Traditional Culture and Modern Design (3)

02·Traditional Culture - Abandoning Complex

We can see from the case we have made in the above evidence that the traditional culture and art that affect European modern civilization are deeply rooted and omnipresent. This is obvious. Regardless of what kind of artist or designer you are holding, as long as you are still carrying out your artistic creation, then in your works, there will always be a shadow of traditional cultural influence. For this subtle influence, you may not admit it, but it does exist. Because you are growing up in such a cultural atmosphere. Here you can borrow a Chinese allusion to illustrate -

In the story of ancient Chinese mythology, there is a person who is very much loved by the people—the Monkey King. Sun Wukong has the ability to speak for the wind, change the sky, and do everything. However, once he battled with Erlang and became a small temple with nowhere to hide his tail, he set his tail up and became a flagpole behind the temple. Erlang God looked strangely at this little temple. Why did the flagpole stand behind the house and not stand in front of the house? So he recognized at a glance that this was the small temple where the Monkey King changed. Eventually he seized Sun Wukong.

Later, the Chinese people had a saying - the Monkey King changed in the seventy-two, it is not to lose their own tail. Why can't I change my tail? Just because the tail is something that has grown on him, it is impossible for him to change it.

Traditional culture is also a truth for a nation and a country. You cannot destroy her completely. If a nation or a country’s traditional culture is completely extinguished by this nation or nation, then this nation and this country will also die in the world. In turn, a nation and a country can be extinct, but the culture and arts they create will be spread in various ways in the world. This is why we still can see American Indian culture and Mayan culture. In the same way, the following will discuss the ancient civilizations that once influenced, or have directly produced the modern civilization of Europe. The tribes that created them may no longer exist, but as a culture, a cultural spirit, they Passed down, and affecting the Westerners' clothing, food, shelter and way of thinking. Of course, this kind of inheritance is not a static imitation, but a kind of development in development and abandonment in inheritance. Discarding, that is, absorbing critically, is a Marxist historical materialism point of view. It does conform to the laws of human society development.

According to the division of European historians, ancient Egypt, West Asia, Greece, and Rome in ancient times were called classical art. As a cultural phenomenon, these classical arts have had a tremendous impact on the development of European culture and art. It can also be said that there will be no European modern civilization without ancient civilizations on the Mediterranean coast - ancient Egypt, Western civilization, ancient Greek civilization and Roman civilization. It is said that the Germans are very much in agreement with their inheritance with ancient Greek civilization. In fact, in numerous archaeological excavations, one can also see the influence of ancient Egyptian culture, two rivers on ancient Greek culture, and the influence of ancient Greek culture on later Roman culture. Only from the perspective of art, we can see the inheritance relationship between them.

Ancient Egyptian culture

Egypt is one of the world’s famous ancient civilizations. As early as the ancient Romans discussed and shaped the future of the Roman Empire, ancient Egypt was already an ancient civilization with more than 3,500 years of recorded history; when the Germans and Celts were hunting bears in the Nordic forests, ancient Egypt. Civilization has begun to decline. Modern archaeology proved that even the last dynasty of ancient Egypt, the 26th dynasty, was a thing that took place around 500 BC. The ancient Greeks once pointed out that Egypt is a breeding ground for science. In 1798, when Napoleon led the army and a large number of scientists, writers, and artists crossed the Mediterranean and invaded Egypt, he stood in front of the Sphinx who had been quiet in the desert for thousands of years. Expeditionary Army said: "The soldiers! The history of 4000 years is despising you!"

Classical Greek and Latin writers were also very interested in ancient Egypt. Their writings were kept in Byzantine and preserved in Rome. The ancient legends of Greece and Rome also often refer to ancient Egyptian religions. In addition, the history of the Hebrew people from the year 2000 BC is often associated with the history of ancient Egypt. Therefore, some chapters of the Bible and the Old Testament, such as Genesis and Exodus, were retained. Fragments of political history in ancient Egypt have occasionally mentioned ancient Egyptian customs. Many of the legends related to ancient Egypt have been passed down so far. Joseph, for example, was betrayed by his brother and later appeared in Pharaoh's court and became the prime minister of ancient Egypt. He recognized with his father and brother. Moses was abandoned in a basket on the Nile, adopted by the daughter of Pharaoh, and later led by Hebrew. When people returned to Israel, in order to escape the pursuit of the Pharaoh army, Moses pointed his hand and the Red Sea appeared. In order to confirm the authenticity of the Old Testament, the priests of early Christian churches often quoted fragments of Manneso’s “Egyptian History” in their own works, which also enabled people to have a glimpse of the style of “Egyptian History”. Although this is only some fragments of ancient Egyptian culture, it can also be seen that ancient Egyptian culture has a huge impact on European civilization.

We know that as early as around 3000 BC, the ancient Egyptians built pyramids that have not yet been completely deciphered. The largest pyramid in the Khufu pyramid is the largest one. The Great Pyramid of Khufu was built around 2650-2500 BC. Along with it are two smaller pyramids built by the two kings of the fourth dynasty of ancient Egypt, around the three Great Pyramids. Spread over six small pyramids, a giant sphinx sits in front of the building. It gazes at the desert and guards the city of the king. The Grand Pyramid of Khufu is 137 meters high and is built with 2.6 million megaliths. The bottom of the tower is about 230 meters long on each side. Its inclination is 51 degrees 50′. It shows the accuracy to the micrometer design. It covers 13.1 acres and uses 6.25 million tons of stone. Each stone weights an average of 2.5 tons. The lengths of the square on the north and south sides of the pyramid are only 0.09% apart, and the difference between the east and the west is only 0.03%. This huge building with a weight of 7 million tons is located in the vast millstone paving. On the ground, precisely pointing east, west, west and south, is accomplished without any modern machinery.

Ramses II (1317-1251 BC, also known as 1290-1223 BC) was the second generation of Pharaohs in the 19th dynasty of ancient Egypt. He was in office for 67 years and was in office in Egypt. Ranked second in history. He is one of Egypt's most effective pharaohs. He is known throughout the country for repairing temples and fighting. The deeds have been talked about by Egyptian historians and are widely seen in the frescoes and carvings of numerous palaces and temples throughout Egypt. Ramesses II was keen to build a temple. During his ten years of existence, he built numerous temples and was therefore known to Egyptologists as "the king of Ramesses." A total of 5,000 square meters was completed at the Temple of Amphitheatre in Ramesses II. There were 134 columns of six people to encircle, and the highest twelve columns were as high as 21 meters, with each column top. It can accommodate up to 100 people, which is evident in its grand scale. In addition, there are famous obelisks in the temple, statues of Pharaohs and Houyis. In addition, such as the Temple of Luke Sol, the Tomb of the Tutankhamun, the tomb of Ramesses II, and the palace of El-Amarna, are all grand and majestic. The walls of the mausoleums and temples are decorated with paintings and bas-reliefs. Many of these murals and embossed themes reflect various aspects of social life, including various labor scenes in agriculture, gardening, and handicraft workshops, as well as animal husbandry. Hunting, bazaars, transportation and ruler court life and so on.

The temples built by Ramesses II are grand and exquisite, and they can also be deeply appreciated from the sun temple in Abu Simbel. The Abu Simbel Temple (Abu Simbel) was built in 1301 BC and is the more complete temple of Egypt in Egypt. It is also an outstanding representative of the perfect combination of space and nature in ancient Egyptian architecture. The whole temple is made of rock, hidden in the cliffs, and the cliffs line the Nile river bed. The four giant seats symbolizing Ramesses II were carved on a trapezoidal base carved out of a cliff facing the rising sun. The King Ramesses in the statue sits on top of the crown and looks in front of the eyes in both eyes. The thick lips are slightly coherent, and they are peaceful and stable. The queen next to him, wearing a tall crown on his head, shows a noble and elegant style. Its exquisite craftsmanship fully demonstrated the ancient Egyptians' high level of wisdom and outstanding craftsmanship. It is the most beautiful treasure in ancient Egyptian art. Between the four statues, there are figurines of members of the Ramesses II family, graced with ancient Egyptian motifs and text. The megalithic statues are impressive with their majestic and upright momentum. The statue is like a temple wall, forming the front of the temple. The entire temple of the Sun is about 33 meters high, 37 meters wide and 61 meters deep. The entrance of the temple is in the middle of the four statues. These giants, up to 20 meters in diameter, carved out of a cliff, can be seen by people sailing on the Nile, symbolizing the image of Pharaoh's overwhelming power. In the niche above the entrance stands the sun god Lahalati. His head is the image of an eagle. There is a row of sculpted cubs on top of it. He is lifting his paws and seems to cheer on the sun. The gate leads to the Basilica Hall. The main hall is a courtyard mode. There are four square columns on each side. The giant statue of Pharaoh in a dress leans in front of the square pillar, symbolizing that Pharaoh will be reborn in the sacrifice of death. The roof was carved with a disc-shaped wings of a sun. Walls and pillars were engraved with reliefs and inscriptions. The colorful murals on the stone walls depict the great achievements of Ramesses II, the scenes of life at that time, and the circumstances of the campaign. Behind the main hall are the four-poster multi-column hall and a spacious space. At the end of the space is a temple with four seated statues symbolizing the four deities worshipped in this place: Amon Ra, the patron saint of Pharaoh, and the Sun God La. Halati, the creator of the god Ptah and Ramesses II.

It was not until the end of the 19th century that archeologists realized the preciseness and distinctiveness of this temple design. In the winter solstice and the summer solstice each year, the sun passes through the temple hall and directly shines on the three statues except the god Pitt. After about five minutes, the sunlight disappears. The sun never shines upon Bhta, because Ptah is a mummy and shows darkness.

Later Egyptologists were puzzled by the fact that the ancient Egyptian rulers spent countless human, material, and financial resources to build these huge buildings. If, in short, there was only one purpose, it was to reflect the supreme power of theocracy and pharaohs. . All these cultural achievements, namely the ancient Egyptian civilization, were later passed on by Greeks, Cretans who created the Aegean civilization, and the creators of European culture.

West Asia culture

It is also necessary to mention here another culture that has a huge impact on European civilization: the West Asian civilization. The most representative of the West Asian civilization is the Two Rivers Civilization. Its center is the Republic of Iraq today. Because in the 21st century it was regarded as the most civilized American in the world today, once again aggression, looting and slander, we We can't just say a little more about the two rivers civilization. In the middle and lower reaches of the Tigris and Euphrates, the Greek language is Mesopotamia, the land between the two rivers. This place is one of the important birthplaces of ancient human civilization. People living there have created two world-famous River basin civilization. The civilization of the two river basins is composed of three parts: the Sumerian civilization, the Babylonian civilization, and the Assyrian civilization. The Babylonian civilization, with its achievements, has become a model for the civilization of the two river basins, making the Babylonian kingdom and ancient Egypt, ancient India, and China. People still admit today the world’s four ancient civilizations.

In the 19th century BC, the Babylonian Kingdom was established. Based on the Sumerian people, the Babylonians created a more splendid civilization. In the Louvre in Paris, France, we can still see the world’s most complete and earliest statutory code, the Hangu Rabi Code (Figure 01). From the 19th century BC to the 6th century BC, Babylon was the most prosperous and spectacular city in West Asia. In particular, the Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC) dynasty of New Babylonia, Babylon, entered its heyday.

New Babylon to the magnificent city and Howe