Big changes are occurring nowadays in both the definition and the reception of art, and these are influencing the ways in which art of the past is being framed and studied. There seems now to be a general acceptance of multiple approaches in art historical research, approaches over which heated and passionate argument existed in the recent past; perhaps another way to put it is that the collapsing of any hierarchy of value in art history, as in art itself, has led to a “democratization” of voices. But the voices themselves must remain distinct if the discipline, or body of disciplines, is to remain vibrant. One indication of such vibrancy is the present volume, in which nine essays, by scholars of Chinese (six), Japanese (two), and Tibetan art, all together demonstrate that widely differing perspectives can be brought to bear in the study of a given artifact or group of artifacts. Reasserting the primacy of close looking (and in some cases touching) in art-historical research, essays in this collection furthermore suggest that our looking should interact in dynamic tension with our consideration of cultural context, each process enabling and enriching the other. The two editors wisely reject the canard that art is a universal language, evidently conceiving the act of “looking” as far more than formal analysis, and not fully possible until an understanding of broader context has been achieved.
Running through a notable diversity in geographical area, time period, and approach offered by the essays, one significant aspect of many is that they are built around sustained focus on a single object. While there is nothing remarkable about centering an art-historical discussion around a single work of art, it seems here to have been a consciously pursued method, if not an editorial mandate, that is closely related to the “Looking” in this book's title, and to the papers' origins in a 2008 symposium in memory of Professor Harrie A. Vanderstappen. Known for his emphasis on “intensive training in visual analysis” (p. 7), “Father Harrie” would surely have been gratified by the kaleidoscopic array of firmly grounded and art-historically imaginative discussions here conducted through his visually centered method. The nine essays are evenly divided into three sections that suggest a broadening scope of attention, from the focal object itself to the ultimate inclusion of all sorts of related considerations. Yet a reading of the essays themselves suggests little disparity in their degree of either close reading or contextual inclusiveness; such disparities that do exist can be attributed to the individual approaches and preferences of their authors.
In the first section, “Visual Analysis and Interpretation,” Robert Poor guides us through the basic elements of Neolithic Chinese pottery by focusing on several vessels of the type most usually seen in museums, alerting us to what their original users would have noticed (“the weight, texture, size, and most especially the feel of the piece”—p. 32), and establishing their central role in all strata of Neolithic society. Martin J. Powers argues that, for us to draw even fundamental conclusions about the style of two immortal deer decorating a painted lacquer tomb of second century BCE China, we must become familiar with the literature and thought-system of their surroundings, as well as the general practices that govern ornament in world art. Amy McNair closely analyzes a work of early fifth-century engraved calligraphy from China's periphery, along with its afterlife, proposing that later critics found its anonymity both unsettling and liberating—some embracing the “hybridity” of its style for its promise to reinvigorate an outspent calligraphic tradition.
In the second section, “Viewing and Reading,” Ikumi Kaminishi complicates and enhances her teacher's practice of adopting musical concepts in the reading of a Heian handscroll, in accord with the preferences of its own time. Sandy Kita reads a print in light of two contending views of ukiyo-e that reveal much about the politics of art history in recent Japan. From his intention to learn about the whole from a detail, Jerome Silbergeld offers his own account of good opening and ending scenes in Chinese cinema, ranging across mediums, cultures, and time periods as he considers his theme.
In the book's third section, “Visual and Cultural Contexts,” Katherine R. Tsiang, basing herself on a close visual analysis, presents the original location and suggests the scriptural role of a large sixth-century Avalokitesvara sculpture. Rob Linrothe describes a uniquely Tibetan way of representing landscape that needs to be fully studied before it is supplanted by foreign painting styles. Kathlyn Liscomb dissects “visual codes” in the décor of a large Ming painted jar, to show how these helped effect both social differentiation and unity within the larger culture.
The quality of writing in all essays is high, though there is some unevenness in the levels of background knowledge they assume. For college teachers, they suggest themselves as excellent material for students who are assigned to write about art, due to the myriad possibilities in approach and perspective that they collectively demonstrate.
