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Mentioned in 1 episodes
Screen of kings
Book • 2013
Craig Clunas's 'Screen of Kings' examines members of the Ming imperial clan (Wang) and reframes Ming space by mapping their 'states' (guo), arguing these regional royal figures played central roles in art production and cultural authority.
The book blends textual, archaeological, and visual evidence—including calligraphy, painting, tomb finds, and local memory—to recover the visibility and invisibility of kings and their households.
Clunas challenges Jiangnan-centered narratives of Ming culture, showing how kings acted as cultural replicators and local power brokers across China.
He emphasizes methodological shifts: looking beyond canonical texts and collections to local archives, material culture, and gendered invisibilities to trace agency.
The volume is richly illustrated and written for both specialists and wider audiences, with case studies linking past practices to contemporary regional memory and material remains.
The book blends textual, archaeological, and visual evidence—including calligraphy, painting, tomb finds, and local memory—to recover the visibility and invisibility of kings and their households.
Clunas challenges Jiangnan-centered narratives of Ming culture, showing how kings acted as cultural replicators and local power brokers across China.
He emphasizes methodological shifts: looking beyond canonical texts and collections to local archives, material culture, and gendered invisibilities to trace agency.
The volume is richly illustrated and written for both specialists and wider audiences, with case studies linking past practices to contemporary regional memory and material remains.
Mentioned by
Mentioned in 1 episodes
Mentioned by Carla Nappi as the episode's focal book, introduced and discussed with its author about Ming kings and art.
Craig Clunas, “Screen of Kings: Royal Art and Power in Ming China” (University of Hawaii Press, 2013)
