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Ceramic arts

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Poll Question: Which civilization or culture produced the most beautiful ceramic arts
Poll Choice Votes Poll Statistics
1 [10.00%]
3 [30.00%]
2 [20.00%]
0 [0.00%]
0 [0.00%]
0 [0.00%]
2 [20.00%]
0 [0.00%]
1 [10.00%]
0 [0.00%]
1 [10.00%]
0 [0.00%]
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  Quote Pierrewatteau Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Ceramic arts
    Posted: 20-Dec-2007 at 05:12
As my first post, I want to ask you guys, which civilization's ceramic (pottery, porcelain) art is your favorite and why?  And what's so special about them?
 
I'll list some candidates, but you're very welcome to name yours and discuss and post pictures:
 
Egypt
Egyptian ceramics are probably the oldest in the world.  Egyptian ceramic artists used steatite to make vases and funerary objects.  Egyptian mythology are often represented on their ceramic-ware and they are a potent symbol of this ancient civilization.

Greece
Pottery has always been an important part of Ancient Greek civilization, and they are one of the oldest in the world.  Neolitic period's pottery-wares dates back tens of thousands of years.  Greek pottery is known for the painted figures on their objects, and since very few greek painting survived, they are the greatest reminder of what Greek society was like during ancient period.
 
China
China is an obvious candidate for great ceramic art since not only Chinese ceramics are among the oldest, they also developed the "art" of "porcelain" and several other influential ceramic styles. 
 
Rome
The most representative ceramic ware of ancient Rome is argubly the red-figure pottery which was adapted from the Greek ceramic-ware.

India
Indian ceramics are very ancient, and various pottery-wares from the Indus Valley civilization can also be found. 
 
Persia/Iran
Iranian pottery are also ancient and pottery vessel founded dates back to the neolithic period that spans millennia. 
 
Islam
Islamic pottery are heavily influenced by various civilization's ceramic art due to the many regions Islam had spread across and Muslims had conquested. 
 
Western Europe
European ceramics after the Renassiance to the Industrial Revolution often intimated the high-prized Chinese porcelain which were introduced along the China Trade.  Chinese Blue-and-white wares became extremely fashionable, and various factories set out to create their own version of it, such as Delftware.
 
America
Cultures in the American continents have long been crafted beautiful ceramic wares, best examples are the illustrious Mayan ceramics which used various clays and minerals to create chips. 
 
African pottery (except Egypt)
African pottery is as diverse and various as the continent itself and has strong ties with folk art traditions like many culture.  The ceramic ware from places such as Zambia and Morocco have all been exported to the west, however, generally they are not very well-understood.  
 
 Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand...
The ceramic ware in the far-eastern regions are also renowned for their beauty and style.  Japanese ceramics is known for the variets (i.e. Shino wares, Kakiemon pottery), and the Jomon pottery of the Neolithic period is reportedly among the oldest pottery in the world!
 
 
 


Edited by Pierrewatteau - 20-Dec-2007 at 17:44
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  Quote Aster Thrax Eupator Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24-Dec-2007 at 01:07
I guess it's really down to personal preference, but I preffer the Greek geometric period of cermaics -
 
 
 
 
I do, however, find some of the Islamic artistry absolutely beautiful. At the British Museum I was once allowed to touch a Safavid tile for a hands-on activity. It was beautiful. I personally find the Abbasids one of them most interesting Islamic artists-
 
 
...although I don't think that they were very ingenious when it came to human figures on their ceramic vessels. Interesting for an Islamic culture to use pictoral representation in this way, but not, in my opinion, very asthetically pleasing when you have beautiful classical, Roman and Hellenistic pieces of art from over 1000 years previous. As for Hellenistic art, which is sadly much neglected-
 
 
...an accurate Roman copy of an 160 BC Hellenistic bronze statue.
 
I really do think that the Mespotamian cultures deserve a place on the poll, however.


Edited by Aster Thrax Eupator - 24-Dec-2007 at 02:12
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  Quote red clay Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24-Dec-2007 at 03:02
I always have problems with this type of thread, as it's difficult for me to single out a particular cultures ceramics as being the best, or most whatever.  As aster put it, it is personal preference.  However I can take up the statement made regarding Egyptian ceramics being the oldest.  The Jomon Culture of Japan wins that one hands down.
There are fragments of pots that have a conservative dating as early as 12,000.  Some Japanese scholars date other fragments as early as 16-18,000.
 
Considering this was and still is my field of study I wish I was at my home computer.  I could contribute more to the photos that have already been posted.  This is the first thread on ceramics I'm aware of that I did not actually originate and I would not like to see it die as mine did. 


Edited by red clay - 24-Dec-2007 at 06:13
"Arguing with someone who hates you or your ideas, is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter what move you make, your opponent will walk all over the board and scramble the pieces".
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  Quote Aster Thrax Eupator Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24-Dec-2007 at 11:45
I agree - although the term "egyptian" ceramics doesn't really have enough diversity. Out of the roughly 26 dynasties, there were massive cultural differences that occured and we can't just generalise and say if we like "egyptian" pottery or not. There is also the seperation between the Pharonic ruling classes and the lower, native Egyptians, each of which had their own different cultures. High Egyptian court culture that we see on temples and in tombs was actually not the culture of the native Egyptians and came from an alien people fundamentally who invaded, so the question would have to be divided into a certain time (i.e. which dynasties) and then to pharonic/native. As per "Egyptian" art, you've also got to consider Ptolemaic art as a seperate candidate (but perhaps this could just come under Hellenistic/Diodachi) -
 
 
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  Quote red clay Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25-Mar-2008 at 01:13
I find it nearly impossible to single out a "favorite".  I do lean toward the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods.  Locations don't particularly matter.
 
 
 
                                       
                                       China- Yang shao culture   ca 2500 bce
 
 
                                  
                                                Yang shao Culture,   ca. 2500 bce
 
 
 
 
                                      
 
                        Banshan Culture
 
                                      
                                               Cucutani Culture,  ca 3,000 bce
 
 
                            
                                 Cucutani pottery culture
 
 
                                        
 
                       Cucutani Culture
 
 
"Arguing with someone who hates you or your ideas, is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter what move you make, your opponent will walk all over the board and scramble the pieces".
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20-Apr-2008 at 09:35
i pick Grecce because there are so many thing in the world related with grecce. people give a name to somthing the use a greece name like space shuttle use name of the god,...  the buiding effect  from grecce buinding,.... 
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  Quote Aster Thrax Eupator Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-May-2008 at 13:34

Much of it depends upon your cultural background - Europeans and many in the western world can relate to Greek red, black and white ground pottery because the scenes depicted and the ways that they are depicted have been so injected into our society at this point that we judge everything else against them. I can't really find much in, say, Chinese pottery, but that's because I'm a limey and my cultural basis comes from the civilisations of classical antiquity.

Pretentious waffle aside, some of the early attic red figure stuff is delicious, and for some reason I prefer it more than the really famous high classical painters such as the Pan Painter and Medias

The Berlin painter (c.490-470)
 
 
Zeus pursuing Ganymede, Bell Krater
 
 
Hector and Achilles do battle, Volute Krater
 
Euthymides (c.500 BC)
 
 
Three men carousing, Amphora
 
 


Edited by Aster Thrax Eupator - 18-May-2008 at 13:37
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  Quote red clay Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Nov-2010 at 12:14
This thread originated while I was in a foreign country, Washington State.  Big smile  I had forgotten about it.  Interestingly,  I just now noticed a bunch of glaring errors in the original post.
 
First off the Egyptian Bottle isn't ceramic.  It's an alabaster jar.  It's been carved out of stone.  Which brings up a lulu of a question,  If we lack the ability to do this today, which we do, how the heck did they do this.  A whole thread all it's own.
 
Next, the "Indian Pottery Bowl" is certainly Indian, only it's American Indian and not as he states, Hindu.
 
There follows a slew of boners.  The Iranian Neolithic piece is from the Islamic era Etc.
 
 
Considering the importance of Ceramics in History this subject could take up an entire subforum.  But I'll just try to keep this thread active.
 
                                    And accurate! WinkBig smileCool 
"Arguing with someone who hates you or your ideas, is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter what move you make, your opponent will walk all over the board and scramble the pieces".
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  Quote opuslola Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Nov-2010 at 21:44
Dear redclay, perhaps you will find out what you want to find out, here?

http://www.ask.com/web?&o=101881&l=dis&q=alabaster%20carvings
http://www.quotationspage.com/subjects/history/
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  Quote red clay Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Nov-2010 at 08:44
That's an interesting search page Ron.   There are some interesting sites there.  But none tell how you carve an inside space, with integrity.  Meaning the inside is the same form as the exterior.  The current view is that they had a means of powdering then reconstitute the stone as in a mold.
"Arguing with someone who hates you or your ideas, is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter what move you make, your opponent will walk all over the board and scramble the pieces".
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