The embodiment of beauty : examining the Ming dynasty "shinü tu" by Tang Yin and Wu Wei

Abstract

During the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), the popularity of beautiful female figure paintings, known as shinü tu (written 仕女图) increased significantly. This development was exceptional, and many prominent artists contributed to this genre of art. The two talented masters of Wu school and Zhe school, Tang Yin (1470- 1524) and Wu Wei (1459-1508), were famous artists in the Ming dynasty that focused on landscape painting, calligraphy, and poetry. Both of them had a massive interest in portraying shinü paintings and have created several extradentary works that raised many discussions even centuries later. By comparing works by the two prominent masters, Tang Yin and Wu Wei, and closely examining the detail in their female figure paintings, I intend to investigate the significance of female physical beauty, by discussing the logic behind Ming’s definition of femininity, analyze the interrelationship between the artistic passages of the two masters and explore the respective social protocols behind their works. How are female figures often portraited in the shinü tu during the Ming dynasty? How is the ideal femininity defined in many shinü tu? What is the correlation between Tang Yin and Wu Wei’s approaches in terms of female figure paintings? What is the reason behind such aesthetic representation? I intend to explore these matters and provide answers to these questions in this dissertation.