Yale Center for British Art Will Close for Renovations

Yale Center for British Art fourth-floor galleries. Photo: Richard Caspole.

Beginning in January, the Yale Center of British Art (YCBA) in New Haven, Connecticut, will be closed for an interior conservation, expected to last just over a year. The university has been studying its historic building, designed by Louis I. Kahn, for over a decade in anticipation of this project.

“This second phase of our building conservation project allows us to refresh public spaces, including the galleries and Lecture Hall, and to make important behind-the-scenes improvements,” YCBA director Amy Meyers said in a statement. “We are taking advantage of this opportunity to rethink the installation of our magnificent collection, as well. This will include the reconfiguration of the Long Gallery on the fourth floor, bringing it back to Louis Kahn’s original conception as a study gallery, as well as the addition of a much needed, adjacent collections seminar room.”

The museum will mark its February 2016 reopening with a special exhibition showcasing a gift from the Libra Foundation of modern British paintings, sculpture, and works on paper from the collection of Rhoda Pritzker. The second and fourth floors will be re-installed with the museum’s existing collection, largely donated by Paul Mellon, Yale College Class of 1929 and the center’s founder.

While the museum is closed, it will mount an exhibition across the street at the Yale University Art Gallery titled “The Critique of Reason: Romantic Art, 1760–1860,” incorporating other works from the collection into the gallery’s European art displays. The Center will also lend pieces from its collections to a number of national and international museums during its hiatus, so there will still be ample opportunity to appreciate the museum’s collection while its doors are shut. Even so, if British art’s your thing, you may want to make that day trip (see artnet News list) before the end of the year, or postpone until at least 2016.

Source: artnet News

Song Qi is First Gourmet Chinese Restaurant in Monaco

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The interior of Alan Yau’s Song Qi, the first luxury gourmet Chinese restaurant in Monte Carlo

(Courtesy Mathieu Salvaing)

Restaurateurs Alan Yau and Riccardo Giraudi have announced the opening of a new luxury gourmet Chinese restaurant this week in Monte-Carlo – surprisingly the first of its kind in Monaco.

Called “Song Qi,” and open for lunch and dinner, it is named after the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and one of the key essences of Chinese culture, “Qi,” which is said to be found in the western ideas of natural energy and life force.

 

Hong Konger Alan Yau has built an international reputation for Michelin-star awarded restaurants such as London’s Hakkasan, and after three years of working with authorities was able to achieve his dream, along with Monaco-born Riccardo Giraudi, who also runs BeefBar and Mozza.

With interior design by French specialists Humbert & Poyet, Song Qi aims to bring the feel of 1930s Shanghai to the Riviera, with a lacquerware design inside a geometrical space, said to be a metaphor for the Star of Shanghai origami. A golden central cage of brass sets the seats apart, with the a star pattern laid out across the floor in black and white.

Furniture too recalls the golden age of Shanghai, with lampshades made specifically for the restaurant. The menu featuring classics such as Peking Duck and Kung Po Chicken, as well as creative choices such as Braised Rosa Bianca Tofu and Local Eggplant in Black Bean Sauce.

- See more at: http://hk.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1046695/song-qi-is-first-gourmet-chinese-restaurant-in-monaco#sthash.e1F17RO0.dpuf

V&A To Help Set Up China’s First Design Museum

HONG KONG — The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London has announced that it will help to set up the Shekou Museum, China’s first design museum in the city of Shenzhen, due to open in late 2016.

Designed by leading Japanese firm Maki and Associates and jointly staffed by V&A and local professionals, the museum will be a collaborative effort between the world-renowned design museum and China Merchants Group. This agreement is the first to be signed between one of China’s most influential companies and a British public institution.

 

Situated on a picturesque waterfront site in Shenzhen’s Shekou district, the museum will be located within a larger development called the Shenzhen Sea World Cultural Arts Center, which is also being designed by Maki and Associates and is currently under construction.

The V&A will take on an advisory role to the Shekou Museum, providing assistance with collection development and professional training for senior staff. In terms of curatorial expertise, a senior curator from the V&A will assume a three-year post based in Shenzhen as head of the partnership. In addition, the new museum will house a V&A gallery that will showcase curated exhibitions of works from the V&A’s home collection. 

- See more at: http://hk.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1047986/va-to-help-set-up-chinas-first-design-museum#sthash.jX8StyQr.dpuf

Tsang Kin-Wah To Represent Hong Kong at Venice Biennale 2015

The Fifth Seal - HE Shall Deliver You Up To Be Afflicted And Killed As HE Was Digital video and sound installation, 2011

(Courtesy of the artist)

HONG KONG — The Hong Kong Arts Development Council (ADC) and M+, the centerpiece museum for contemporary visual culture in the West Kowloon Cultural District, announced that Tsang Kin-Wah has been selected as Hong Kong’s submission to participate in the 56th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale 2015.

Tsang was selected as the Hong Kong representative by M+, and endorsed by a working group from the ADC in charge of the 56th Venice Art Biennale. The M+ curatorial team will comprise Doryun Chong, chief curator, and Stella Fong, curator, learning and interpretation. Executive Director Lars Nittve will serve as consulting curator.

 

Nittve commented, “We are thrilled to work with Mr. Tsang Kin-Wah, a Hong Kong artist who has developed a mature artistic language that at once is deeply personal and has the capacity to communicate universally. His work wonderfully represents the quickly maturing contemporary art scene of Hong Kong.”

Born in 1976 in Guangdong Province, Tsang Kin-Wah studied fine art at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Book Arts at the Camberwell College of Arts in London. He is well-known for his intricate text and moving word installations made using computer technology to create immersive environments. Some of his most recent high-profile projects include solo shows at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo (2011) and the Chinese Arts Center in Manchester (2008), along with group presentations at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Art (2011), Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art in Seoul (2010), and the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art in Helsinki (2008).

The Venice Biennale 2015 will run from May 9 through November 22, 2015.

- See more at: http://hk.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1045999/tsang-kin-wah-to-represent-hong-kong-at-venice-biennale-2015#sthash.ydn2WJ1x.dpuf

Court Case Claims Australian Art Market Is 30 Percent Forgeries

Detail from Albert Tucker, Faun and Parrot.
Photo: via the Australian.

A Supreme Court case brought again Christie’s Australia indicates that there may be a widespread forgery problem in the country’s art market, and that as many as 30 percent of the works on offer could be fake, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

The case focuses on a single painting, purchased by Loise McBride from Christie’s in 2000 for $86,000 in Australian currency (US$81,000). The piece, Faun and Parrot, is reportedly the work of late Australian artist Albert Tucker, but when McBride tried to resell it, Sotheby’s informed her that it was probably fake.

Unlike most cases of art fraud, which are settled out of court because dealers hope to protect themselves from embarrassment and from damage to their reputations, the dispute has gone all the way to the Australian Supreme Court.

According to McBride’s lawyer, Francis Douglas, the Christie’s catalogue for the May 2000 sale definitively identified the painting as authentic, leaving “no doubt that Christie’s had expressed an opinion” that the work was by Tucker. If the auction house was uncertain about the work’s authenticity, it would have indicated that by a question mark next to the attribution, which it did not.

Later, McBride discovered that the painting’s provenance was in doubt. The catalogue claimed that Barry O’Sullivan had inherited the piece from his father Ivan, who had purchased it from Melbourne’s Tolarno Gallery in 1969. After the sale, however, the younger O’Sullivan told Christie’s that the work instead came from Sydney’s Dominion Galleries.

It was around that time that Christie’s began to suspect that there was a string of forged Tucker paintings floating around the market. Despite consultinng art experts from Melbourne University who expressed concerns about its authenticity, a second work was auctioned for $69,000 in Australian dollars (US$64,700) to Australia Club in August of 2000. That money has since been repaid.

McBride is also suing former friend, art consultant Vivienne Sharpe, who encouraged her to buy the painting. Allegedly, Sharpe had a secret deal with Christie’s to pocket roughly 30 percent of the auction house’s profits when she helped arrange a sale.

The suit also names the painting’s seller, car dealer and art collector Alex Holland. He had purchased the work from bankrupt art dealer Peter Gant, who has been linked to the sale of forged works in the past.

“Mr Gant was identified as having sold a fake Drysdale for $250,000; as having supplied and sold fake Nolans; as having been the supplier of a batch of lalique glassware that had been irradiated to turn it purple and thus increase its value, and as being involved in a dispute with Charles Blackman about some paintings that Mr Blackman said to not be his work,” Douglas informed the court, pointing to evidence of a wider problem of Australian forgeries.

As the hearing continues, Christie’s has two expected defenses: that the painting doesn’t belong to McBride, but to a superannuation company owned by McBride or to her husband’s company that is now in liquidation; and that the statute of limitations on the case has expired. 

Source: artnet

第一二代旅法中國藝術大師匯展

大師級的作品難得一見，剛在拍賣市場上流出，就馬上落入另一個藏家手中。就算是藝博會，作品也分散於不同角落，難以對其有深入體會。最近藝術館舉辦「巴黎．丹青」展覽（即日起至9月21日），一次過把多位大師：林風眠、徐悲鴻、張大千、傅抱石、常玉、潘玉良、趙無極、朱德群、吳冠中等作品，放於同一展廳中，令人更了解當中的創作脈絡與藝術承傳。

這群畫家的共通點，在於他們都曾與巴黎有一段淵源，或是留學，或是自由地交流，或是舉辦展覽。策展人之一，來自法國的易凱（Eric Lefebvre）博士，碰巧也與中國淵源甚深。因此他更看重這些畫家對中西交流的貢獻，從他們身上，他體會最深的是文化對話中所產生的創造力與魅力。

易凱形容，巴黎是這些畫家的學校，也是他們的舞台。展覽着重重現當年的氛圍，一進門，觀眾就走進仿巴黎高等美術學院的建築中，這是孕育多位藝術家如徐悲鴻、林風眠等的殿堂。走進第一個房間，便如通過時光隧道，置身當年最重要的國外展覽──徐悲鴻1933年在巴黎策劃的中國繪畫展中。展廳中都是當年他帶一眾藝術家到歐洲巡迴展出的作品，第一站正是巴黎。展覽引起不少回響，為這些畫家打開通往國際畫壇的路，也讓歐洲人認識到現代中國藝術的精妙處，令不少當地博物館也開始收藏中國畫。徐所挑的展品規模都較大，畫風多樣，並不受自己的藝術主張規限，齊白石、高奇峰等人的作品也被收納其中。「他選畫的眼光很好，經過了數十年，現在看來，這些仍是大師級的作品。作為藝術家，他的取向很明確，但作為策展人，他是很開放的。」

除了聯展，不少畫家也曾在巴黎舉辦個展，例如是張大千。他在巴黎結識了不少藝術家，包括畢加索。這兩位大師更曾以畫會友，互相繪畫送贈對方，畢加索更把張的容貌畫得像一頭獅子。在法國的潘玉良也曾為張造像。展覽中更有一段拍攝張作畫過程的紀錄片，執導者為名電影人朱旭華。張在紙上自由揮灑，下筆幾乎沒有一絲猶豫，興之所至，三兩筆便畫成了一幅荷花圖，功力深厚。

兩代畫家分別

留法畫家可分成兩代人，第一代是早於上世紀一十至三十年代便到法國的林風眠、徐悲鴻、常玉、潘玉良等，第二代則是四十至五十年代到法國的吳冠中、趙無極、朱德群等。這些畫家都從法國吸取了養分，畫風為之改變，有些更把這些改變帶回中國。

第一代畫家到巴黎時，面對巨大的文化衝擊，一切西方技法和繪畫理念，都超乎他們想像。「第一代畫家都是跨出自己的文化，去了解另外一個文化。」每個畫家都選擇了迥異的路徑，從學院或自由工作室等不同途徑學習，將西方事物吸收，與自己的文化根底融合。有些明顯受西方藝術大師馬蒂斯（Henri Matisse）、畢加索等的影響，如林風眠、常玉，有一些則回歸到中國畫，認為不應放棄其寫意特質，只為其中補充寫實的意味，如徐悲鴻。他們也不拘泥於繪畫形式，嘗試了版畫、雕塑、工藝美術等創作。

當中一些藝術家回國後，在中國各地創立美術學院，影響新一批的畫家，此外，他們也積極發表有關藝術的評論，例如二十年代末劉海粟在上海報紙上發表的歐洲隨筆，介紹在法國看到的展覽和現代大師的風格。這些都促使第二代畫家到法國尋找更多的養分。

與第一代畫家不同，第二代的畫家更受當時的藝術潮流影響，從具象走向抽象，也有學油畫出身的畫家，在法國重新發掘水墨的美。「第一代藝術家接受訓練以後，更多是回中國發展，然而第二代的路很不一樣，像趙無極、朱德群長期留在法國，丁雄泉則是先留法再留美，最後到荷蘭，吳冠中先去中國才去法國，各人的經歷不一樣，對創作也有影響。」

第一代的畫家多在水墨中注入西方元素，或將水墨技法帶進西方繪畫中，是第一步從技法上融合中西的嘗試。第二代畫家則更多從理念上融和兩者，建立自己的獨特風格。「第一代的畫家有更重的意識，覺得自己是中國的畫家，『國畫』這個觀念正是二十年代興起。第二代藝術家多是尋找更有個性、更有獨立性的路。但也有第一代藝術家如常玉、潘玉良，也是走一些比較表達內心的路。」

就如林風眠的《聖殤》技法和題材都是來自西方聖像畫的傳統，作畫材料卻是傳統的水墨，採納林愛用的方形構圖。易凱指出，這是林畫作少見而重要的作品。畫作中對昏暗的調子和戲劇性的光線掌握得當，呈現西方悲劇氛圍，顯示其深受法國著名畫家Georges Rouault的影響。「林風眠那時畫的題材多是圍繞人類的痛苦。雖然他沒有這方面的信仰，但覺得人類的感情都是共通的，表達在充滿戰爭的四十年代，各國人民都共有的痛苦。」

關於這幅畫的收藏過程，也有一段故事。它首次出現在林四十年代的上海個展中，一個法國朋友為了這個展覽出了不少力，林要其挑一幅畫來送贈。「她不好意思拿，只挑了最小的一幅畫，林笑說，你應該不是喜歡它吧，我看你看《聖殤》看了很久，還是送給你這幅吧！」多年以後，這位老太太為了紀念舊日情誼，把畫作捐給賽努奇博物館。

前代融和技法

常玉喜愛以水墨寫意方法，繪畫西方常見的裸女題材。他受馬蒂斯影響甚深，其抽象的視覺藝術語言，在當年很前衞，為同年代的畫家帶來不少啟發，潘玉良、龐薰琹、滑田友均有仿效。「他並不欣賞巴黎美術學院注重邏輯、非常寫實的繪畫方式，卻喜愛到自由工作室，只需要花一點錢，便有一個裸女模特兒，任你自由去畫。」

「常玉在這些工作室裏像明星一樣，大家都很愛其畫作。因他並不像其他人那樣素描，而是用中國毛筆畫，畫得又快又自由，又有個性和創造性。結束後，他又拿起另外一張紙，畫旁邊的學生，但也不是畫他，而是取其姿態，把他變成女的，也把旁邊穿着衣服的人畫成裸體，非常幽默。」詩人徐志摩很喜歡常玉的畫作，常玉筆下的裸女下身非常豐腴，擁有不尋常身體比例，徐戲稱為「宇宙大腿」。常玉生性浪漫，最後在法國定居，繼續寫意的創作生活。

與常玉相近，潘玉良也以其裸女畫作聞名，然而她選擇回到中國，卻因保守的風氣受到非議，遭到排擠，最終要到法國尋找出路，至死也沒回故鄉。展覽有她的兩幅裸女作品，一幅是油畫，一幅是水墨，然而兩者技法之相像，不仔細看的話，也分不出材質的分別。潘喜歡用細碎的筆觸繪畫，令水墨有油畫的質感，也喜歡用黑線把人物勾勒，令油畫作品帶有水墨意味，把中西的技法用自己的方式結合，形成獨特風格。

易凱指出，早期潘喜歡對比強烈的人物，例如把白人黑人模特兒放在一個畫面上，到了五十年代，卻多畫臉孔相似的女人，種族特徵不明顯，是她自己創造的形象。「二三十年代是第一代畫家的學習階段，到了五十年代，他們的作品已成熟。」展覽中也有潘為自己製作的頭部雕塑，帶有細碎的斧鑿痕迹，恍如其畫筆的筆觸，線條流暢，神情肅穆哀愁，令人聯想到她坎坷的身世。「她的雕塑有特別的力量，很能表現她的個性。」

縱然外界都對其孤獨的人生大加渲染，然而她在巴黎其實非常活躍。當年一眾留法藝術家組織起法國中華藝術家協會，互相扶持，潘是會長，得到很多朋友及後輩支持，生活雖苦，但也不至沒有一點甜味。

着重以畫對話

易凱表示，在策展過程中，他們着重以作品互相對話，例如把徐悲鴻和林風眠的作品系列面對面擺放。兩人幾乎同時留法，然而藝術主張大有不同，雖然沒有直接爭論，但徐悲鴻和徐志摩曾為寫實派和現代派的不同主張進行激烈筆戰，對藝術該重寫實還是重表現各執一詞。徐推崇寫實，在今次展覽可見其著名的水墨馬，形意並重，同場也有他的素描作品影像展出，以證其寫實根基。而林則更喜愛現代畫風，其古裝仕女造型獨特，顯示其內心的沉鬱，也反映出他受馬蒂斯及莫迪里阿尼(Amedeo Modigliani)的人物畫影響。另一幅《戲曲一景》，則受立體主義的影響更深。

第二代旅法畫家趙無極和朱德群的藝術路有不少相似之處。他們到法國後都受到抽象主義啟發，從具象走向抽象。「剛到法國，這些畫家就完全進入了西方的藝術環境。像趙，他一開始就表明，不願意繪畫一些『中國熱』的作品。」不同的是，趙是逐步走向抽象，而朱則是一下子捨棄了寫實形式，轉向只在數月之間。兩人的畫作被擺放在一起，形成微妙對比，朱的筆觸較強，趙則喜愛顏色的自然融合，然而兩者都着重戲劇的光線變化，「就算是抽象創作，也會有很多美學上的不同選擇。」

趙在1950年畫的《廣場（威尼斯）》，正顯示其早期轉向抽象的風格。「趙無極深受德國畫家Paul Klee影響，認為Paul對符號性、抽象和具象關係的研究非常適合自己。」作為西方藝術源頭的意大利，是一眾畫家喜愛拜訪的地方。這幅畫已看到趙初期以顏色碰撞的嘗試，實際的風景被轉化成光線和符號，然而仍有一定寫實的空間，上方模糊的白色教堂建築有一定暗示。

與趙朱不同，吳冠中以水墨為主要創作媒介，但同樣也是從具象走向抽象。展覽將其三幅作品並列牆上，顯示其畫風的轉向。一幅是六十年代畫的西藏風景，雖然趨向印象，但仍能辨認出當中的事物，中間九十年代的江南風景《水巷》，則有更重的立體主義影子，趨向抽象，旁邊晚期的作品，則已是全然抽象，只能辨認出山水的天地劃分，創作更為奔放自由。

藝術名家師弟

易凱普通話說得非常流利，不但是這些留法畫家的策展人，也是他們的師弟。他曾留學杭州的中國美術學院（舊名國立藝術學院），林風眠為此學院第一任院長，不少留法的畫家如趙無極、朱德群、吳冠中等也曾在此受教育。「起初我只是對亞洲美術感興趣，為了更了解這種文化，於是跑了去學中文，它為我打開了新的世界。學習得更深入後，我發覺自己跟這些留法藝術家也有一定聯繫，我從西方到中國，他們則是從中國到西方，無論是做創作還是研究，我們都是在兩種文化之間對話，互相補足，帶來更全面的面貌。」

學成回歸法國後，他在巴黎賽努奇博物館擔任研究員，發現該館有一批留法中國畫家的作品，張大千在五六十年代曾多次於賽努奇舉行展覽，林風眠也曾在這個博物館舉辦第一次的外國個展，館內也有他們的捐贈，為易凱提供大量素材作為研究的起點。

然而他也曾碰上不少困難：「在法國，這些藝術家的作品都是分散在各博物館和藏家手裏。因此我花了很長的時間尋找。這些藝術家到法國的時候是二三十年代，那時漢語拼音還沒發展起來，於是每個畫家都發明用法文寫自己名字的方法，多年以後，要再辨識他們的身份資料有一定難度。」

研究進行了十年，在2011年，他決定策劃一次總結性的展覽，把六所博物館和藝術機構，如巴黎現代藝術博物館、龐比度藝術中心等的收藏整合，引起不少關注。適逢中法建交五十年，於是便應香港藝術館之邀，把展品與本地藏品整合，將展覽搬到香港以作品敍說這批畫家的故事。然而展品仍以法國藏品佔大多數，約為八成至九成。

撰文︰張綺霞

攝影︰郭錫榮

ellacheung@hkej.com

部分圖片由受訪者提供

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轉載自信報

自小愛丹青 師從嶺南派

晉末劉琨有詩云，「何意百煉鋼，化為繞指柔」，感懷年邁陷獄，壯志未酬，昔日百煉之鋼，已如繞指之柔無能為力。不過，百煉鋼、繞指柔，在陳少琼身上卻相得益彰，皆因她從事重工業逾30載，在大型金屬機械之間穿梭，習慣跟百煉之鋼打交道；近年卻拜嶺南派國畫大師盧清遠為師，習嶺南國畫，多次參與國際畫展和舉辦個人展覽，憑繞指之柔妙筆生花。

工業與藝術 共通處不少

陳少琼自幼愛好藝術繪畫，不過讀書時期，父親認為藝術家注定潦倒，反對她習畫。高中時，她瞞着父親偷偷畫畫，平日替小學生補習，賺得零用錢，全用來買畫具材料、交學畫費。「後來到英國華威大學讀工程學碩士，跟藝術愈走愈遠，不過課餘我仍堅持到倫敦服裝學院修讀設計，直到畢業後投身工業，埋首30多年，期間難以兼顧藝術興趣，幾乎沒有執起過畫筆。」儘管從事塑膠機械工業，不過在設計產品及宣傳品時，陳少琼自幼培養的美術觸覺，依然大派用場。

工業與藝術似乎風馬牛不相及，陳少琼卻指兩者有不少共通之處。「終日面對沉重的機械，或苦練一筆一捺、點滴用色，都非得有濃厚興趣不可，否則日久難持。」她續說：「要發展一樣產品，為市場接受，或者繪畫，皆須要運用頭腦，部署構圖，構思線條、色彩和層次。」

藝術之道也講求緣分，陳少琼認為有一點很重要，就是覓得良師。4年前，她在一次聚會上遇到敬佩已久的嶺南派國畫大師盧清遠：「當日我像個小粉絲，好不容易才鼓起勇氣，請求跟他合照。後來我將照片寄到加拿大給他，順道附上一些自己的畫作。」收到盧清遠的回覆後，陳少琼「膽粗粗」提出拜師，不過盧清遠當時已經旅居加拿大、台灣兩地，甚少回港；4年以來，陳少琼就是透過網絡，以視像教授的方式，偶爾也飛往台灣，向盧清遠學習繪畫。

嶺南畫派源於晚清，不僅是種藝術風格，也是當時對傳統水墨畫的一種思潮衝擊，將中、日和西洋畫融合一起，創出色彩鮮艷、層次豐富的國畫風格。「折衷東西，融滙古今」，這種創新哲學，吸引陳少琼重提畫筆後，專注研習嶺南派國畫。

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Tang Yin: Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty - Taiwan / Taipei : Exhibition 唐寅書畫展

The National Palace Museum has a fine collection of works by the Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty (Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming, Tang Yin, and Qiu Ying) and is presenting a series of special exhibitions on these artists this year. Following the first and second exhibits on Shen Zhou and Wen Zhengming, respectively, this one represents the third installment, which focuses on the painting and calligraphy of Tang Yin 唐寅 (1470-1524). Born in the "gengyin 庚寅" year under the Chinese zodiac of the tiger, Tang was given the name "Yin 寅," and his early style name was Bohu (meaning "tiger"). His style name was later changed to Ziwei, and he also had the sobriquet Liuru jushi. A native of Wuxian in Jiangsu (modern Suzhou), Tang Yin showed genius in childhood and by the age of sixteen had entered a state school. Placing first in the apprentice civil service exams, he was appointed as a Government Student in Suzhou Prefecture. He thereupon came under the guidance of such senior Hanlin Academy scholars from Wu (Suzhou) as Wen Lin, Wang Ao, and Yang Xunji. Promoting ancient-style prose with the likes of Zhu Yunming, Wen Zhengming, and Xu Zhenqing, Tang Yin became known as one of the "Four Talents of Wu." In 1498, he then sat for and placed first in the next level of civil service exams on the provincial level in Yingtian Prefecture (modern Nanjing). The following year he participated in the metropolitan examination held in the capital but was accused of being part of a cheating scandal. Dismissed and thrown into prison, he was later released and banished as a low official, which he refused to accept out of shame. Experiencing the vagaries of the examination system, Tang became disenchanted with the traditional route to fame and position through government office, beginning his travels in Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Hunan, and later making a living with his brush. In 1514, he was offered and accepted a substantial position to go to Nanchang and serve under Zhu Chenhao, the Prince of Ning, in Jiangxi. However, seeing that the prince had ambitions to usurp the throne, Tang feigned madness and was allowed to leave, thereby averting the disaster that later befell Zhu. Tang Yin thus led a life of many ups and downs, suffering from both poverty and sickness. Destitute in his later years, he died of illness on the second day of the twelfth lunar month in the second year of the Jiajing reign (7 January 1524) at the age of 54.

Tang Yin was good at poetry and excelled at painting, befriending Zhu Yunming, Wen Zhengming, and Zhang Ling in his younger years and leaving behind many poems and paintings exchanged and harmonizing with them. In painting, Tang studied under Shen Zhou and Zhou Chen, acquiring profound insight into the Southern Song academic style while absorbing widely from the traditions of Yuan and early Ming literati painting. Zhu Yunming, in his "Engraved Tomb Inscription for Tang Yin," once wrote of Tang that, "When his extraordinary talent flared, he would lodge it in painting, his brushwork often pursuing the Tang and Song masters." Tang Yin's themes in painting are quite diverse, including landscape, lady, narrative, flower, bamboo, and rock subjects. His beautifully smooth and elegantly refined use of brush and ink was rendered with exquisite liveliness in compositions masterfully arranged. In calligraphy, Tang adopted the style of the Yuan master Zhao Mengfu but also looked back to Li Yong and Yan Zhenqing of the Tang dynasty. Though Tang Yin established a personal style of his own in running script, his gift in calligraphy was overshadowed by the fame of his painting, resulting in relatively few surviving examples of his writing.

A total of seventy works by Tang Yin as well as teachers and associates have been selected from the National Palace Museum collection for this special exhibition. The display is divided into four sections: "Landscape Painting and Poetry," "Ladies and Figures," "Flowers, Bamboo, and Rocks," and "The Art of Calligraphy." Reflecting a diversity of stylistic characteristics, they fully express the artistic origins and achievements of Tang Yin, one of the most legendary figures among the Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty.

Source: National Palace Museum of Taipei 

HK's Top 10... Expensive auction items!

1 The Meiyintang Chicken Cup, ceramic 

$281m, 2014, Sotheby’s

The holy grail of Chinese ceramic connoisseurship, this flawless doucai (joined colours) ware is ultra-rare, due to its exceptionally difficult technical elements. Built during the Ming Dynasty’s Chenghua rule more than 500 years ago, it features a red rooster with a golden hen, a brood of chicks and flowers. Today, it’s next to impossible to acquire a genuine Chenghua ceramic, with less than three perfect ceramics available and most remaining in private collections.

2 Lotus and Mandarin Ducks – Zhang Daqian, art 

$191m, 2011, Sotheby’s

One of the greatest Chinese painters of the 20th century, Zhang Daqian developed his technique of pocai (splashed ink and a multitude of colours) due to his failing eyesight. This 1947 hanging scroll from the Mei Yung Tang Collection features charcoal and vermillion-red shades of bloomed lotus and buds, with three ducks paddling through the river.

3 The Last Supper – Zeng Fanzhi, art 

$180m, 2013, Sotheby’s 

Replacing the 12 apostles with the mask-and-red-scarf-wearing Young Pioneers of China feasting on watermelons, Fanzhi crafts a societal piece that uses real students as models to metaphorically scrutinise the growth of the Chinese economy while the red scarves represent Communist ideals. 

4 Kangxi period Wan Shou vase 

$64.5m, 2013, Christie’s

Believed by scholars to be made 
for the Qing dynasty’s Kangxi Emperor, this 300-year old blue-and-white Wan Shou vase is a calligraphic magnum opus. The vase is covered with 10,000 meticulously placed characters ranging from 
seal scripts to pictogram scripts of fishes and trees.

5 Burmese ruby and diamond necklace 

$49.4m, 2013, Christie’s

With a total of 87.88 carats, this opulent necklace set the world record for the most expensive ruby necklace plus a world record price for a contemporary designer. It features a chandelier-esque design, encrusted with diamonds and rigged with 35 intense ‘pigeon’s blood’ rubies.

6 Oval-shaped orangy pink diamond 

$38.2m, 2013, Sotheby’s

Yes, the term ‘orangy pink’ exists – and this 12.85-carat VVS1 clarity diamond sold for US$385,000 per carat, making it the world’s most expensive orangy pink diamond of any shape while also setting the world record price per carat for an orangy pink diamond. 

7 Bali Life – Lee Man-fong, art 

$36m, 2013, Christie’s

Setting the world record price for any Southeast Asian art ever sold at auction, Chinese-Indonesian Lee’s Bali Life centres on the idyllic Balinese lifestyle, depicting close communal ties, religious celebrations and traditional festivities, with extreme attention to detail.

8 The Empresses of The Orient ear pendants 

$25.9m, 2013, Christie’s

Truly one of a kind, this pair of natural pearl and diamond ear pendants are complemented by a vivid diamond cap topped by a natural white button pearl. The sale also set the world record price for a pair of natural pearl ear pendants. Perfectly round natural pearls are exceptionally rare and are valued as much as gemstones.

9 The Magpie’s Treasure Nest Clock – Patek Philippe  

$18m, 2013, Sotheby’s

Coming in at just over 33 pounds, this extravagant clock features a magpie feeding a young chick and, below them, the actual timepiece surrounded by numerous gemstones. Embellishments include 24.95 carats of diamonds, 13.17 carats of rubies and a dangling 104.75 carat oval tanzanite hanging from the magpie’s beak. The clock is most probably 
an afterthought.

10 Romanée-Conti Vintage 1978 wine

$3.7m, 2013, Christie’s

Setting the world auction record for the revered wine producer at $306,250/bottle, Romanée-Conti managed to sell a dozen 36-year-old Burgundy vinos, prompting the price to rise three times the pre-sale estimate, in turn setting another record for the books for most expensive 12 bottles of wine. Is it wine o’clock yet? Butch Domingo

Source: TineOut HongKong

Palace Museum opens earlier over summer break

Photo provided to China Daily

The Palace Museum in Beijing announced it will open its gate earlier to cope with an overwhelming number of visitors during students'summer break. From July 5 through Aug 24, the museum will open at 8 am (except Mondays, when it is closed), and still close at 5 pm.

The authorities of the museum also vowed to mount patrols in the nearby area to stop unlicensed tour guides and keep good order during the peak season.

Online ticket reservations for the Palace Museum can be made at gugong.228.com.cn. Service hotline: 400-622-8228

Source: "This is Beijing" 

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Vase

• Place of origin:
  Shiwan, China (made)
• Date:
  1860-1900 (made)
• Artist/Maker:
  unknown (production)
• Materials and Techniques:
  Stoneware, with blue glaze splashed with red
• Museum number:
  1190-1903
• Gallery location:
  British Galleries, room 125c, case 1

Object Type 

The shape of this vase, with a dragon coiling around its neck, occurs in both bronze and porcelain during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), while the vari-coloured glaze recalls glazes used on pots during the Song dynasty (960-1279). Thus both form and glaze suggest ancient objects. The collecting of antiques in 19th-century China was accompanied by an interest in modern objects that made references to antiquity.

Time
This type of ware was made at kilns in the town of Shiwan, near Canton (Guangzhou). Shiwan wares are difficult to date precisely, but a peak in production occurred in the last decades of the 19th century. Many pieces were exported, for the kilns were close to both the port of Canton and the British colony of Hong Kong.

Materials & Making
Shiwan wares employed durable, high-firing stoneware clays that were dug locally. They are typified by exotic, splashed glazes in brilliant colours. Glazes coloured with different minerals were applied by dipping, painting or pouring. Careful control of firing temperatures and kiln atmospheres was crucial.

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source: Victoria and Albert Museum 

Victoria and Albert Museum

Victoria and Albert Museum

porcelain

After centuries of imitating imported Asian porcelains in other materials, J.F. Böttger, an alchemist working at the Dresden court of Augustus the Strong, became the first European to make this highly coveted 'white gold'. Capitalising on this discovery, Augustus founded the Meissen factory, where 'hard-paste' porcelain of the Chinese type was made from 1713. Although Meissen made enormous efforts to protect its secrets, industrial spies and defecting workmen took their knowledge of the formulas and processes to Vienna and Venice, laying the foundations for a European-wide hard-paste porcelain industry.

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The experimental years

Before it was able to produce white porcelain, for a few years the Meissen factory made a brown stoneware inspired by Chinese redwares. Known today as 'Böttger stoneware', the basic material could be lapidary-polished, painted in imitation of lacquer or left undecorated. Shapes for Böttger stoneware and the early undecorated porcelains were copied from Asian ceramics or designed by the Dresden court silversmith, J.J. Irminger.

Teapot, Meissen porcelain factory, about 1715. Böttger red stoneware, moulded and partly polished on the wheel. Museum no. 108&A-1940

Pilgrim bottle and stopper, Meissen porcelain factory, 1710-1715. Wheel polished Böttger red stoneware. Museum no. C.273

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Enamelling

Once porcelain production had been achieved, the Meissen factory was faced with a further challenge: to master the enamelling technique necessary to decorate the wares. Initially this work was contracted to the Dresden enameller, J.G. Funke. However, in 1720, J.G. Höroldt was recruited from the rival Vienna factory. Under his direction, the processes were mastered and a distinctive style of enamelling introduced.

Bottle and stopper, Meissen, Germany, about 1720. Porcelain with enamelled and gilded decoration, possibly by Georg Funcke. Museum no. c.22-1956. J. Tulk Bequest

Tea bowl, Meissen porcelain factory, 1723-1725. Porcelain painted in enamels and gold, possibly by J.G. Höroldt. Museum no. C.119-1940

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Independent enamellers

The high cost of Meissen's enamelled wares encouraged small decorating workshops to buy plain white Meissen porcelain and enamel or gild it for resale. Such independent enamellers were known by the German term hausmaler ('house painter'). They often decorated a range of materials, including Meissen and Asian porcelain, tin-glazed earthenware and glass.

Saucer, Meissen porcelain factory, 1720-1730. Museum no. C.218A-1938. The decoration on this Meissen saucer was painted by an unknown independent decorator or 'hausmaler' who would have bought it directly from the factory in its plain white glazed state.

Teapot, Meissen porcelain factory, 1720-1730. Museum no. C.75&A-1939. This teapot was made by the Meissen factory but decorated in the distinctive style of Ignaz Preissler, probably the best known of all the independent enamellers (hausmaler) of Meissen porcelain.

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Meissen's secrets revealed

Industrial spies and departing workmen took Meissen's manufacturing secrets to Vienna and Venice, where the Du Paquier and Vezzi factories were founded in 1718 and 1720 respectively. Craftsmen from Vienna then went on to work at the Doccia factory near Florence. A workman who defected from Vienna in 1747 eventually spread knowledge of Meissen's formula all over Germany.

Wine cooler, Vienna, Austria, about 1740. Museum no.

 C.180-1938.

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source:  

Victoria and Albert Museum

Beaker and saucer, Doccia porcelain factory, Florence, Italy. Museum no. C.12A-1941. Possibly enamelled by Karl Wendelin Anreiter.