Art of East Asia

China is considered the source of many of the major aspects of the Korean and Japanese arts. The most important of the visual arts in China is calligraphy. Its expressive qualities exemplify all that is important in visual arts because while works of calligraphy demonstrate realism, they also reveal aesthetic values. Painting and calligraphy are considered the only true fine arts in China, because they alone require no physical labor and have no physical function. Sculpture, bronze casting, carving, textiles, metalwork, lacquer ware, and the making of pottery are considered crafts, and these are heavily influenced by the aesthetics of painters and calligraphers. Korean visual arts exhibit great simplicity of form. Japanese visual arts are characterized by their vibrancy, life, and color.