| Dragon art is a
very wide subject, especially because the dragon as
a central theme of art has not been restricted to
any one area of the world. Although japanese dragon
art and Chinese images of dragons are very
well-known and recognized through the world, dragons
have also been depicted in early European and Indian
art.
The dragon is still
a powerful theme in artist imagery today. This fact
becomes apparent by the vast array of dragon art
tattoos that are common in society. Dragon tattoo
art, like any dragon art is complicated. Although
simpler images of the dragon are also available in
dragon cartoons and dragon clip art, typically a
dragon figure is a complicated figure to draw and
requires knowledge of history as well as artistic
talent to create. Dragon art galleries are valuable
sources of such information and facts.
To understand a
brief history of dragon art, you must start in
ancient Egypt. Here, the figure of a snake was
embellished to create the image of a dragon.
According to sources on Egyptian mythology, the
Egyptian Sun God Ra encountered dragons in the
underworld. Rather, he was said to have encountered
reptilian creatures which, when described, create
the image of a dragon. The theme of such
dragon-snake creatures is seen through various
chapters of Egyptian mythology. Such snake-dragon
creatures were also visible in ancient Indian dragon
art. Dragons in India were also associated with
magical powers like the power to cause droughts and
floods. The similar belief system about dragons,
though different imagery can be seen in oriental
cultures.
It is no secret
that Asian cultures have revered and been in awe of
dragon-like creatures since ancient times as well.
Asian dragon art may have had its roots in ancient
China. Chinese dragons are revered and worshipped in
that culture. Like in India, Chinese dragons were
also associated with magical powers and were
believed to control nature. The Chinese Lung dragon
was believed to be good and has associations with
rainfall (the boon of farmers). Certain dragons, in
China however, were associated with storms and
torrents. Other dragons, like the Azure Dragons
became symbols of spring. This ancient oriental
imagery is also common in Japan and Korea.
European dragon
imagery probably has its root in Egyptian mythology.
This can be observed by the fact that the word
dragon even evolved from the Greek word drakkon
which referred to large snakes. The difference
between how the dragon is portrayed in the East and
the West becomes clear in Greek mythological tales.
In these stories, dragons were almost always
portrayed as menaces.
In the Middle East
and Arabian countries, the dragon was believed to
cause eclipses. There are stories, in Arabian
culture that speak of a dragon ‘swallowing’ the moon
or the sun. The image of fire-breathing dragons that
very responsible for destruction may have its roots
in Christianity. Christian mythology and tales
always portrayed serpents as evil, right from the
familiar story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden. |
