New St Petersburg University online courses introduce students to the basic techniques of Chinese painting
St Petersburg University has launched a new online programme, "Chinese Painting", which will introduce students to the ancient traditional art of China, its history, the evolution of painting skills and the basic techniques of classical gongbi.
Students will explore: the diversity of genres established in the national culture; the similarities and key differences between calligraphic and pictorial painting techniques; the philosophical meanings behind each painting; and the tools necessary to create works of Chinese fine art.
The programme consists of two main courses. The first part covers the theory of the nature and characteristics of Oriental painting, the main stages of its development, the three main genres and the symbolic meaning of the paintings. In the second part of the course, students will do some preparatory exercises, learn how to paint using the gōngbǐ technique and make copies of two complete paintings in the genres of shan shui (mountains and water) and huaniaohua (flowers and birds).
The authors of the course are: Konstantin Petrov, Lecturer in the Department of History of the Far East Countries at St Petersburg University, Junior Research Associate in the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage Museum; and Tu Zhun, a Chinese artist and graduate of St Petersburg University in Art Studies.
By the end of the online programme, students will have mastered: the terminological apparatus of Chinese painting; the basic techniques of colouring and gōngbǐ; and the skills of making artistic copies of works. They will also learn how to stretch silk and prepare rice paper to create paintings.
The course is suitable for students interested in Chinese culture, different painting techniques and philosophical doctrines of art. The programme is already available in Russian on the national Open Education platform. In future, it will also be available in Chinese and will be added to the list of online courses of St Petersburg University on the international digital educational platform XuetangX.