The Temporal Logic of Citation in Chinese Painting

It is heuristically valuable to distinguish between citation and other forms of repetition, such as copying, imitating, or emulating. The characteristic of citation is simultaneous reference to two or more incompatible styles in open opposition to the unified styles required for replication. This requieres the insight that all styles are poducts of a particular historical moment. Naturalistic styles, then, become just another kind of period style. This essay examines the theory and practice of citation during the Song era and argues that such practices were founded on broader historical theories that identified the engine of historical change as natural, social, and institutional forces rather than the actions of great men or gods. Such theories made it possible to view each historical period as the product of specific historical changes and so one could view period styles, likewise, as pictorial tokens of particular moments in the history of art

Art · Art history · Citation · Library science · Painting · Visual arts · Chinese history and philosophy · Computer Science · History