A zoomorphic sickle terminal from the Natufian site of Wadi Hammeh 27 in Jordan

Excavations at the Natufian site of Wadi Hammeh 27 in Jordan undertaken in 2014 led to the discovery of several new portable art pieces, including the representation of an ungulate mammal (RN 140226), probably intended as a gazelle, carved in the round from bone. The small object was extensively damaged by fire and had become separated at its neck from longer pieces of fragmented, burnt bone lying distally to it. This configuration and the style of the animal head leads us to interpret the piece as the decorated terminal of a bone sickle haft. The piece is unusual in that is it is one of the few figurative Natufian art pieces with incised geometric decoration added to its surface. Its finding extends the distribution of the ‘gazelle-headed’ sickle haft from Mount Carmel, where three well-known examples were unearthed in the early twentieth century, to the northern Jordan Valley. The piece adds to the limited repertoire of zoomorphically rendered Natufian artefacts associated with plant gathering and processing.     

Beyond ‘the Phenomenological Walk’: Perspectives on the Experience of Images

Scandinavian rock art has been of major interest for archaeological studies of a phenomenological character. By reflecting on the experience of rock art it has been argued that images choreograph movement and that this embodied interaction reflects both social order and world views. This perspective has been applied in studies of both open-air rock art and images in the confined spaces of caves. When critically evaluating these efforts, it seems clear that these phenomenological studies reduce rock art to a mere representation of the experience of place. Phenomenology also fails to challenge the assumption that the meaning of images is created primarily by the intentions of its creator. It is therefore suggested that, in order to discuss the experience of images as meaningful, we need to develop the phenomenological theory of embodiment into a material phenomenology. This material turn enables us to problematize the relationship between intentionality and the meaning of images, which could lead to a perspective where rock art affects both the experience of place and of landscape and the creation of new images. Consequently, an archaeology of images should treat rock art as an expression which creates and maintains practices and relations with places and landscapes.     

The Event in John Latham and Bob Cobbing

ABSTRACT

This article documents some examples of the event-responsive poetry of the British poet Bob Cobbing (1920–2002) and compares it to the unique theory of the event structure developed by British sculptural and conceptual artist John Latham (1921–2006). It establishes points of intersection between their practices, and particularly at the level of aesthetics where very little comparative work exists. While both men are best known for their experimental 1960s work (Cobbing in relation to sound and concrete poetry, and Latham in relation to conceptual art) this article focusses on their earlier work as being preparatory to their later, more developed practice. Artistic affinities are contextualized in relation to World War II, the dialectic of romantic and classical art, and the institution of welfare-capitalism. How poet and artist both visually represented time (drawing on scientific discourses to do so) is further identified as a link between their practices.     

Art, class and gender in Joseon dynasty Korea: representations of lower-class women by the scholar-painter Yun Duseo

This paper examines several pioneering genre paintings by the important scholar painter Yun Duseo (1668-1715), with its focus on their artistic sources which have not yet been explored so far. Painted on ramie, 'Women Picking Potherbs' is one of the most intriguing examples among Yun Duseo's oeuvre, which encompasses a broad variety of themes, including genre imagery, landscapes, portraits, dragons, and horses. Even among Yun Duseo's genre paintings, 'Women Picking Potherbs' is extraordinary, as recent scholarship regards it as the earliest independent representation of lower-class women in the history of Korean art. In particular, Yun Duseo painted two women who were working ourdoors to gather spring potherbs. In a conservative Confucian society, it was extraordinary women who were working outdoors. Hence, Yun Duseo occupies a highly important place in Korean painting. Furthermore, even though Yun Duseo came from the upper-class, he often painted images of lower class people working. It is possible that Yun Duseo was familiar with the book titled "Tian gong kai wu" (Exploitation of the Works of Nature) which was published in the 17th century. By identifying the probable body of his artistic sources in the book known as "Tian gong kai wu," it will be possible to assess the innovations and limitations found in 'Women Picking Potherbs'.     

AFTERWORDS: AN INTRODUCTION TO ARTHUR DANTO'S PHILOSOPHIES OF HISTORY AND ART*

This essay is written as an introductory essay to celebrate the third edition of Arthur Danto's Analytical Philosophy of History, first printed in 1965. It raises questions about what it means to write an introduction and whether it is possible to write an introduction‐given Danto's own philosophical theses on history, the essay pays special attention to the connections between Danto's philosophy of history, philosophy of art, and the other areas of his philosophy that he regards to be all of a piece. It considers the nature of analytical philosophy and its heyday in America in the postwar period, when, to some degree, it was used as an antidote to an ideology of history that had perverted some of the most influential claims in a philosophy of history developed in Germany (mostly by Hegel) around 1800.     

浅谈美术地理的地域空间性

本文从地理学的角度,用地域空间和历史的观点对美术的地域性进行了论述,提出了美术地理学的研究范畴。全文从横向地域性、纵向地域性、地域空间的扩散性三个方面对美术的地理特性进行了研究。通过大量的分析,作者认为地理环境对美术风格具有决定性的影响。文章所提出的观点可以看作是对文化地理理论的一种补充与印证。     

De-personifying Collaert's Four Continents: European descriptions of continental diversity, 1585–1625

Adriaen Collaert's personifications of the four continents are typical examples of how continents and their respective cultures were represented in the art and literature of Europe in the early-modern period. For example, Asia is the exotic double to Europe, possessing an ‘otherness’ upon which European identity has been juxtaposed. Such personifications of continents and broader tropes of ‘the other’ and ‘the exotic’ have greatly influenced the historiography of the idea of Europe. However, the creation of art and literature characterised by these tropes reflects only part of the European understanding of the wider world. This article will explore how travellers – such as missionaries, merchants and ambassadors – in Europe's encounters with non-European societies presented a complex picture of the world sought to offer practical guidance and knowledge. How travellers’ accounts and personifications interacted is important for understanding the European experience of other continents. In considering how travellers presented their knowledge of continents, it is possible to analyse both how early-modern Europeans viewed other continents and question how useful artistic representation of ‘other’ continents are for understanding how they viewed their own.     

城市文化与我国城市文化建设的思考

城市不仅是人类社会的物质集聚中心,也是人类社会的文化活动中心。本文在全面理解城市文化的基础上,系统地阐述了城市文化与城市发展的关系,并联系当前我国城市文化建设所存在的一些不足,提出了几点切合实际的建议,以期有利于我国城市文化的进一步发展建设。     

Artistic Critiques of Modern Dictatorships

Under a political dictatorship it is primarily from the margins that an artistic critique can be articulated, as suggested by the examples presented in this article from Romania and Chile during the 1970s and 1980s. By focusing on their threefold marginality—of the artist, the art form, and the subject of art—and by applying to them Jacques Rancière's concept of dissensus, the analysis of artistic variants of marginality sheds light on the relationship of art and politics in totalitarian regimes.     

The Role of Theatre in Society: A Comparative Analysis of the Socio-Cultural Theories of Brecht,Benjamin, and Adorno

Abstract

This article analyzes the socio-cultural theories of Adorno, Benjamin, and Brecht through the lens of the theatre, most especially as it pertains to the work of actors. It explores the forces of capitalism that determine how art is produced, distributed, and consumed. Following Adorno’s reading of Marx, actors are here posited as commodities whose labor is separated from the product they create for public consumption. This commodification raises various questions: How does a market economy shape the production and consumption of art? What is technology’s function in the commodification of art? What is art’s sociopolitical role and how does it apply to theatre? To address these questions I juxtapose the cultural theory of Adorno and Benjamin with Brecht’s epic theatre. This comparison exposes the ritualistic potential of the theatre to bring an audience together as a community through sharing a socially enriching event.     

以青州为例看山东的可移动彩绘陶质、石质文物

近十几年来,青州陆续有龙兴寺佛教造像和香山汉墓彩绘陶俑出土。这些文物有一个共同特点,即彩绘保存较好,且数量很大。通过对山东其他地区出土的同类彩绘文物的色彩、纹饰等的统计,让我们对山东的彩绘陶质和石质文物的艺术特色有一个综合认识。陶质彩绘文物自大汶口文化时期出现,经历了由实用器到明器的转变,到两汉时期发展到高峰,中国雕塑的最大特色之一塑、绘结合成熟了,对其后的雕塑艺术产生了很大影响。隋唐以后,彩绘陶质明器渐渐走向衰落。目前彩绘石质文物在山东最早见于汉代画像石,在北朝时期的佛教造像上得到极大发展。继承了汉代陶俑塑、绘结合的雕塑形式,将外来的宗教艺术中国化了,其细腻的刻画,对形体比例的准且把握,使中国的雕塑艺术达到了一个高峰。     

中国古代石雕论——石兽、石人与石佛

In China, during the Han dynasty, large-scale, three-dimensional stone sculpture appeared. Stone animals and stone human figures were erected in front of tombs and on their approach routes. Chinese art, which had long loathed realistic representation of human body, began to turn towards the human body. However, these stone human figures were cloaked in thick garments, and their expression was nothing more than generalized surface treatments. In the first half of the 5^th century, Chinese stone sculpture met an unprecedented foreign influence in its encounter with Buddhist art, and there was a rapid development of human figural sculpture via Buddhist sculptures. In the Tang dynasty, a Chinese style of Buddhist sculpture, fitted with both bodily expression and decorative qualities, matured. On the other hand, the erection of stone sculptures and steles spread in the general classes and in regional areas, given the undercurrent of China＇ s native preference for, and reverence of, jade. Chinese stone sculpture developed amidst a repetition of being greatly swayed by the ＂foreign＂ and held back by the ＇traditional.＇ In the history of Chinese stone sculpture, it was always foreign cultures that brought the opportunity for the birth of new changes.     

Acoustics and Levantine rock art: auditory perceptions in La Valltorta Gorge (Spain)

This article explores the relevance of acoustics as a factor for in the production and active use of Levantine rock art in Spain. The renowned rock art area of La Valltorta Gorge serves as a case study. Two experiments are described; the first assessed whether the sites with the most painted motifs had better acoustics than those with fewer motifs. The second tested which areas in La Valltorta Gorge had better acoustics and whether there was a difference between the acoustics of the decorated area and the contiguous sectors of the Gorge where no paintings have been found. In both experiments different sounds and pitches were used. The results suggest a strong relationship between the painted areas and the sonority of the place, with the major sites generally having provided the best results, with the exception of the sonority when facing the rock art panels. It is suggested that La Valltorta Gorge was chosen to be decorated with a view to increasing the perceptual impact of the rituals that may have been held at rock art sites due to the amplification caused by the echoing and resonance.     

A (Digital) Future for Saharan Rock Art?

First visited by westerners in the mid-nineteenth century, Saharan rock art has since received a great deal of attention. The richness and diversity of this region is recognised by the inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage list of three properties: Tassili-n-Ajjer in Algeria, Tadrart Acacus in Libya, and Ennedi in Chad. The situation in many North African countries now makes this vast region very difficult to access: safety in the field is not guaranteed and few research funds are available. Today, a new generation of African and foreign scientists has no access to rock art sites in the north of the continent and the lack of fieldwork may entail a lack of safeguard and awareness. The growth of digital technologies over the last 15 years has revolutionised methods for recording rock art sites. Digital technologies are also used to mitigate the gap between artworks and accessibility in those countries where turmoil and social instability make fieldwork impossible. However, much of the documentation and most digital recordings of artworks currently available on the Internet lack an archaeological context. Equally, many of these websites barely mention methodological and theoretical aspects. It is also difficult to understand the extent of awareness among local communities in remote areas—sometimes suffering a digital and linguistic divide—and if (and how) they are genuinely able to exploit these digital resources. Here, I collate some examples from different parts of the Sahara illustrating that the recording, management and dissemination of rock art still present highs and lows. I argue that we should share theories and methods within the digital scientific community, with a view to adopting a shared nomenclature and a public thesaurus, making our cataloguing criteria explicit and, finally, developing an ethical code of conduct involving local communities.     

中国古代漆器的锥画艺术和鎗艺术

考古发现的汉代漆器"锥画",是用作画工具"锥"来命名的艺术形式,称为"针刻"欠妥。锥画发明于战国时期,但尚未见到实物。汉代漆器锥画高度繁荣,大量汉代锥画漆器陆续出土。三国至唐时期,锥画鎗金艺术得到了继承和发展;及至宋元,漆器锥画鎗金以全新的面貌出现;发展到明清,锥画鎗金多与其他漆器艺术形式相结合,呈现出千文万华的漆艺局面。     

Trench art between memory and oblivion: a report from Poland (and Syria)

ABSTRACT

This paper summarises some of the results of archaeological research on twentieth century military heritage in the Polish woodlands, namely the discovery of artefacts made, remade, and personalised by soldiers, prisoners of war, and civilians during military conflicts. Such objects are examples of so-called ‘trench art’. I draw attention to the universality of trench art, a phenomenon that is usually associated with the past conflicts such as the Napoleonic Wars and the First and Second World Wars. Nonetheless, trench art is, in its complexity, diversity and affectivity, an integral part of modern warfare, including the recent tragic conflict in Syria. After presenting the project and some examples of trench art documented during the research, I discuss a unique artistic intervention entitled Painting on Death to illustrate the affective, aesthetic, and political value of modern trench art.     

La Philosophie Analytique ou les Promesses d’Une Pensée Technologique

This article focuses on the origins of analytical philosophy. It argues that the conditions under which it was thought out were similar to the conditions necessary for critical thinking - like the scientific inquiry that served as its model, analytical philosophy was based on the distinction between syntax and semantics. Resulting from logical analysis, this distinction was later essential to all systems of representation - works of art, human action, intellectual endeavours. This evolution reveals a major concern - the need for a technical tool for the critical mind.