EACS 21 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Prunus, Kashyapa
Document Summary
Most paintings are done in monochrome ink in a free & easy manner appropriate to the general concept of sudden enlightenment. Untrammelled brushwork mirrors confucian concept of principle in nature & of superior man who exemplifies & acts on principle. Zen stressed transmission of knowledge from master to pupil. Portraits of the master seen as portraits of longevity (chinso) Testament from one generation to the next. Sculptures were enshrined in temples as a homage to a living monk, memorials, or as reminders of the founder or of a powerful monk associated w/the temple. The realism of the face of the sculptures reflects long years of tradition in wood carving. Represents faces of guardian figures in early buddhism, representing caricatures. Sense the individual as real rather than a stereotype conjures up both reverence & awe convincing see-ers that this is one who could have thrasehd or enlightened us.
