Contents
Preface.............................................................................................01
Chapter ITravel in Time Through a Painting
Section 1 Tranquil Life in Bianjing Suburb........................................................002
Section 2 The Prosperous Bianhe River............................................................008
Section 3 Rainbow Bridge Known as ‘the Visual Center of Painting’...................018
Section 4 Thriving Business.............................................................................024
Section 5 Which Gate of Bianjing City Is It? ....................................................041
Section 6 Busy Urban Area.............................................................................047
Section 7 Secular Figures in the Genre Painting................................................069
Chapter II The Northern Song Dynasty Behind the Masterpiece
Section 1 Bianjing, the Capital of the Northern Song Dynasty...........................076
Section 2 An International Metropolis Supported by Citizens.............................090
Section 3 Bianhe River, Bianjing’s Lifeline........................................................096
Section 4 Water Transport of Grain, the Foundation of the Country...................103
Chapter III ‘The Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival’ and the Chinese Genre Painting
Section 1 The Song Dynasty’s Genre Painting Trend.........................................112
Section 2 Life of the Song Dynasty in Genre Painting........................................129
Section 3 The Decline of Genre Painting..........................................................142
Section 4 Looking Back on Chinese and Western Genre Paintings.....................150
Chapter IV A-Thousand-Years Odyssey of ‘The Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival’
Section 1 Drifting in the ‘River of History’.........................................................166
Section 2 Building up Fame While Wandering Around......................................176
Section 3 Global Study of ‘The Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival’..........187
Section 4 Chinese Painting With a Long History................................................190
Section 5 Chinese Painting Closely Connected With World Culture....................197
Appendix A Brief Chinese Chronology......................................................202