Aesthetics of Qiyun and Genius

This book discusses qiyun aesthetics in Chinese painting formulated by leading sixth to fourteenth-century intellectual elite. In light of Kant’s account of artistic genius, it considers the role of the mind in creating a painting replete with qiyun, thereby both demystifying qiyun aesthetics and illuminating some limitations in Kant’s aesthetics.

Xiaoyan Hu is lecturer in art theory at Southeast University in Nanjing, China.

List of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgements Chronology Introduction Part I: The Notion of Qiyun in the Sixth to Fourteenth Centuries Chapter 1. The Notion of Qiyun in Xie He's First Law of Chinese Painting Chapter 2. The Thread of Qiyun: A Shared Legacy in 10th to 14th Century Landscape Painting Part II: The Art of Genius: An Examination of Qiyun Aesthetics from a Kantian Perspective Chapter 3. The Master of Qiyun: Genius As an Innate Mental Talent of Idea-Giving Chapter 4. Spontaneity of Qiyun: Genius as the Innate Mental Talent of Rule-Giving Chapter 5. The Impossibility of Teaching Qiyun: The Exemplary Originality of Genius in Yipin Chapter 6. Genius as a Pure and Lofty Mind I: Aesthetic Autonomy and Balanced Human Nature Chapter 7. Genius as a Pure and Lofty Mind II: Moral Cultivation of the Kindred Mind Conclusion References About the Author