The Spatial Dimensions of Talent

Dr. Peter Sturman (Art History & Architecture, UC Santa Barbara) introduces the radical innovations of the Ming-dynasty playwright, poet, calligrapher, and painter Xu Wei (1521–1593) whose talents are best understood in relation to the conventions of artistic expression in China during his lifetime. One shared arena between Xu, his contemporaries, and later artists is the exploration of the three creative practices of poetry, calligraphy, and painting known as the sanjue, or “three perfections.” When applied as something more than the sum of its parts, the three perfections are not simply multidisciplinary but interdisciplinary as well.

In this lecture, Dr. Sturman discusses the interplay of the sanjue as dynamic elements working toward a goal of unified expression of talent. Peter Sturman specializes in the study of Chinese painting and calligraphy with a particular focus on text-image relationships. He is the author of numerous publications including The Artful Recluse: Painting, Poetry, and Politics in 17th-Century China (The Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 2012), winner of the Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award for museum scholarship.