Whether their eyes are open or closed or half-closed, they can't hide the smile that overflows from the corners of their mouths - looking at them, the blocks in their chests melt away, and the sea of their hearts returns to calm, and relaxation is natural.
This is a smile from 1,500 years ago, out of turmoil, out of chaos, out of suffering, so full of devotion to life, exuding a free and easy atmosphere, quietly brushing away our tiredness and worries.
On September 28th, the Fuzhou Station of "Seeing a Smile - Ancient Qingzhou Regional Statue Art Exhibition" produced by the Satellite TV Center of Fujian Radio, Film and Television Group opened, and the smiles of the Northern and Southern Dynasties will bloom in the Fuzhou Museum.
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Qingzhou's smile is a style
Looking back on 1996, when such a charming smile was excavated from the ruins of Longxing Temple in Qingzhou, Shandong, it amazed the world: it was selected as one of the top ten archaeological discoveries in the country that year, and was later listed as one of the 100 major archaeological discoveries in the 20th century, and Western scholars praised it as "a major discovery that rewrote the history of oriental art".
Archaeologists have found that more than 600 Buddhist statues of various types unearthed in the site span from the Yong'an period of the Northern Wei Dynasty to the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, especially the three dynasties of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Eastern Wei Dynasty and the Northern Qi Dynasty. The statues are mostly painted, using gold leaf and natural mineral pigments such as cinnabar, royal blue, ochre, and peacock green; Some of the statues even have character stories on their bodies or clothing.
Including today's Qingzhou City, Linqu, Zhucheng, Boxing and other areas that once belonged to the ancient Qingzhou boundary in Shandong have unearthed a large number of Buddhist statues of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and the style characteristics are also very similar, so many scholars call it "Qingzhou style".
It is worth noting that the "Qingzhou style" is not set in stone. The times are different, and the "Qingzhou style" also shows a different style.
From the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Eastern Wei Dynasty, the back screen statue of one Buddha and two Bodhisattvas was popular in the ancient Qingzhou area. The so-called back screen, that is, the statue tablet is usually made into a pointed arch shape, which means that the Buddha's body is shining brightly. In the flames, I saw the Buddha and Bodhisattva who were "showing off the bones and clear images" and "praising the clothes and belts" smiling slightly and standing quietly. They are surrounded by a dragon with a lotus flower in their mouth, showing an auspicious atmosphere.
This is the period when Emperor Xiaowen vigorously promoted sinicization, and the Northern Wei Dynasty was on par with the Southern Dynasty and the Han people from top to bottom.
[Northern Wei Dynasty · gilded painted stone carving back screen three statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva] Source: @青州市博物馆
From the Eastern Wei Dynasty to the beginning of the Northern Qi Dynasty, with the political turn of the rulers overthrowing Sinicization and advocating Xianbei, the "Qingzhou style" also changed: from the back screen shape to a single round carving; In terms of body, the pursuit of robustness and fullness; In physiognomy, it is admired for its abundance and abundance; In terms of costumes, the complicated style of praise clothes and belts gradually withdrew from the main stage, and the simple "thin clothes through the body" and "Cao clothes out of the water" shined.
This is also related to the geography of ancient Qingzhou by the sea. Through the Maritime Silk Road, the statuemakers of ancient Qingzhou were more susceptible to the influence of ancient India Mojura statue art, using light Buddhist clothes to highlight the statue's robust body or soft posture.
【Gilt painted stone statue of Buddha (Eastern Wei Dynasty - Northern Qi Dynasty)】
The style changes from time to time, but the smile is always pure, warm, serene, and delightful.
From Qingzhou to Fuzhou, in order to let everyone better appreciate the beauty of smiles 1500 years ago, many elaborate arrangements have been made in this exhibition——
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Naked exhibition? Naked exhibition!
Face to face with national first-class cultural relics without barriers!
"In this exhibition, we arranged a naked exhibition for half of the exhibits." Lin Xinzhou, secretary of the Party branch and deputy director of the Fuzhou Museum, said.
Naked exhibition is an exhibition method that more and more museums at home and abroad are trying to adopt: let the exhibits be separated from the protection of display cabinets, glass covers, etc., and displayed in front of the audience without reservation.
Watching the exhibition through the glass will inevitably be disturbed by the reflection of lights and portraits; The naked exhibition saves these troubles, improves the exhibition experience, and greatly pulls in the psychological separation between us and the cultural relics.
"We made this decision with our hearts in mind, after all, we want to exhibit such a precious national first-class cultural relic," Lin Xinzhou said, "Although we are walking on thin ice, we hope to better present the artistic beauty of the 'Qingzhou Smile' to the audience." It is hoped that every audience can visit the exhibition in a civilized manner in the spirit of respect for history and the cherishing and awe of cultural relics. ”
Linqu County Museum Northern Qi white pottery Bodhisattva statue
In addition to the naked exhibition, simplifying the text introduction will also be an intentional arrangement for this exhibition.
"We didn't have a large text introduction for the exhibits," said Zheng Fang, the exhibit's producer, "We don't want to educate the audience from professional knowledge, but we want to make people pay more attention to the exhibits themselves, discover through observation, and think in discovery." Maybe after watching the exhibition, everyone will go back with a question mark, and they will be more willing to take the initiative to understand the statue art of ancient Qingzhou and the statue art of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. ”
Although there is no large text introduction in the exhibition hall, Zheng Fang still reminds everyone that they may wish to do their homework on the history and culture of the Northern and Southern Dynasties before visiting the exhibition, so that they can better "see" and feel the smile.
Smile slightly, and pour Banyan City. On September 28th, let us feel the peace and tranquility of life with a smile.
Exhibition Information:
Exhibition Name: "Seeing a Smile - Special Exhibition of Statue Art in Ancient Qingzhou Region" Fuzhou Station
Exhibition time: 2024.9.28-12.27
Exhibition Venue: No. 1 and No. 3 Temporary Exhibition Hall on the second floor of Fuzhou Museum
Guiding unit: Fuzhou Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics
Organizers: Fuzhou Museum, Qingzhou Museum, Linqu County Museum
Producer: Fujian Radio, Film and Television Group Satellite TV Center Fujian Shangzhiyi He Cultural Investment and Development Co., Ltd
Tips
Tickets are required for admission
Ticketing time
Early Bird Ticket Rush Time:
September 9, 2024–September 28, 2024
Regular Ticket Rush Period:
From now until 27 December 2024
fare
Adult early bird ticket: 38 yuan/person
Early bird ticket for one large and one small parent-child: 69 yuan
Adult regular ticket: 69 yuan
Regular ticket for 2 large and 1 small family: 138 yuan
Double ticket: 118 yuan
How to buy tickets: