Chinese Temple Art: Transferring Time and Meaning

             When entering the Royal Ontario Museum one is faced with art, architecture and important artifacts of other cultures. The main element that will be looked at whilst exploring the ROM will be the Bishop White Gallery of Chinese Temple Art. Then, the nature of transferring such art will be looked at, while discussing the conflict between its purpose during the Yuan dynasty, opposed to its purpose in modern day Canada.

 According to the tour guide, the ROM has the largest collection of Chinese artifacts outside China, this includes two Daoist paintings, one called “Homage to the Higher Powers” originating from temple walls during the Yuan dynasty in the Shanxi Province. The image on the Eastern wall depicts the Seven Stars and on the other side the five planets that can be seen from Earth along with the first Emperor. In the painting there is the representation of Mercury as a monkey and scribe, Venus as a Phoenix, Mars as the god of war, Saturn and its four moons depicted as plumbs and Jupiter as old and wise with a cane. When first looking at the painting, one can notice the circular elements around the Sage’s heads. Later on in the tour, when looking at money, which is circular in shape with a square as it centre is said to represent heaven and earth.  Hence, one can presume the circle around the heads in the painting represent some type of heavenly essence. One may also notice the subtle squares in the image, which one may believe was the artist’s intention to represent Earth; however this was due to how it was transferred from its original wall of the Temple to the ROM.

With that, it is interesting to ponder how and why this particular piece made it to Canada. At the time, the temple art was being accumulated by Bishop White many Chinese religious artifacts were being destroyed.  Hence, Bishop White must have been in a hurry to bring these paintings back to Canada, which may lead one to wonder whether or not there are pieces of the artifact that may be missing or even fabricated.  Naturally, the tour claims that they are original, but how are the audience looking at this piece actually suppose to know if the paint on the picture was originally red, blue or whatever colour is shown. As mentioned before, there is subtle squaring in the painting due its transfer from one wall to another, which placed meaning to the ROM audience that would not have been there while in a temple wall. At the same time, paintings such as “Homage to the Higher Powers” were originally a Temple painting.  Presumably, Temple paintings were meant to be worshiped and were set as reminders of proper etiquette in everyday life of the people in the Yuan dynasty in the Shanxi Province. Now, while in the ROM these painting are tourist attractions, something to be gawked at by students and elitist seeking higher education and culture.  Hence, one is left to wonder, although the ROM refers to the “Homage of the Higher Power” as “Chinese Temple Art”, is it still temple art, when it is no longer placed in a temple to worship, whilst in Ontario, Canada.

            Overall, the Chinese Temple Art presented in the ROM is similar to looking at any significant element of a different culture. The transference of temple art from its original time and location to contemporary Canada, like the translations Chinese writings of Confucius and Loa Tzu, leaves something lost in translation.  Hence, although, the image of “Home of the Higher Powers” is still preserved, its religious significance can never be realized again. 

For more information, please visit: http://www.rom.on.ca/en

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