Matter and materiality are inherent to the conception, production, interpretation and conversation of artifacts in all cultures across all periods of time. In recent decades these notions have given rise to theoretical reflections, including a rethinking of the hylemorphic model (form/matter opposition). This session of the 36^th Comité International d’Histoire de l’Art on “Matter – Materiality” explores composite works which bring together two- and three-dimensional objects (e.g. calligraphy, painting, prints, ceramics, lacquerware) from the sinicized area (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam) in the 17^th–19^th centuries.

Arguments

During this period of return to the past, scholars, artists and craftsmen questioned inherited hierarchies of value and developed a new sensitivity to materials. These transformations are expressed through a more elaborate and thoughtful use of materials. The literary and theoretical production of the period allows us to understand the classifications or distinctions made between artistic fields and the values attributed to materials.

The cultural, social and political predominance of certain activities in East Asia - literati practices, tea and incense ceremonies, etc. - is embodied in composite works made up of heterogeneous materials and/or resulting from the transfer of one material to another. The variations in materials, which vary according to cultural areas or social groups, reflect the privileged status attributed to certain materials (ink and paper, stone, lacquer, gold, brocade, etc.). Some materials are used as they are, creating a continuity between the real, the artefact and the representation; others are evoked in a metaphorical/allusive way or are excluded from the assemblages. The sensory or aesthetic qualities, the virtues or defects attributed to the materials, but also the meanings associated with them - trace the limits of the eclecticism of the assemblages.

If, in China, the predominance of the arts of the brush determined the aesthetic judgment and the opposition between "spirit" and "form", the Japanese attitude, which values craftmanship, enriches the literati practices. The late imperial period in China witnessed a broadening of literati aesthetics, and served as a laboratory for experimentation in the imperial and private workshops of the Qing dynasty, indicating a new fascination for technical virtuosity and eclectic materials.

List of topics (non-exclusive):

In late imperial China, calligraphy and painting took on other media and materials (printed images, ceramics, cloisonné, architectural elements, etc.) and their repertoires were enriched in contact with various sources (regional craft traditions, heterodox forms of writing, etc.). Rubbings, for example, were instrumental in this "sensory revolution": this reproduction technique became a form of aesthetic expression, stressing the texture and volume of stamped objects, beyond their inscriptions. Xylography, which involves collaboration between scholars and craftsmen, is another area where this widening of the artistic repertoire is expressed.

In Japan, a peculiar interest in the materiality is noticeable in objects combining different techniques, such as lacquer inkstone boxes made from gold, mother-of-pearl and metal. Artifacts (fabrics, calligraphy, paintings) are fragmented and recomposed in albums, according to a new hierarchy of value. Kakemonos with painted frames question the limits of representation.

With regard to Korea, possible subjects of inquiry illustrating the literati art/craft divide/combination in innovative ways could be: representations of objects, including literati objects such as chaekgeori, boxes for brushes and ink in heteroclit materials, or other objects found in less expected combinations with other elements of material culture and craft (even drawing from the natural world); or experiments in ceramics and decorated furniture (e.g. making use of mother-of-pearl and lacquer).

Submission guidelines

The session will be held in English and take the form of a panel of 5 papers of 30 min. each (including 20 min. presentation and 10 min. discussion for each speaker), followed by a roundtable debate of 30 min.

To be considered for participation as speaker in this panel, please submit a proposal including an abstract of no more than 500 words as well as a CV of no more than 250 words by September 15, 2023, via: https://www.cihalyon2024.fr/en/call-for-papers

Selection modalities

The proposals will be selected by the organisators of the session :

• Estelle Bauer, Institut National des Langues et CIvilizations Orientales (INALCO), Paris: estelle.bauer@inalco.fr
• Lia Wei, Institut National des Langues et CIvilizations Orientales (INALCO), Paris: lia.wei@inalco.fr
• Shao-Lan Hertel, Museum for East Asian Art (MOK), Cologne: shao-lan.hertel@stadt-koeln.de

Contact

For further inquiries please contact: lia.wei@inalco.fr; estelle.bauer@inalco.fr; shao-lan.hertel@stadt-koeln.de

General information on the event:https://www.cihalyon2024.fr/en/