Glazed in bright green, red and blue, these two court attendants humbly await service carrying offerings. The attendant dressed in a green robe and tall black cap balances a rectangular box on top of a red sash draped over his arms. The female attendant, wearing a blue half robe with red cuffed sleeves, carries a bowl containing food or water. Her elaborate red headdress indicates her ranking among court attendants. Statuette art of the Ming dynasty is characterized by a trend toward minimalism and a change in choice of subjects. The delicately sculptured features of these two attendants' faces and their soft, fluid body lines are evidence of the changing aesthetics of statuette art. After the disintegration of the Yuan rule, China began to refurbish its cultural industry, borrowing from the ancient tradition of Confucianism that had come to redefine itself in this new age of prosperity. The scholar/literati official played a significant role in the production of art by imposing their sense of morality and vision onto artistic expression. Although statuette art had declined in popularity as the custom of entombing burial objects began to wane, many important pieces were produced during this period.
- (H.508)
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