Seeking For Modern In Progressive Or Conservative

The controversy on the progressive and conservative to Chinese traditional painting in the early period of Republic of China (1912-1949), presents the different kinds of responses and strategies to status of society and culture from each faction. It offered different projects to the modern progress of Chinese traditional painting, and also showed the conflict between Chinese and western culture, the argument broken out between the fresh and dated thoughts.This dissertation focuses on the cultural tactics and thought resources of the debate about the progressive and conservative on Chinese traditional painting. Premising the Inner and exterior forms of the "motive force of culture", it reverts and discusses the historical facts and articles on the debate about Chinese traditional painting in the period of 1917-1937. The fundamental topic in the narrative frame lies in the value stand of the especial tradition of Chinese painting. It emphasizes the self-discipline of fine arts and the outside forces from the historical facts, but differs from the Systems of Theories in Occident Studies of Chinese Modern History, such as the theory pattern "Impact and Response" and "China-Centered Approach".Concerning the social and cultural contexts of the early period of Republic of China, this dissertation regards them as the important factors in the cultural ecology field and the source of the "motive force of culture". Therefore, this thesis puts forward the influence and trend of the exterior "motive force of culture" (social politics and cultural mode) and the inner "motive force of culture" (Chinese traditional culture and Chinese painting). Basing on the past research production, this thesis classifies the factions of the debate about Chinese traditional in the early period of Republic of China painting by stages, and also elucidates the evolvement of the subject and value standard of the controversy in this special twenty years, in the way of studying the viewpoints of representative arguers. This thesis specializes in some questions and supplies a gap in the Chinese modern art history study field, especially the third phase of this controversy, the forming period of the "departmentalism" theory of Chinese painting in early 1930s, which was shaped by the culture movement named "Chinese Culture Departmentalism" then.In concrete stating the thesis lays stress on the primary literature material. It quests for and samples the visual angle and the research methods which agree with the history and theory of modern Chinese painting in 20^th century. Frequently it puts forward the academic discussion and amendments to the theories and conclusions of some scholars who concentrated on Chinese modern art history.