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Traditional color development

Color principle (history 1):- Who paints in the cave?

Color Principle (History II):-The brightest star in the house?

Principles of Color (History III):-The hottest color?

Principles of Color (History 4):-Who is the most extensive color in nature?

Principles of Color (History 5):- The most expensive "gem"

Principles of Color (History 6): Who is the VIP of Color Family?

Who is the VIP of Sejia? -Color Principle (History 7)

In ancient China, people didn't extract purple pigment from mollusks like the civilizations around the Mediterranean. In ancient China, people extracted purple from a herb called Arnebia euchroma. The purple dye that people first got is not easy to attach to cloth, so like western civilization, the production cost of purple is very high, so the purple fabric is also very expensive.

The popularity of ancient purple in China began in Qi State. Here is an episode about Zhou Li. In ancient China, only positive color was noble, and the son of heaven used positive color dyes. Confucius once criticized Qi Huangong of Qi State and Lu Huangong of Lu State for not dressing according to Zhou Li, which violated Zhou Li and misled people. "Everything is done wrong, foreign reserves said left" in "Qi Huangong is very at ease with purple" wrote:

"Qi Huangong wants purple, and all countries want purple. At that time, the five elements cannot be purple. " Qi Huangong likes purple clothes, so people all over the country follow suit and like purple clothes. But at that time, purple was very expensive, and five pieces of undyed cloth could be exchanged for one piece of purple cloth. The king's preference has affected the people of the whole country, making purple in short supply.

In the pre-Qin period, Confucius thought it was wrong for the two kings to wear purple at inappropriate time and place instead of dressing according to the rites of the week. This led to Confucius' attack on purple, and the "evil purple theory" came into being. However, Guan Zhong, the famous minister of Qi State, finally persuaded Qi Huangong to give up this preference.

In ancient China, the status of purple was not high at first, and China advocated five-color orthochromatic. Purple is considered as the middle color and is not valued. As for the word five-color orthochromatic, it first appeared in the Warring States period. But at that time, there was only the name of "five colors", and the specific five colors were not mentioned. The earliest mention of five-color orthochromatic is Zhou Li Kao Gong Ji, which records:

"The matter of painting (Hu): variegated. The east is blue, the west is white, the south is red, the north is black, the sky is mysterious and the land is yellow. " -Green, red, yellow, black and white.

China's traditional concept of color has not been included in the scientific category as in the West. Chinese traditional color concept was formed in the long-term production practice of ancestors, developed in the ideological spark of a hundred schools of thought contending, and formed a color concept combining natural view and social view through historical evolution. China's concept of * * * sang in nature and society, and finally conveyed his will and expressed his feelings with five monochromatic colors of "green, red, yellow, black and white".

In Zhou Li Kao Gong Ji, we can see that in ancient China, the colors of the five elements were associated with the orientation, forming a unique image of China, which is the most typical thought of China, and pointed out:

"Blue and white are the second, red and black are the second, and Xuan Huang is the second." Green and red refers to text, red and white refers to chapter, white and black refers to fu, and black and green refers to fu. "As a basic norm of color matching and aesthetics, this norm has spread to every corner of society.

In addition to the philosophy of orientation, there is the theory of five elements in China's thought. The five colors mentioned above correspond to five elements. Mr. Zhang Qianyuan's interpretation of the article "Painting" in Zhou Li Kao Gong Ji is:

"The east is woody. The sun rises here and everything grows with it. When it is spring, its color is green. The south is hot, the time is summer, and the color is red. The west is golden, and the sun sets here. It's autumn, and its color is white. The north is watery, it is winter now, and the color is black. The soil in the palace can adjust the shortage of fire and water in Jin Mu, and the color of the soil is yellow. The land shines on the sky and the earth. The land is yellow and the sky is mysterious. Heaven and earth are mysterious, and Gankun has made friends. Therefore, eastern green corresponds to western white, southern red corresponds to northern black, and heaven and earth correspond to Huang Xuan. "

It can be seen that the early purple color was not taken seriously in China culture, and this situation didn't change until the Han Dynasty. Since the Han Dynasty, purple has been gradually recognized by the rulers. In the Tang Dynasty, the status of purple was greatly improved, and it gradually became the top color of official clothes, which was endowed with rich and auspicious significance.

Purple has different meanings in Taoism in China. The legend of Lao Tzu is recorded in The Legend of the Immortal:

"Lao tze surnamed Li Er, word Bo Yang, also. Born in Yin, it is Zhou Zhu's next history. It's good to save your strength, but it's expensive to take it away. It has become Tibetan history and accumulated for more than 80 years. Shi: It's been more than 200 years. It's called a hermit and Shi Yue. When I arrived in Zhou, I met Lao Tzu and learned about his talents, so I worshipped him as a teacher. After the decline of Zhou De, he entered Daqin in a green ox cart. After Xiguan, Guan ordered Yin to stay and meet him and get to know the real person, but forced him to write a book and make two volumes of Tao Te Ching. Laozi does nothing and does everything. When the Tao is life or death, it will be traced back to miracles. Saidui endoscope, infinite ghosts and gods. Virtue and vitality, longevity and two instruments. "

This passage means: Lao Zi, surnamed Li Minger, Bai Yang, Chen Guoren. Born in the Yin Dynasty, he was later appointed as the post-history of the Zhou Dynasty. I like to maintain the essence and pay attention to absorption. Later, he changed from the history under the column to the history of keeping Tibet, and served for more than 80 years. According to historical records, Laozi lived for more than 200 years. At that time, people called him a gentleman among hermits, and later generations posthumous title called him Yong. One day Confucius met Laozi in Zhou and learned that Laozi was a saint, so he worshipped him as a teacher. Later, Zhou Deli collapsed, and Lao Tzu left Zhou with his green cow and went to Daqin. On the way through Xiguan, a guard officer named Yin in Xiguan greeted him with joy. Knowing that he is a true saint, I must ask him to write a book, so I wrote two volumes of Tao Te Ching. Laozi pursues inaction, but he doesn't want to be omnipotent. He is really capable. He unified the realm of life and death with Taoism, and he was fascinated by it. Dehe vitality, longevity with heaven and earth.

In the above records, the article "The Legend of the Immortal Guan Lingyin" mentioned that he saw different colors in the air and knew that there were real people passing by. Most of the different colors he saw were considered as the source of "purple gas coming from the east". Purple is given a symbol in the immortal family, which is closely related to gods and sacrifices. In ancient times, the theme paintings about Xiandao all contained such indispensable elements as purple, auspicious clouds and wishful thinking. When purple auspicious clouds appear in the sky, it is considered as a good omen. Taoism believes that human vitality contains purple. In China, people are also called Xianjia Zitai and Hai Zi's mansion; Called fairy purple emperor, fairy purple aunt; Zixing is the place where the Emperor of Heaven lives. Taoist robes are also called purple robes; Their alchemy room is called the purple room; Tao Jing is called amethyst, which shows the importance of purple in Taoist culture.

The next series: the historical background of achromatic black, white, gray, gold and silver.