Study On The Art Of Kite Of China

Called "Feng Zheng" in Chinese today, kite was also named "Zhi Yao" or "Yao Zi" in ancient China. Originated in China, kite is now seen all over the world. At the very beginning, kite was not a toy as its kind today; instead, it was utilized for other purposes, such as military, communication, measuring or propaganda. Along with economic growth, culture and arts also develops. As a carrier of traditional culture, kite has also developed unprecedentedly.The paper studies kites systematically in terms of its origin, evolution, genres, types, aesthetical values and social functions, and prospects its modern role as an intangible heritage. As a kind of Chinese folk art, kite implies both aesthetic values and driving force for economic development. Domestically, it helps make Chinese people learn more about Chinese traditional arts so as to enhance unity; and internationally, it is a window to enable foreign people to know more about Chinese folk arts so as to promote international cultural and economic exchange. Therefore, the study on Chinese kites would be academically valuable and socially meaningful.The first chapter is an overview of kites, mainly discussing the necessity of studying kites as a Chinese art. The chapter begins with the origin of kites and evolution and genres of the art of kites in China in order to clarify the path of kite culture with a macro perspective. Next, the genres and artistic characteristics of kites are explored. The types of kites are also involved. Existing categorization methods and kite pictures collected are both used in order to categorize kites in a reasonable way while different from past research.The second chapter mainly discusses the in-depth implication of re-popularization of kites in modern society. The aesthetic value of the art of kites is the major topic of this chapter. Kite is a product derived from collective wisdom of Chinese people, symbolizing sweet wishes of generations of kite artists. Well-designed and painted, kites bring aesthetical joy and experience. Through the evolution of thousands of years, kite has been enriched with more aesthetical values. This is an important reason that the art of kites re-popularizes in modern society and have been favored by generations of people.The third chapter explores the social functions of kites in aspects of entertainment, health, economy and politics. The major topic here is the mental and physical experience and health benefits that kite brings and its contribution to China’s international cultural and economic exchange and China’s politics.Based on the social functions of kites, the fourth chapter focuses on the modern role of kites as an intangible cultural heritage. Kite festivals are organized to communicate kites to more people so as to strengthen international cultural exchange and drive economic growth. Some other topics are also covered in this chapter, including how kites were introduced to overseas, its impact abroad and its succession and innovation.The fifth part mainly look ahead to the future development of the kite,and analyze the innovation of the traditional craft as well as the possibility of problems inccurred from the future developing process and give the solutions.