The Origin Of Color: A Preliminary Study On The Color Of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes Murals In The Five Dynasties And Song Dynasties

Chinese culture has a long history. In today's globalization, the research on Chinese traditional color is becoming more and more important. A bright pearl of traditional Chinese culture—— Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes Art This paper sorts out and summarizes the mural colors of the Five Dynasties and Song Dynasties, which are in the late stage of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes art, and analyzes and summarizes the color relations such as hue, chroma, lightness and area, so as to have a more in-depth understanding and understanding of the mural colors in Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes.

key word: Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes murals ， Mural color Color relations, Five Dynasties murals, Song Dynasty Murals

　　Chinese culture has a long history, and the study of Chinese traditional colors in globalization today has increasingly highlighted its value. Based on the art of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, this paper sorts out and summarizes the murals of the Five Dynasties and Song Dynasty in the late stage of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, and analyzes the color relationships it presents. This article seeks to have a deeper understanding of the color of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes.

　　Keywords: Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, mural color, color relationship, Five Dynasties murals, Song Dynasty murals.

1. A brief introduction to the late Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes murals

In addition, there are four different periods in the late period of Dunhuang Grottoes, including the late period of the Song Dynasty and the late period of the Yuan Dynasty.

In this period, the main themes of Cao Jin's paintings were murals and paintings of the Five Dynasties.

The main themes of this period are the paintings of the first and the second dynasties, which are mainly composed of the paintings of the first and the second dynasties.

Figure 1: murals of Five Dynasties

Picture 2: murals of the Song Dynasty

Figure 3: murals of Xixia

Figure 4: murals of Yuan Dynasty

2. Color analysis of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes murals in the Five Dynasties and Song dynasties

In the Five Dynasties, the Yamen of Jiedu envoys set up painting academy, and the folk also set up painting line, which formed the characteristics of the academy school. The art of the Five Dynasties mainly followed the tradition of the late Tang Dynasty. Under the leadership of the painters in the painting academy or the painters in the painting line, they formed a unified style in the formulaic paintings. During the Song Dynasty, there were a lot of changes in paintings, and the paintings were more stylized. Although Chinese Buddhism tended to decline since the Song Dynasty, the murals of the Song Dynasty showed a unique style.

This paper is based on the Japanese ordinary society "Chinese Grottoes: Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes five" as the research blueprint, the color is based on the current appearance.

2.1 bright and colorful mural colors of the Five Dynasties Mogao Grottoes

2.2.1 main color blocks and tones

In this paper, the color analysis of murals in the Five Dynasties period mainly refers to the mural works of cave 36, 61, 98, 100, 146 of Mogao Grottoes, such as the painting of Dragon King worshiping Buddha, the transformation of Puxian Bodhisattva, the transformation of fahua Sutra, the transformation of pharmacist pure land, the transformation of Vimalakirti Sutra, the picture of Uighur princess's offering and the disguise of laodusha in cave 146.

The murals in the Five Dynasties period are relatively bright and colorful. In this paper, the main color blocks of the Five Dynasties Mogao Grottoes murals are extracted, and roughly classified according to the different hues. Among them, there are 13 pieces of earth red color, 10 pieces of stone green color, 7 pieces of stone blue color, 6 pieces of yellow and yellow brown, and 5 pieces of white gray color. In this period, the colors of stone green and earth red were relatively rich, such as bright lead lead and turquoise green, as well as low color pink, flesh pink and so on (Fig. 5).

Five main periods: five generations

There are mainly five kinds of murals in the period of Puxian grottoes, such as the murals of the northern Uighur grottoes, such as the Yellow murals of the northern Uighur grottoes.

Figure 6: the disguised part of the Bodhisattvas in cave 36 of the Five Dynasties

Figure 7: a picture of the Uighur princess in cave 98 of the Five Dynasties

The other is mainly cold color: mainly composed of stone green and stone green, the whole picture is cool; this kind of murals include 61 Grottoes "medicine teacher pure land disguise", "100 Grottoes" growing heaven ", 146 caves" pharmacist pure land transformation "(Fig. 8, 9).

Figure 8: the transformation of the pure land of pharmacists in cave 61 of the Five Dynasties

Figure 9: the growth days of 100 caves in the Five Dynasties

2.1.2 color relationship

In the Five Dynasties period, the overall color effect of Mogao Grottoes murals is distinct and strong; from the three attributes of color, the picture is highlighted mainly through the color relative ratio, in which the red and green complement color relationship, and the contrast color relationship of stone green are the main.

(1) complementary color contrast

The Five Dynasties murals used more complementary color contrast, focusing on the contrast between earth red, lead lead lead and stone green. The pictures give people a strong visual effect (FIG. 10).

Figure 10: complementary hue relations in the Five Dynasties

(2) contrast color contrast

In contrast with the glauconite and the glauconite, the effect is mainly similar to that of the glauconite and the glauconite, and the contrast is mainly between the glauconite and the glauconite.

Fig. 11: the contrast color relationship in the Five Dynasties

(3) color relationship

In the Five Dynasties period, the color of murals was mainly concentrated in medium and low color, and the lightness was mainly medium and low brightness. Among them, the contrast colors such as earth red and stone green are relatively high; the color relationship between turbid medium and medium medium medium appears more in the picture (Fig. 12).

Figure 12: the color relationship of murals in the Five Dynasties period

(4) lightness relation

The murals in the Five Dynasties period are mainly composed of high and long tones and medium and long tones. The pictures are relatively bright and bright (FIG. 13).

Fig. 13: combination of high and medium long tones of murals in the Five Dynasties period

(5) color area relationship

In the Five Dynasties period, the murals of Mogao Grottoes are mainly composed of large areas of stone green, earth yellow and earth red, and the main means to highlight the pictures is through large areas of bright colors.

In terms of the proportion, there are three main types of color:

One is mainly yellowish brown in large area,

The first type is mainly earthy red,

One is mainly stone green.

Relatively speaking, the use of no color is less, black is only used as a small area of embellishment, gray is not used, and lead white occupies a certain proportion in the picture to play a role in harmony (FIG. 14).

Figure 14: color area of some murals in the Five Dynasties period

2.2 clear and bright colors of murals in Mogao Grottoes of Song Dynasty

2.2.1 main color blocks and tones

This paper analyzes the murals in the period of grotto 454, such as the murals of grottoes 454 and the murals of the eighth period of the Song Dynasty.

During the Song Dynasty, the mural color is clear and bright, and the color is simple and unified. Here, we extract the main color blocks of the Song Dynasty Mogao Grottoes murals, and roughly classify them according to their different hues. Among them, there are 5 pieces of earthy red, 8 pieces of stone green, 4 pieces of stone blue color, 7 pieces of yellow and yellow brown, and 9 pieces of ochre and ochre black. During this period, the use of earthy red was reduced, and more warm brown was used instead of the rich red earth (FIG. 15).

Figure 15: main color blocks in Song Dynasty

On the whole, the murals of Song Dynasty are mainly in cool color: mostly composed of stone green, stone green, light earth yellow and lead white (background color) (FIGS. 16 and 17).

Figure 16: the transformation of Guanyin in cave 76 of Song Dynasty

Figure 17: eight pagodas in cave 76 of Song Dynasty

2.2.2 color relationship

From the perspective of three attributes, the mural color of Song Dynasty mainly shows the picture through color comparison, among which the contrast color relationship between stone green, light earth yellow and lead white is the main one.

(1) contrast color contrast

In Song Dynasty, the murals of Mogao Grottoes used contrast hue more, and the difference in color and lightness was small. The contrast between stone green and stone green, light earth yellow and warm brown was the main contrast, giving people a soft and delicate feeling (Fig. 18).

Fig. 18: the contrast of hues in the Song Dynasty

(2) comparison of the same kind and adjacent areas

In the murals of the Song Dynasty, the contrast of the same kind and adjacent colors is also more used, mainly with the contrast combination of stone green, light earth yellow and warm brown (Fig. 19).

Fig. 19: the relationship between the same kind and neighboring hues in the Song Dynasty

(3) color relationship

The mural color in Song Dynasty is composed of two parts: one is medium low color, low light color, such as deep ochre, earth red, etc.; the second is medium low color, medium high brightness color, such as bright light green, light earth yellow, etc. Compared with the Five Dynasties period, the color of earthy red decreased to a great extent; the stone blue color appeared more purple tendency, and the brightness was higher, showing a neutral purple gray state; the stone green level was also more abundant. In the picture, the combination of turbid and Middle Chinese relations appears more frequently (FIG. 20).

Figure 20: the color relationship of murals in the Song Dynasty

(4) lightness relation

From the perspective of lightness, the murals of Mogao Grottoes in the Song Dynasty mostly use the combination of high and long tone and high and medium tone, and the pictures are clear, cool and bright (Fig. 21).

Fig. 21: the combination of high and long, medium short and high middle tones of murals in Song Dynasty

(5) color area relationship

In the wall paintings of Mogao Grottoes in the Song Dynasty, stone green and light earth yellow occupy the main part of the picture; the areas of stone blue and earth red are relatively reduced, and the warm brown becomes the main color of the picture. The black brown color after oxidation and discoloration only appears in the picture as a small area of achromatic (Fig. 22).

Figure 22: color area of some murals in Song Dynasty

3. Summary

Although the Five Dynasties and Song Dynasties, which belong to the late period of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes art, experienced different political regimes, on the whole, the murals in the two periods were elegant and beautiful in color; the colors used were mainly earth red, stone green, yellow earth, and stone green with medium and low brightness. The contrast of colors is the most important method of color configuration in the late murals of Mogao Grottoes, and the second is to achieve different color matching effects through the change of color degree and lightness. Most of the pictures present a combination of medium and turbid colors, which gives people a sense of steadiness and elegance.

In the Five Dynasties and Song Dynasties, the screen mainly used bright colors in large areas to highlight the picture; the pictures mostly presented high brightness tone; no color was used less, black only appeared as a small area of decorative color, lead white was used more, and gray was not used.

Among them, the Five Dynasties period inherited part of the shape of the late Tang Dynasty, the overall mural color is relatively bright and colorful; more use red and green complementary color contrast. In the Song Dynasty, due to the literati painting idea of emphasizing ink and light color, the overall mural was mainly composed of cool tone and relatively single color, with the contrast between stone green and earth yellow as the main contrast; the earth red was gradually used as a decorative color, mainly with low color and warm brown color.

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