Dunhuang Mural Art
Based on the subject matter, artistic style and expression techniques of the murals in the caves, the Mogao Grottoes can be roughly divided into three periods. Early murals 1. Early Dunhuang murals During the growth period of grotto art, the murals included Buddhist statue paintings, Buddhist story paintings, traditional Chinese mythological stories, decorative patterns and donor portraits, among which Buddhist story paintings were the main ones. 2. The middle period of mural painting was the heyday of grotto art, including the two dynasties following the Tang Dynasty. The content of the murals and the story paintings were reduced. From the beginning, they were depicted according to the customs and customs of the time. It reflects a wider range of life, and the portrayal of characters is more profound, and the expression of the theme is more obvious. 3. The late murals include the Five Dynasties, Song Dynasty, Xixia and Yuan Dynasties, with portraits of donors, leaders of various ethnic groups and their families gathered in one cave. It adds a lot of brilliance to the mural art of Mogao Grottoes. The themes of the murals are simple. There are only towers and pavilions, Buddha preaching, surrounded by gods and humans, lotus flowers, pools, and reincarnations. There is no storyline. I don't know what the name of the painting is. A more commonly used theme. To sum up the above three periods: the murals of Diangao Grottoes express the creative talents and achievements of ancient artists from all aspects, and these achievements are always based on inheriting the excellent traditions of previous generations, observing and studying life, and performing hard work. It is possible to obtain it.
Dunhuang Colored Sculpture Art
Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes is a unity that combines architecture, colored sculptures and murals, with the theme of colored sculpture. The development of colored sculpture art can be roughly divided into three periods: early, middle and late. Early years – the developmental period. Early cave form. There are Zen caves, square or rectangular Buddhist halls and central column tower temples, etc. There are more than 300 early painted sculptures. The genres include relief (shadow sculpture), high relief and round sculpture. The main themes of relief sculptures include Thousand Buddhas, Flying Apsaras, etc. The main themes of high-relief sculptures include dragon heads and feather figures on the lintel, which are all molded close to the wall and have relatively flat shapes. The main themes of round sculptures are larger Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and kings. etc., the head and body are relatively full. In the middle and peak period, the caves were in the shape of a square Buddhist temple, with a group of statues centered on the Buddha usually placed in a large niche on the front. The characters generally have a big head, a strong body and short legs, which are the distinctive features of the statues of the past. Due to the changes in politics, economy, culture and transportation in the Hexi Corridor, as well as the decline of Buddhism itself, Buddhist art also declined.