the use of symbolism and different influences which affected the design and production of these posters.

Pg 33: “The Birth of an Agitational Style”

Which talks about the affect of the Anti-Japanese War in 1937 on art and design. Many propaganda posters in the areas overrun by Japanese were used to “justify the Japanese military presence in China” and to “warn the population against cooperating with either the Nationalists or the Communists.”

https://chineseposters.net/posters/e13-380 

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Wk 6 - Reading and Analysing Images Part 2

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Wk 6 - Reading and Analysing Images Part 1

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Wk 5 - Reading and Analysing Text

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Wk 4 - Researching on AUT Databases

Written sources:

Second Sino-Japanese War - https://link-springer-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/book/10.1057/978-1-137-46119-3 or https://link-springer-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/content/pdf/10.1057%2F978-1-137-46119-3.pdf 

Design History in China - https://www-bloomsburydesignlibrary-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/encyclopedia-chapter?docid=b-9781474246217&tocid=b-9781474246217-chapter35&st=graphic+design+1930+china  

Design in Hong Kong - https://www-bloomsburydesignlibrary-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/encyclopedia-chapter?docid=b-9781350063488&tocid=b-9781350063488-0003205&st=design+china+1930 

Chinese Design - https://www-bloomsburydesignlibrary-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/encyclopedia-chapter?docid=b-9781472596178&tocid=b-9781472596178-BED-C046&st=design+china+1930 

Modern Design in China between 1911 -1949 - https://www-bloomsburydesignlibrary-com.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/encyclopedia-chapter?docid=b-9781350063488&tocid=b-9781350063488-0001839&st=design+china+1930

^ This article is relevant to my topic as it describes how influence from around the world affected design in China. Students and other Chinese citizens who studied abroad in Japan, Frace, and other European countries eventually returned to China bringing their ideas and design ideologies.

Visual sources:

Chinese drugs personified: Lithograph, 1935 - https://library-artstor-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/#/asset/24752627;prevRouteTS=1648346707916 

I have chose this image as it shows what illustration looked like during the 1930s in China. This illustration was made using the lithograph method which involves using a greasy ink, water, and a flat stone or metal plate.

Snuff Bottle - https://library-artstor-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/#/asset/ASEATTLEIG_10312600386;prevRouteTS=1648183656520 

Chiang Kai-shek in China - https://library-artstor-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/#/asset/24642061;prevRouteTS=1648183868257 

Chinese Shoes - https://library-artstor-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/#/asset/AWSS35953_35953_32913972;prevRouteTS=1648184321038 

Cantonese Opera Robe - https://library-artstor-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/#/asset/AWSS35953_35953_32896758;prevRouteTS=1648184984616 

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SDL: Mood boards

The SDL task for us this week was to create three additional mood boards. One on the society and culture of my location from my chosen time period, another on the main art and design movements during my time period, and finally one on the main making and printing process(es).

Socio-Cultural mood board:

Art & Design mood board:

Making & Printing process mood board:

References:

http://50watts.com/Shanghai-Expression-Graphic-Design-in-China-in-the-1920s-and-30s

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Haired_Girl

https://histories.hoover.org/Student-Projects/Women-in-Chinese-Propaganda/

http://www.shan-crosbie.com/blog/2015/4/3/chinese-propaganda-art-throughout-the-chinese-civil-war

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-asia/imperial-china/x97ec695a:republic-of-china/a/lang-jingshan-and-early-chinese-photography

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/an-art-deco-journey-through-shanghais-belle-epoque

http://www.bauhaus-imaginista.org/articles/735/the-spread-of-the-bauhaus-in-china?0bbf55ceffc3073699d40c945ada9faf=018fio1rna19ei18inmqfa7696 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Great_Singing_Stars

https://www.encyclopedia.com/fashion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/china-history-dress 

https://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/graph/9polwood.htm 

https://www.chinaartlover.com/guo-hua-painting-%E5%9B%BD%E7%94%BB-definition 

https://www.britannica.com/art/Chinese-pottery/The-Qing-dynasty-1644-1911-12 

https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1054&context=phr 

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15 Questions

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8/3/22 Class Summary

In today’s class we discussed what research is specifically in design and how and when we can practice researching in design. We also talked about the importance of curiosity and questioning as a designer. A quote used was “curiosity killed the cat... but satisfaction brought it back”. Because curiosity can be deemed as dangerous as it can get us into trouble, however finding knowledge or the truth about something at the end makes it worth it.

The SDL task for this week was to make two mood boards; one on the geography of my chosen location during my chosen time period, and another one showing the history of my chosen location as well as other significant moments in history of other countries during my chose time period.

Mood boards:

References:

https://chinadialogue.net/en/cities/10811-picturing-disaster-the-1931-wuhan-flood/

https://www.britannica.com/event/Great-Depression

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II

https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-II

https://www.britannica.com/event/Second-Sino-Japanese-War

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changshan

http://www.thepankou.com/history-of-the-qipaos-golden-era-1930s/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1931_China_floods

https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703860104575507240752361582

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_architecture

https://inf.news/en/history/73c0cb600b15260e98952a734da7c016.html

https://www.flickr.com/photos/contumacy-singh/2802313589/in/photostream/

https://www.pinterest.nz/pin/429953095660679740/

https://www.pinterest.nz/pin/282319470372345541/

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1/3/22 Class Summary

Today’s class was an introduction to the paper where we discussed the brief and other expectations for this semester. Our aim is to research a specific design practice/media during 1830-1990 and state our findings through an essay. The first task we’ve been assigned is to create an ancestry/personality mood board which tells the story of an ancestor or a particular personality. I have decided to do my great grandfather named Shui Bill Sue (Soo).

Mood board:

Sources:

Image 1: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/top/323266/the-remarkable-journeys-of-nz%27s-chinese-goldminers

Image 2: https://www.gokunming.com/en/blog/item/3964/1920s-china-through-the-lens-of-joseph-rock-sima

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Week 1:Welcome

Hello! 你好! My name is Bianca. I am a New Zealand born Chinese from Hamilton. My parents are both Chinese, but my dad was born in Taishan China and my mum was born here. Although I love being creative in many different ways, I particularly enjoy photography and graphic design. My other hobbies include dance, exercising and crocheting.