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Literati Ingredients in the 17th-Century Chinese Christian Paintings

Bibliographic Data

ID3586763
AuthorsJie Xiao (0009-0001-4925-9166, Southeast University, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume15
Issue4
Pages383
Publication date2024-03-22
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel15040383
OpenAlexW4393087609
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited1

In this paper, the modification methods of the Chinese Christian painting created by the missionaries in the late Ming Dynasty (1573-1644) were analyzed with the Chinese Catholic studies of the "Song nianzhu guicheng" and the "Tianzhu Jiangsheng Chuxiang Jingjie". After carefully studying the differences between the Chinese Christian painting and the original European version, the study shows that these Chinese Christian paintings were integrated with the Chinese literati paintings' elements and literati symbols, which include the "Yudiancun" (raindrop texture stroke), "Pimacun" (hemp-fiber texture stroke), "landscape screen" (painted screens with natural landscapes), and the mark of Chinese famous literati such as Dong Qichang. These adjustments conducted by missionaries aimed to make religious paintings more in line with literati aesthetics, which could build connections between the missionaries and the literati community for proselytization. However, the missionaries neglected that the literati community certainly would not sacrifice the existing social order and the vested interest brought by the current Confucian culture to support new ideas of "liberty" and "equality" in the Catholic doctrine, which caused a huge setback in the missionary work since the Nanjing Teaching Case in 1616. This research makes significant contributions to the understanding of cultural exchanges in the 17th century through a detailed exploration of the adjustments made by missionaries in the visual representations within Chinese Catholic literature

Art · Art history · Painting · Chinese history and philosophy · Financial Crisis of the 21st Century · History

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Citations per year2
Citation span2025 - 2026 (2)
Highly citedNo

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