The duplicative design behavior in different artistic forms and its implications

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1 The duplicative design behavior in different artistic forms and its implications Lin, Ying-Kuei*, Chuko, Cheng**, Liu, Chao-Huei***, Yang, Ping-Yu**** *Department of Industrial Design, Chaoyang University of Technology, address: **Department of Industrial Design, Chaoyang University of Technology, ***Department of Visual Communication Design, Chaoyang University of Technology, address: ****Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Design, Chaoyang University of Technology, address: Abstract:The Chinese art has diferent styles of presentation; for example, the six techniques in traditional Chinese painting are also the standard and important aesthetic principles for evaluating ancient art. Techniques for imitating such as the atmosphere, brushwork, imagery, coloring, composition, imitation-behaviors of using calligraphic duplicative templates, the visual art of block-printing, and duplication through photography all indicate the implication of different type of duplicative design behavior being utilized. Painting, calligraphy, and words are all important parts of education. Since the Tang and Sung Dynasty, there has been a strong emphasis on poetry in traditional Chinese painting as texts in a painting give more meaning to the work and make it educational. Before the traditional printing technique became popular, traditional paintings were often duplicated by artists or craftsmen, and the duplications become an important vessel for passing on history when the original works could no longer be found. Templates for calligraphy are especially educational in the development of duplication; calligraphic templates themselves are a form of manual duplication, and students benefit from such practice when they follow the templates to learn about calligraphy. The duplication-based approach in the teaching of painting, block-printing, and photography is also more efficient and direct than the text-based approach. Therefore, in this present study we discuss and analyze the philosophy of duplication in painting, calligraphy, block-printing, digital photography, and design and determine its meaning in the development of the design behavior. We reviewed and analyzed relevant information from ancient Chinese literature such as historical records ( Shi-ji and Han-shu ), ancient books ( History of the Later Tang Dynasty, The Book of History, and Li-ji ), and records of materials and techniques ( Diagrams of One Hundred Techniques and The Artificers Record ) in the wish of determining the actual impacts of the behavior of duplicative design. We also analyzed their implications in the design behavior in order to rethink the importance of the design philosophy on the design behavior. The main findings are as follows: (1) The traditional imitation-based learning demonstrates that the source ofartistic creation must start from imitation : the learning of diferent artistic styles starts from imitation, and this approach has become an endless cycle in our history as we make reference to history and learn how to solve a certain problem. (2) The original purpose of blockprinting not only has artistic content but is also gradually developed as a way to satisfy day-to-day 1

2 needs: block-printing images are duplicative in nature and allow a person to read texts and view pictures in an ancient text at the same time. (3) Mass reproduction can be achieved through the duplicative nature of photography: Like block-printing, duplications made possible by photography can be mass produced; art works are no longer one-of-a-kind, and any unique design can be massproduced Key words: the duplicative behavior, calligraphy, block-printing, the design philosophy 1. Introduction Of the many categories under Chinese art, painting, caligraphy and texts are also important vesels of education. In this present study, we discus the scope and degree of the influences of imitation in duplicationbased art forms. Our discussion focuses on painting, calligraphy, block-printing, digital photography and design, and their duplication-related differences and important characteristics. The motivation behind this research is the wish that by reviewing the ancient literatures, we would be able to discus the actual impacts of the design behavior of duplication in the evolution of the Chinese way-of-life and to establish a theory on the traditional Chinese design. Our research method is to collect, organize, and analyze ancient literatures. 2. Paintaing(Chinese era and time line) 2.1 The Imitation Technique of the Six Techniques in Ancient Chinese Paintings Around BC , the social community known as scholars cared much about their own artistic sophistication, and art forms such as poetry and painting were the expression of such quality. The importance of painting to scholars is described in this ancient text: A scholar puts his wil on the way, bases his actions on morality and benevolence, and expreses himself through art. The word art refers to fine arts. In other words, the specific skils involved in art share certain qualities with the abstract way. For example, art is defined in the book Yuan-ru as a set of abilities or techniques. The Six Techniques are also known as the Six Arts." The source of the technique of design refers to the Six Arts involving techniques or skils, and the original concepts of art, technique, and design were originally the same(syun Jiang,1986). Well-known calligraphers such as Kai-zhi Gu and Xi-zhi Wang between BC 206 and AD 23 are the representatives of ancient Chinese painting and calligraphy. In order to further develop painting and calligraphy, these two art forms were started to be introduced to families of a high socioeconomic status. In terms of painting, The Catalog of Ancient Paintings that emerged during year was the first book dedicated to painting-related theories, which states that the six methods commonly used for practices are: (1) to have the spirit of artistic creation, (2) to practice contours, (3) to practice life-drawing, (4) to practice the use of colors, (5) to practice composition, and (6) to imitate the techniques of the predecessors. For example, there was an artist named Kui Dai, whose artistic techniques were imitated by numerous artists. As painting is about imitating the contours of an object, and the use of brushstrokes applies to both calligraphy and painting, thus a painter must also be good at caligraphy. The theory that caligraphy and painting are the same proves that artists absorb and enhance the techniques they learn from others and become templates for others to imitate upon. This also shows that life-drawing and imitation are esential in the learning of painting, and that the source of artistic creation must start with imitation. 2

3 The painters between year focused more on life-drawing. As stated in The Records of Famous Paintings in the Past, Ji Syue is especialy proficient in painting flowers, birds, and individuals, and the practice of painting cranes on a screen started with him. Painter LI, Cheng-Sou also said a landscape artist must explore much before knowing how to start By applying the same logic in observing the world, we realize that even the most dazzling sunset glow is caused by sunlight. As stated by scholar Chong-Guang Da the art of painting cannot be separated from imitating the beauty of mountains and rivers, and observations of nature are esential in order to refine one s work. That is, one should practicelife-drawing in the outdoors. Da-Shih Sheng also said, A painter must never omit the beautiful scenery before his eyes, and past artists works are all valuable templates (Fo-Ting Lyu,1966). We can see how an artistic creator imitates through observation and transforms the experience into creativity, as well as how important it is to imitate a sensation. Commonly used words in art-critique are shape and spirit, and the so-caled lie-drawing is about imitating an object, whereas portrayal is about drawing the shape of an object. From life-drawing to portrayal, the nature of this proces is a transformation. 2.2 The influences of duplication in calligraphy templempiates and the behavior of imitation the learning in the learning of calligraphy The three hundred years between 581 and 979 was another cultural pinnacle in the history of China. The emperors enjoyed purchasing and collecting calligraphy works. Being practitioners rather than just collectors, the emperors not only promoted calligraphy, but also did so through political means, and important cultural and educational organizations had dedicated paper craftsmen and decoration workers. The royal government was also able to organize teams of experts to duplicate well-known works, allowing the works to be passed onto the future generations (Jhong-Dan OuYang,2000), and the method of duplication is the only way for the future generations to witness what the original work looked like. As a result, the only way to witness the calligraphy of master calligrapher Xi-zhi Wang is through the duplications that were preserved throughout the eras. The Chinese emperors placed much attention on developing calligraphers and provided benefits for people working in this industry. Dedicated transcription organizations known as The Scripture Workshop. The workers daily expenses were also covered by the government. In a calligraphy class, the teacher would give an example for students to imitate, and those who showed exceptional performance after repeated imitations would be promoted. Thanks to the transcriptions and the efforts of inscription craftsmen, the history of China was able to be preserved and passed on. The influences duplication-techniques and the imitation behavior in calligraphy education are the best examples of the actual practice. 2.3 The visual art of engraving and block-printing and the development of its educational purpodes In this section we discuss the development and characteristics of woodblock illustrations in books between year 960 and 1911 in order to examine the important influences of the duplications in woodblock-printing on education and philosophy.the four hundred years between year 960 and 1368 was an important turning point for China s woodblock-printing as well as the start of the prosperity of this art. The foundation of the technique of woodblockprinting was established between year 618 and 979, which was commonly used in publications as one of the traditional features of Chinese books is the use of both texts and pictures. Illustrations were used for 3

4 supplementary purposes in various works, such as the novels The Dream of the Red Chamber and The Romance of the West Chamber (Figure 1,2) Figure 1 Cheng Sui Man Book Store type of the "Dream of Red Mansions" Illustration Source:China Printing Historyhttp:// Figure 2 West Chamber engraving catalog Source:China Printing Historyhttp:// In the Colection of Ilustrative Plates between year 960 and 1279, it is stated that reading a book without illustrations is like hearing the sound but not seeing the shape; seeing only illustrations in a book without texts is like looking at a person without hearing what they say. People nowadays, however, use words without illustrations and uphold text-based statements, making it difficult for them to learn or to master a subject." (Ciao Jheng,1983) The above explains that ancient poets and illustrators knew much about wild beasts and plants, and the illustrations were as realistic as possible in order to facilitate understanding. The importance of the mutual complement of pictures and words was getting very clear, and much more so for the educational meaning of illustration-duplications. The significant development of book illustrations, the continuous illustrations with covers, were seen around year Take the New Ilustrated Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Fig. 3) for example; the engraved ilustration of Visiting the Thatched Cotage Three Times on the cover depicts how the characters look like, and the atmosphere and actual setting were duplicated in a similar or identical manner, and this is how words were transformed and duplicated into pictures. Figure 3 New-phase of the Three Kingdoms Source:China Printing Historyhttp:// 4

5 The pervasive use of illustrations in books also greatly improved the engraving technique. This is why modern engraving is the art form of block-printing, which requires the three stages of composition, block-making, and printing. Block-printing is block based art-form, thus making it possible to make duplications. A single block can be used to produce two (or more) identical works, which is different from a typical art work which is one of a kind. As a result, the public may access block-prints with ease, and they do not really care about whether a work is original and the only one in the world. Price-wise, a block-print is naturally cheaper than a traditional art work, making it easier for art collectors to purchase. Block-printing is originally a popular folk art in the Chinese society. The method of duplication is also how Chinese traditions, customs and religions spread around, making this method a great way to duplicate a way of life. After year 1644, the technique of "lithoprint was introduced. Because it is an easier method of duplication, offers photo-like quality, and allows scaling to produce various sizes, printed pictures are more refined and life-like, allowing realistic images such as those seen on advertisements (Figure 4). Figure 4 Xu Sheng Kee picture card issued Shanghai advertising posters Source: Xu Sheng Kee picture card issued Shanghai advertising posters The reverse introduction of Western printing to China in the 19th Century also brought forth much influence; that is, manual-labor printing was replaced by machine-enabled printing. In addition, the technique of lithoprint was easier than China s traditional relief-printing (woodblock) in terms of block-making, allowing greater output with the same amount of cost and time. As a result, the traditional woodblock-printing started to decline over time. Block-prints such as model-paintings, poetry illustrations, and New Year pictures were replaced by machineenabled prints, and the unique style of woodblock-printing was thus gradually lost. Duplication emerged because of the need for it; however, after machines replaced manual labors, the change also brought upon a reverse philosophy. Manual block-print duplications are a form of art, whereas those made by machines are just a form of commodity. The key to determine whether a block-print is an art is not the influence of duplication, but the difference between hand-made and non-hand-made, which is extremely visible in the process of block-printing. 2.4 The meaning of duplication with photography Before photography was invented in the 19th Century, the only way to reproduce an image is to duplicate it with utmost artistic techniques which often seized by artists or specialists. However, with the introduction of photography, duplication is no longer exclusive to artists. Thanks to cameras, creative works beyond realism are possible. On the other hand, in order to satisfy most artists demand for artistic expresion in the earlier days, many artists and photographers applied painting and aesthetic philosophies in photographic works. A photographer s selection of lighting and composition is as meticulous as that of a painter s, and much atention is also placed on the theories of coloring and ratios. With the advancing photography technology, photography quickly became a professional form of artistic expression. The follow-up inventions of video cameras, cinematic technology, digital photography, and digital cameras manifest mankind s natural desire for visual images, and the technique of image-duplication was taken to an unprecedented scale. In 1936, Walter Benjamin introduced the 5

6 idea of aura regarding machine-enabled artistic duplication. He believes that aura exists in al things, and a camera is able to capture the most natural images. However, as the technique of machine-enable duplication advances, duplicated art works only manifest the content of the original work but not the aura. In the thesis A Reconciliation with Digital Art On the Co-existence of Image Duplication and Fine Arts, it is stated that the greatest drive behind duplication is mankind s desire of ownership, which may be evident in the fact that Western art works are often duplicated (Chun-Gong Jheng,2002). This explains that mankind desires to have ownership over something, and this is why duplication-related industries become increasingly profitable. As mentioned earlier, with the invention of photography, duplication is no longer a right exclusive to artists. With the help of a camera, realism that surpases what can be achieved by artists can sometimes be posible. Basicaly, a photographic work is regularly duplicated before it is considered done. In other words, photography is based on the behavior of duplication, especially when photographic works are commercialized (such as scenic post cards). Today, digital imaging alows los-les duplications of an original work, an advantage that the traditional analog media cannot compete with. Even so, there are mixed opinions towards the emergence of the art of digital duplications. Images produced with the digital system allows completely identical and loss-less duplications, and the technology that allows the faithful reproduction of the original work stands unchalenged. Further, in the thesis A Discusion on Image Duplication and Reproduction, it is stated that design is diferent from art, especialy with visual design as it is born with the spirit of duplication, which needs to be reinforced repeatedly in the transition of media (Li-Min Chen, Wan-Lai You,2001).The above explains the biggest difference between art and design. Though photography is a form of art, it is also capable of reproduction through duplication, but the reliance on this method makes the definition of an original visual work very confusing as more than one original work can be made, causing profound impacts on the idea that an original work must be one of its kind. 2.5 Difference in the duplication between artistic creation and design In the process of learning calligraphy, fine arts, and block-printing, our ancestors realized that creativity starts from imitation. In fact, creativity must come from the accumulation of previous experience, and it is safe to say that the imitation of past history is the new result of the integration of previous experience. Previous experience mostly derives from imitation, and new integration mostly comes from the new elements in the behavior of duplication, a direction that learners may follow. Fo-Ting Lyu, a guru of traditional Chinese painting, once said in his book The Four Realms of Chinese Painting that most of thosewho learn Western painting believe their minds and personalities are restricted if they imitate ancient paintings. But they fail to realize that for every form of knowledge in the world, a cause must come before a creation, and there can be no creation without a cause. Creation is the purpose of imitation, and imitation is the process of creation; the two are closely intertwined. (Fo-Ting Lyu,1966). The above again demonstrates that the ancients learning and production of painting, calligraphy, and block-printing are interconnected, and creation starts from imitation. As for the development of artistic creation, most people only look at the ultimate value of the final result and often ignore the source of creativity mentioned by Plato and Guang-qian Zhu; that is, most people neglect the imitation-related attitudes and behaviors in the process, and perhaps this is a form of contradiction in the behavior of artistic creation. 6

7 Design is somehow difference from art, and especially the level of acceptance towards the influences on duplication. Regarding the definition of design, in the book The State of Mind of Creativity it reads: besides originality, design is more about productivity, and a single product is often duplicated tens, hundreds, or thousands of times (Yu-Fu Yang,2000). From the above, we can easily understand the significant philosophical correlation between design and duplication. A single, unduplicated product may be a handcraft; however, the method of producing tens, hundreds, or thousands units of a single product with machines may be a design. If we further analyze this mater from the perspective of the quantity of an item, we see that the focus of an artistic work is originality, and the mas duplication of which is often undesirable. On the other hand, though originality is also important in the domain of design, mass duplication of a product is critical, and the quantity has to be large enough to meet consumers demands. For example, National Palace Museum has been seling the duplications of certain artifacts in the recent years; of which, the "Jade Cabbage" is especially popular, and it has 81 related duplications. The Curator of National Palace Museum once said at a conference, the duplications of the Museum s exhibits have educational purposes, and their quality is thus critical. The quality of the Japanese duplications of their ancient paintings is no les of the originals, indicating how much effort they put in the pursuit of quality. The National Palace Museum is also placing much attention on these cultural items (duplicates) (Gong-Sin Jhou,2009). The above shows how Gong-Sin Jhou made clear of the educational purposes of duplication. Duplicates are widely available in the modern life and very common. Moderners love to see public art, and the duplicates of exhibits or paintings can be found in museums, such as the duplicates ofnational Palace Museum s "Jade Cabbage" and other important ancient paintings. Through these art duplicates, tourists and visitors get to collect something, and these items may also fulfill their educational purposes mentioned earlier, which further stresses the importance of duplication in the domain of design. As mentioned above, the ultimate goal of design may be indeed diferent from that of art in terms of duplication, and this could be where art and design go their separate ways and develop into different domains. 3. Conclusions 3.1 Artistic creation starts with "imitation" Since the ancient times, the learning of any type of art starts with imitation, a cycle that repeats itself endlessly throughout history. Through imitation, we learn from history and learn how to solve problems. Mankind cannot learn anything if this process is skipped.since the beginning, painting is full of calligraphic characteristics, and its techniques also involve those of writing, and this is why writing and painting share the same root. To learn how to paint, one may follow "The Six Techniques" that were established in the ancient times. The practice of repeated imitation further indicates that the source of artistic creation must be imitation. In the ancient times, much attention was placed on calligraphy and the development of calligraphers, and the calligraphic templates of gurus such as Xi-zhi Wang were the tools for learners to imitate upon. Thanks to those efforts, we get to see the Xi-zhi Wang s caligraphy centuries later, and this would never have been posible if the duplicates were preserved generation after generation. As the originals can no longer be found, we would be left with only texts if there were no duplication techniques available, and the future generations would not be able to learn from the past. 3.2 The "multiplicity" feature of block-printing promotes image-based reading and learning 7

8 The original purpose of block-printing is not just about art but to satisfy the public s demands. Thanks to the multiplicity feature of block-printing, which is similar to the mass printing of text-based books (pictures versus words), ancient books were able to present readers with an opportunity to learn something through texts and illustrations. 3.3 Design for mass-production through photography and image-duplication With photography and image duplication, artistic creation is no longer exclusive to artists. With the help of a camera, realism that surpases what can be achieved by artists can sometimes be possible. Further, much like block-printing, photography is also an art medium that allows mass duplication, which eliminates the traditional thinking that an art work must be one of its kind and promotes the philosophy of mass-production designs. To summarize, from the process of the ancients learning about calligraphy, painting and block-printing, we can see that imitation is not only an important foundation for creativity, and creativity is the new integration of all previous experiences. This new integration is mostly derived from the transformation of duplication and provides future learners with an important model of design and development. Your references should be published materials accessible to the public. Internal technical reports may be cited only if they are easily accessible (i.e., you provide the address for obtaining the report within your citation) and may be obtained by any reader for a nominal fee. Proprietary information may not be cited. Private communications should be acknowledged in the main text, not referenced (e.g., [Robertson, personal communication] ). 4. References [1] Guang-Cian Jhu(1990), On the concept of beauty. House of Books rolls,pp [2] Fang-Jheng Wu(2002),Late four decades following aspects of visual culture Shanghai, Central University of Humanities,p.50. [3] Fo-Ting Lyu(1966),Four state of Chinese Painting, Art of the inaugural issue of, Republic of China Painting Association,pp [4] Cing-Fu Lyu(1984),Shape theory, Lion Publishing,p36. [5] Ya-Ming Ban(1999),Looking Emmanuel gone era, Photo published in Taiwan,p.65. [6] Yan-Yuan Jhang(1963),Art history in mind, Taiwan Business,p.8. [7] Li-Min Chen&Wan-Lai You(2001),Copy and reproduction of images and their meaning in the visual design, Design(1),p.176. [8] Yu-Fu Yang(2000),Meaning of environmental innovation, Garden City Cultural Publication,p.14. [9] Yuan-Dan Pan(1991),Print, National Gallery,p.18. [10] Syun Jiang(1986),Contemplation of beauty, Lion Art,p.21. [11] Chun-Gong Jheng(2002),.Reconciliation with digital art - and art of the phase image reproduction republic of Health, Journal of Plastic Arts School,p.337. [12] Ciao Jheng(1983),Annals.Twelve map slightly Juan Qi, Taiwan Commercial Press,p.558. [13] Bing Syue(2002),Illustrated, Jiangsu Ancient Book Publishing House,p.14. [14] Gong-Sin Jhou(2009),National Palace Museum will be set up incubation center of cultural and creative, Business Times,A10 Industrial Commercial. [15] China Printing Historyhttp:// 8

9 [16] Xu Sheng Kee picture card issued Shanghai advertising posters 9