Zhao Ji Essay -- Biography

Zhao Ji was the eleventh son of Emperor Shenzong of the Union Song Dynasty. Being so far d profess the imbibe for successiveness to the empire, he spent his time devoting him egotism to his sleep withs of literature, art, and Daoism surrounding himself in luxury and sophistication. He built up and catalogued an extensive video collection, Xuanhehuapu, with over 6,000 paintings. To date, no primitively collection, neither court or private, is known to have as a lot detail as Huizongs because book length catalogues of his paintings, calligraphies and antiquities all survived (Ebrey, p.5). Huizong treasured to reform court music that had been degenerated during the Five Dynasties Period and was an avid worshiper in ruiying, Heavens way of communicating with the earth. He is aspect of as the only accomplished creative person in a line of emperors all who loved and appreciated the arts (Oxford Art Dictionary). It is his love of the arts, and his decisions to party favour art and religion over politics that is associated with the fall of the Great Union Song Dynasty, a dynasty that ruled from 960 until it was lost at the hand of Huizong in 1127.Huizong was a literati artist, well trained in poetry and calligraphy very much looking at paintings in terms of these two arts, adopting many of the esthetical concepts set forth in Ershisi Shipin (The 24 aspects of Poetry). As a literati artist he believed in depth and primitive simplicity in his work, and that painting was an enjoyable activity intended to please ones self and ones friends (Barnhart, p.3). His development as an artist was oversaw by threesome friends, all of high social rank, but of different interests. Zhao Lingrang was a painter and assisted the Emperor in his continual search for scrolls to adorn his colle... ...In popular Chinese memory, Huizong is known as the Artist-Emperor (Ebrey, p.8) He was talented nice to have made a name for himself, had he not do emperor. During his twenty six year rule he naturalised the virtually impressive art collection anyone has put together to date. He established a school for court painters and restored music in China. It was simply his own misfortune that during his rule, his empire would fall to the Jin tribe from the North. Perhaps it is because Huizong loved the charming so intensely that he had no head for the tough office of governing (Ebrey, p.11). However I do not think it would be fair to overlook all that Huizong did for the arts of China and simply distill on the ill fortune that forced him to lose his empire. A a few(prenominal) bad decisions shouldnt undo all the greatness that Huizong has enabled through his love of the arts.