在南北朝时期，观音菩萨的造型为男性，面部丰满、眼大而凸、眉长而平、鼻深高隆与额齐平、耳长齐肩、头戴宝冠，宝冠上主要是花髻，是贵族富人的装饰，此外还有发髻冠，化佛冠，冠两旁装饰犹如翅膀的宝僧，袒露上身，颈部有悬铃的圆领式，胸部挂璎珞和作为两蛇形的饰具，两臂着钏，下着羊肠大裙。到了隋唐时期观音造型按其艺术风格和造型样式可以分为早晚两期：隋到唐初阶段观音造型面部丰圆适中，方额突出，依然以男性形象为主，但开始逐渐演化出女性形象，发冠样式有低花瓣式、高发髻，宝冠上还有双带下飘，身上的璎珞精细复杂，有的代替披帛，有的披帛仍至脚部再交叉上卷，有的披帛还由两肩下垂横于胸腹之间两道，但是仍可以看出裙带如绅的样子，这时雕刻技法也由南北朝晚期的直平刀法发展为向下凹入的新圆刀法来表现衣纹。到了盛唐时期，观音造型是饱满成熟的阶段，这一时期最重要的成就是更加明显的走向世俗化，因此，更进一步的体现了当时的社会繁荣。观音造型的温和与妩媚充满着青春的活力、达到了前所未有的完美。观音日益女性化，面部圆深、眉弯而长、细目、着宝冠式高髻，具有少女或少妇的面相特征，所以现在有些人会误以为观音菩萨是女子身，也情有可原。
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Guanyin Bodhisattva was a male with plump face, large and protruding eyes, long and flat eyebrows, deep nose and even forehead, shoulder-length ears, and crown. The crown was mainly decorated by the wealthy nobles. In addition, the crown was decorated by the wealthy nobles. The crown was decorated like a winged monk with bare upper body, a round collar with a dangling bell at the neck, and the chest was hung with a bang and a crown. As two serpentine ornaments, two arms with a hairpin, under a sheep bowel skirt. In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Guanyin sculpture can be divided into two stages according to its artistic style and style: from Sui to early Tang Dynasty, Guanyin sculpture has a round and moderate face, a prominent square forehead, still dominated by male image, but gradually evolved into female image, with low petal style, high hair bun, double ribbons floating down on the crown, fine and complex irons on the body, and some replacing the mantle. Some silks are still rolled up and crossed at the feet, and some silks are hung from shoulders across the chest and abdomen. However, it can still be seen that the skirt belt looks like a gentleman. At this time, the sculpture technique developed from the straight knife method in the late Northern and Southern Dynasties to the new round knife method in the concave to show the pattern of clothes. In the flourishing Tang Dynasty, Guanyin modelling was a full and mature stage. The most important achievement of this period was to become more secularized. Therefore, it further embodied the social prosperity of that time. The gentle and charming shape of Guanyin is full of youthful vigor and achieves unprecedented perfection. With the feminization of Guanyin, its face is deep, its eyebrows are curved and long, its details are detailed, and it has the facial features of a girl or a young woman. Therefore, some people now mistake Guanyin Bodhisattva as a woman, which is understandable.