e-bulletin

31 July 2000

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Exhibitions	July 2000 Magazine	Conferences & Symposia

contents

NEWS FROM CHINESE-ART.COM

ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS

NOTEWORTHY ESSAYS

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUM NEWS

Readers may wish to view a calendar listing all May 2000 to April 2001 exhibitions reported in this and previous e-bulletins.

[past and ongoing exhibitions]

[upcoming exhibitions and events]

[museum news]

AUCTION & MARKET NEWS

Older auction results are posted in previous e-bulletins:
19 May 2000
23 June 2000

[upcoming auctions]

CONFERENCES & SYMPOSIA

Readers may wish to view a calendar listing all May 2000 to April 2001 conferences and symposia reported in this and previous e-bulletins.

BOOKS AVAILABLE FROM CHINESE-ARTBOOKS.COM

NEWS FROM CHINESE-ART.COM

Traditional Chinese Art Magazine

A new issue of the Chinese-art.com Traditional Magazine went live this July and features color in Chinese art. Contributors include Niu Kecheng, Li Xiaolu, Jiang Caiping, and B. Cheng. With this issue, Chinese-art.com also begins providing theses on archaeology and art history in Chinese art history graduate programs, starting with the China Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing.

Contemporary Chinese Art Magazine

Don't forget to check out the latest issue (volume 3, issue 1) of the Chinese-art.com Contemporary Magazine, whose guest editor, Yin Shuangxi, focuses on the latest developments in Chinese contemporary sculpture.

Print Copies of Chinese-art.com Publications

Too busy to browse? New Art Media Limited (HK) offers paper-bound, printed copies of Chinese-art.com web publications on a paid subscription basis.

Chinese-artbooks.com

Our on-line bookstore, Chinese-artbooks.com, offers a careful selection of English and Chinese publications on traditional and contemporary art. For a sampling of new books available on traditional Chinese art, please see our New Books section below.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS

Han Tombs in Bazhong

One hundred and twenty cliff tombs of the Han dynasty (206 BC - AD 220) were discovered in Bazhon in Sichuan province on the 3,000-meter-long surrounding cliffs of Huacheng Reservoir, which is under renovation by local militia. The tombs were submerged by water when the reservoir was built in 1958. Varying in construction and decoration, the tombs are of great value in studying arts and crafts and burial culture of the Han dynasty.

Shanghai Star's Travel China 9/711 (14 July 2000), 1.

Tamped Earth Foundation of Tao Temple, Shanxi

Between the spring and summer of 2000, exploratory drilling encountered the possible foundation of the Taosi in Linfen, Shanxi province. The find enabled archaeologists to narrow the dating of a the eastern portion of the city's previously excavated "Southern Wall". Specifically, the Southern Wall is older than the Taosi foundation, based on analysis of layers of dirt and ash. In support of this, the Southern Wall also contained earthenware shards dating from the period of the Taosi Temple. From this discovery, experts have already gained a deeper knowledge of ancient Chinese architectural foundations.

Liang Xingpeng, Zhongguo wenwu bao (16 July 2000).

Eastern Han Pictorial Tiles Unearthed in Guangyuan, Sichuan

In June 2000, the Guangyuan Cultural Relics Bureau sorted out a tomb discovered in Yafu Village, Shaohua Township. The tomb has five discrete sections -- the tomb door, passageway, front chamber, a chamber on the eastern side, and a back chamber -- altogether measuring approximately 10 meters long and 2 meters wide. Rectangular bricks line the walls, some fired with images of carts and horses next to watchtowers, water caltrop motifs, and cart wheel designs. The tomb showed signs of having been looted in ancient times, but the side chamber still held a few burial goods, such as earthenware human figures, chicken(s), and stove(s). Analysis of the tomb construction and grave items points to an Eastern Han (25-220) dating.

Liang Yongtao, Wu Jianrong, and Tang Zhigong, Zhongguo wenwu bao (16 July 2000).

Find in Henan Flushes Away Claim to Throne

With the discovery of a 2,000-year-old toilet complete with running water, a stone seat and a comfortable armrest, China lays claim to the oldest surviving toilet, discovered in a Western Han Dynasty (206 BCE-23 CE) royal tomb in Shangqiu County, Henan. "'This top-grade stool is the earliest of its kind ever discovered in the world, meaning that the Chinese used the world's earliest water closet, which is quite like what we are using today,' Xinhua quoted the archaeologists' report as saying. The invention of the flush toilet is widely attributed to London plumber Thomas Crapper, who patented his U-bend flushing system in the late 19th century and who also installed toilets for Queen Victoria."

South China Morning Post (27 July 2000).

Remains of Baodun Culture Unearthed in Sichuan

In March 2000, the Chengdu Cultural Relics and Archaeological Institue and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Archaeological Institute began exploratory excavations at the Purple Bamboo Village, 13 kilometers southwest of Chongning, Sichuan. First discovered in October 1997, the site contains a fairly intact city wall, one of the oldest such examples in the Chengdu Plain. The city plan is rectangular and covers 121 square meters, with inner and outer concentric walls roughly 10 meters apart in the shape of the character hui (to return). Bone artifacts and round-footed earthenware zun typical of Neolithic Baodun Culture (ca. 4300 BCE) were inside 9 ash pits. At the remains of a cooking fire, archaeologists found earthenware, bone, and stone implements. The large number and variety of artifacts unearthed will aid researchers in filling in the period between the Neolithic Period and the Bronze Age.

Li Mingbin, Zhongguo wenwu bao (12 July 2000).

Newly Excavated Neolithic Site at Exi, Hubei

The Hubei Cultural Relics and Archaeology Institute has begun excavation on a site discovered during the construction of an expressway between Xiangfan and Jizhou, at the intersection of Tuanlin Township and Wuling Village. Uncovered so far are one square foundation, twelve ash pits, the foundations for a stone pit, and one funerary urn. The square foundation is part of a larger damaged rectangular foundation fifteen meters long; and the stone pit appears to be a fairly large Neolithic grave of indistinct form. No bones remain, but grave goods include over thirty earthenware vessels (urns, cups, etc.). The earthenware funerary urn bears a lid for an earthenware ding; an adult's tooth was found inside, unaccompanied by other items. Earthenware artifacts (ding tripods, jars, footed platters, stemmed cups, bowls, basins, urns, crocks, etc.) hail from two different Neolithic types. Few stone implements were found.

Yang Jishan, Zhongguo wenwu bao (28 June 2000).

Warring States Kiln near Luoyang

In April 2000, the Luoyang Cultural Relics Unit, while excavating at an Eastern Zhou (770-256) royal tomb site, discovered a Warring States kiln, based on the artifacts unearthed within. The kiln stratum, on a pear-shaped plane aligned east-west, lay underneath modern-day layers and measures 2.2 meters in diameter. Vestiges hint at a kiln tunnel, doors, and another cavity. Unique to this kiln is the arched roof topping the columnar chimney rising from the kiln floor, as well as three earthenware wells on the north, east, and south sides of the kiln. This kiln structure, with its sturdier load-bearing capabilities, durability, and well installations, attests to the exactitude of water use in the firing process.

Xu Shaofeng, Zhongguo wenwu bao (21 June 2000).

The First Tang Tomb Discovered in Ganzi Prefecture, Sichuan

The Sichuan All-County Cooperative Archaeological Unit is currently at Ganlu Temple Village a conducting salvage excavation at the only Tang tomb ever discovered in Ganzi Prefecture. Rectangular, buiilt of bricks, and topped by a vaulted roof, the tomb is composed of a passageway, tomb doors, three successive chambers, and two side chambers. The front and side chambers also contain eight painted niches with a total of fifteen elongated arches. Although looted at an earlier date, grave goods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, earthenware, and porcelain remianed. Characters engraved damaged funerary tablet record that the tomb occupant died in the fourth month of the zhenyuan reign of Tang Emperor Dezong (797 CE) and was buried in the eleventh month of the same year. Gauging from the scale of the tomb and portions of extant text, the deceased ranked high in the military; his identity awaits further research.

Zhaxiciren, Zhongguo wenwu bao (5 July 2000).

Three Locations in China Receive "World Heritage Site" Designation

On 22 June 2000, additional sites in China entered the United Nations "World Cultural and Natural Heritage" list: Mount Wuyi in Fujian; the Summer Palace (Yiheyuan) and Altar of Heaven in Beijing; and Dazu, near Chongqing. To date, China has 23 World Heritage sites; famous among these are Mount Tai, Mount Huang, and Mount Emei. The announcement was made in the People's Congress in Beijing.

Guo Guixiang, Zhongguo wenwu bao (25 June 2000).

Pictorial Brick Tomb Found in Qinghai

A tomb composed of tomb doors, passageway, and tomb chamber was recently discovered in Huangzhong County, Qinghai. Elegant pictorial bricks line the four walls of the tomb chamber, with designs of muscular men, animal faces, Nuwa, banquet scenes, lotuses, and red sparrows. According to the preliminary report, the bricks date the tomb to the Wei (220-265) or Jin (265-420) dynasties. This is the first example of such a brick tomb excavated in Qinghai, and thus expands the comparative materials available for this period.

Li Hancai, Zhongguo wenwu bao (21 June 2000).

Yuan Kiln Excavated in Handan, Hebei

In 1998 and 1999, continual excavation conducted at the Yandian site in Pengcheng Township, Handan, revealed a Yuan dynasty (1279-1368) kiln oven and thousands of porcelain shards and kiln implements. In addition, within a kilometer west of the Yandian site, archaeologists unearthed eight hillside kilns, old locust trees, large and small paths composed of bowls, a low-walled street, and remains of a yamen, along with thousands of potsherds and kiln tools. Ceramic forms found include altars, basins, jars, plates, bottles, pillows, lamps, etc. Most vessels were decorated with brown slip over white glaze. It appears as if this kiln continued making the Cizhou ware popular during the Song (960-1279), and that during the Yuan, Cizhou manufacture migrated from Cixian in Hebei 30 kilometers east to Pengcheng Township, where this ware continues to be produced. This archaeological find confirms the efflorescence of Cizhou production at Pengcheng during the Yuan.

Zhao Lichun, Zhongguo wenwu bao (21 June 2000).

NOTEWORTHY ESSAYS

BO Songnian, "Imperial Festival Painting Designs," Gugong bouwuyuan yuankan 2000/2: 27-32.

The genre of festival paintings bears strong associations with popular customs. This art form was appreciated by commoners and courtiers alike. In this article, Professor Bo traces the development of festival paintings at court, from the Han (202 BCE to 220 CE) to the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. He then explains the appearance of several representative festival themes --door gods, Zhong Kui, New Year's pictures, the five auspicious omens, money gods -- in court festival painting.

Bruce Gilley, "Digging into the Future," Far Eastern Economic Review (20 July 2000).

This piece delves into the political underpinnings of the "Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties Chronology Project," established in 1996 to verify the existence of the yet uncharted Xia Dynasty. The author argues that archaeologists strapped for funding have been coopted into a nationalistic enterprise determined to prove that China is heir to the world's oldest civilization.

From Far Eastern Economic Review on-line.

LI Xiuping, "Analysis of Bells from the Tomb of a Noble of the Guo Kingdom," Shoucangjia 2000/6: 1-7.

The author delves into the form, decoration, casting, and dating of eight bronze bells found in the southwest corner of the tomb, and enters into a preliminary discussion of its significance in the history of music in China. The bells were scattered throughout the southern portion of the tomb chamber amid bronze ritual vessels and horse and chariot implements. Altogether, the bells weigh 146,750 grams, and analogous shapes, decoration, and casting indicate these were part of a set dating from the Eastern Zhou (770-256 BCE).

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUM NEWS

[past and ongoing exhibitions]

Readers may wish to view a calendar listing all May 2000 to April 2001 exhibitions reported in this and previous e-bulletins.

Collection of Cultural Relics
Capital Museum (Beijing)
24 June - 24 July 2000

Held in honor of the former Vice-Director of the Hanhai Art Auction Company Qin Gong, this exhibition featured objects recovered at Hong Kong auctions by the Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau. These include a set of six famille rose engraved hexagonal bottles with gold tracery bearing Qianlong (r. 1736-1796) marks and "Thirteen Lines Carved in Jade" by a Wang Xian (dates unkown).

Treasures on Grassland: Archaeology Finds from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Shanghai Museum
1 July - 30 November 2000

The viewing public can now see many of the most stunning artifacts recently excavated in Inner Mongolia in this comprehensive show, which covers the Neolithic period to the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368). Precious jade, gold, and silver objects, never before exhibited, occupy the limelight. Also of note are items relating to nomadic culture dating from the Shang (ca.1600-1045) to the Eastern Han (25-220), and a gold-plated and silver-threaded burial suit from the tomb of a Liao dynasty (916-1125) princess. A full-color catalogue in English and Chinese commemorates this unprecedented event.

Centennial of Lin Fengmian
Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Taipei
until 28 August 2000

Sixty-eight works by Lin Fengmian (1900-1991) are displayed in this exhibition, co-sponsored by the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall and Yuanta Securities. Further details are available by calling (+886-2) 2763-0535.

Lin Mei-chun, "Celebrating a life of devotion to art," Taipei Times (15 July 2000).

Flying Ink Flowers Adorn a Deep Pool
Macau Art Museum
1 June - 1 August 2000

This exhibition displays 80 works by artists of the eighteenth-century Yangzhou School, all rated in the first and second grades by the Chinese government. A selection of 14 of these paintings appear in an accompanying catalogue published in Chinese, Portuguese, and English. Write to inquiries@chinese-artbooks.com if you wish to purchase a copy.

Zhang Hongming, Zhongguo wenwu bao (9 July 2000).

Grand Exhibition of Dunhuang Art
National History Museum (Beijing)
4 July - 31 August 2000

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the hidden manuscripts cave at Dunhuang, the Gansu provicial government, the Culural Relics Bureau, the Dunhuang Studies Institute, and the National History Museum jointly sponsored this event. On display are full-scale replicas of two caves (Mogao Cave 249 and Yulin Cave 25) a three-quarter replica of Mogao Cave 158, copies of thirty murals, fourteen original manuscripts, ten manuscript reproductions, six original paintings on silk, and forty-four copies of silk paintings. Some of the original artifacts are on loan from the British Museum, the Musee Guimet, and the Louvre. Although the cave replicas were not as realistic or intricately done as the painting and carving copies, these succeed in providing a context for the works. Two years of preparation led up to this exhibition, the largest exhibition on Dunhuang ever held.

Secret Books Re-Illuminate 100 Years at Dunhuang: Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Manuscripts Storage Cave at Dunhuang
National Library of China (Beijing)
Opened 1 July 2000

Co-sponsored by the Rare Books Room at the National Library and the Dunhuang and Turfan Studies Group, this exhibit displays a select group of rare documents and artifacts currently in government and private collections. Accompanying labels describe the circumstances surrounding the discovery of the hidden manuscripts cave at Dunhuang and subsequent conservation efforts. Items previously unavailable for public viewing include "Third Section on the Introduction to Secret Regulations" (Lu cang chu fen di san, dated the 12th year of the Western Liang (4th century) and a Guanyin Sutra produced in the second year of the Dafu reign of the kingdom of Shu (Ten Kingdoms, 10th century).

Li Jining, Zhongguo wenwu bao (12 July 2000).

Special Exhibition on the 100th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Manuscripts Storage Cave at Dunhuang
Gansu Provincial Museum (Lanzhou)
Opened 15 July 2000

Sponsored by the Cultural Relics Bureau and the Gansu provincial government Cultural Section, this exhibition brings together objects donated by the Gansu provincial government, the Gansu Provincial Museum, and the Dunhuang Institute: 20 copies of various wall paintings, 5 polychrome sculptures modeled after the originals, 47 manuscript facsimiles. Also on display are 43 original texts on loan from the Dunhuang Institute, the Gansu Provincial Museum, the Gansu Provincial Library, Northwest Normal University, the Jiuquan Museum, the Dunhuang Municipal Museum, and the Yongdeng County Museum, among others. Many of these classics and sutras are available for public viewing for the first time.

Ma Yuping, Zhongguo wenwu bao (19 July 2000).

Henan Museum Special Exhibitions

Soul of Clay: The Cream of Henan Pottery and Porcelain
The Central Plain of China: The Exhibition of Ancient Social Life
The Splendid Dynasties: Bronze Age China -- The Bronzes Exhibition of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Henan Provinces

Consult the Henan Museum website for further information.

Dance of the Dragon: Fabulous Beasts in Asian Art
Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Connecticut)
9 May 9 � 6 August 2000
http://www.yale.edu/artgallery

Celebrating the Chinese year of the dragon, this exhibition explores the images of dragons and other fabulous beasts in Asian art. This is one in a series of thematic installations that showcase Yale's collections of Asian art, augmented by generous loans from private collectors.

A Bold Aesthetic: Textile Arts of Central Asia
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
30 May - 31 July 2000
http://www.lacma.org/

This exhibition highlights sixty outstanding examples of the dress, textiles and jewelry of the peoples of western Central Asia dating from the early nineteenth to the early twentieth century.

From AsiaEVENTS.

Migration of the Faith: Origins of Tibetan Buddhist Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Until 4 September 2000
http://www.lacma.org/

This exhibition of 23 rare and important manuscripts, paintings, and sculptures illustrates the influence of eastern Indian, Nepalese, and Kashmiri artistic styles on the development of Tibetan Buddhist religious art.

Mandala: The Architecture of Englightenment
University of California, Berkeley, Art Museum
19 July - 13 September 2000
http://www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/exhibits/mandala/

This exhibition presents 200 Tibetan mandalas, diagrams of the cosmos but also as meditative guides to nurture a Buddhist"s development toward enlightenment. The exhibition explores the genesis of the mandala in early Buddhist art, its relationship to other sacred sites such as paradises, and its development and spread throughout Buddhist Asia.

Art Treasures from the Land of Snows: Selections from the Tibet House Repatriation Collection
Tibet House (New York)
6 July - 22 September 2000

This collection, made up mostly of donations, intends to secure Tibetan cultural artifacts which are hoped to be returned to a free Tibet one day.

From AsiaEVENTS.

A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions of Asian Art
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Harvard University (Cambridge, MA)
11 March - 24 September 2000
http://www.artmuseums.harvard.edu/ExhibitionPages/CurrentExh/atsackler/recentasian.html

This exhibit showcases about one quarter of the 400-plus works acquired by the Department of Asian Art over the past 10 years. It will include representative examples from three large and important collections: the Mr. and Mrs. Gregory Henderson Collection of Korean Ceramics (acquired by the museum in 1991), the Nelson Goodman Collection of Korean Paintings (acquired in 1994), and the Elaine Ehrenkranz Collection of Japanese Lacquer Boxes (acquired in 1996).

Wisdom and Perfection: The Lotus in Asian Art
Detroit Institute of Arts
5 July - 24 September 2000
http://www.dia.org/exhibitions/exhibitions2.html

The lotus is featured in paintings, sculptures, lacquers, ceramics and textiles from the permanent collection.

Small Wonders: Chinese Snuff Bottles
Chinese Cultural Center (San Francisco)
15 July - 8 October 2000

Culled from Bay Area collectors, this large and diverse exhibition of bottles is not just a dusty collection of tobacco containers, but rather fine works of art fashioned from glass, ivory, jade, gemstone and porcelain.

From AsiaEVENTS .

The World of Scholar's Rocks: Gardens, Studios and Paintings
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
Until 20 August 2000
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId=%7B26B7F4B8-AE17-11D3-936C-00902786BF44%7D

This exhibition features more than 30 scholars' rocks from the noted collection of the Richard Rosenblum family, ranging in size from desktop pieces to freestanding works of several feet in height. They are accompanied by about 90 paintings dating from the 11th to 20th century, drawn primarily from the Museum's collection.

Music in the Age of Confucius
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC)
Until 17 September 2000
http://www.asia.si.edu/exhibitions/musicintheage.htm

This is the first time that a set of thirty-six bells and thirty-two chime stones on their original bronze rack excavated from the Marquis Yi of Zeng tomb in 1978 and a set of 36 bells from the consort or a descendant of Marquis Yi excavated in the early 1980s have been shown outside China.

Later Chinese Calligraphy from the Gift of Robert Hatsfield Ellsworth
Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC)
Until 2 January 2001
http://www.asia.si.edu/exhibitions/calligraphy.htm

The works selected for the current exhibition focus on nineteenth- and twentieth-century Chinese calligrapher-theorists, calligrapher-seal carvers, and calligrapher-collectors.

Art of Protest
Seattle Asian Art Museum
27 April - 1 January 2001
http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/Exhibitions/general/Upcoming/Upcoming.htm

An exhibition of works on paper by Western and Chinese artistsfrom the museum's collection that explores themes of social and political protest. It include works from Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa from the sixteenth through the twentieth centuries.

Clay and Brush: Chinese Painted Pottery from the Sze Hong Collection
Denver Art Museum
4 March 2000 - 4 March 2001
http://www.denverartmuseum.org/

While painted containers and figures continued to be made well after the development of colored glazes, multicolored glazes and enamels eventually became the dominant means of decorating ceramics, replacing the ancient Chinese technique.

Ten Truths About Tea
Victoria & Albert Museum (London)
Until 29 October 2000

A light-hearted but scholarly look at the past and present of global tea culture, from the discovery of tea in Neolithic China to the latest in tea bag design. The main displays are devoted to different ways of preparing tea: brick teas as drunk in the Himalayan region; whipped green tea -- the essential ingredient in the Japanese tea ceremony and steeped green tea much favoured in Southeast Asia.

From Orientations.

Special Exhibition of Chun Ware from the Collection of the National Palace Museum
National Palace Museum (Taipei)
21 May 2000 -
http://www.npm.gov.tw/english/exhbition/object.htm

[upcoming exhibitions and events]

Readers may wish to view a calendar listing all May 2000 to April 2001 exhibitions reported in this and previous e-bulletins.

Clothed to Rule the Universe: Ming and Qing Dynasty Textiles from the Permanent Collection
Art Institute of Chicago
13 September - 2 January 2001
http://www.artic.edu/aic/exhibitions/future.html

Taoism and the Arts of China
Art Institute of Chicago
4 November - 7 January 2001
http://www.artic.edu/aic/exhibitions/future.html

The first major exhibition to present artworks related to Daoism, the least understood of the three ancient philosophies of China. Nearly 130 works of art will explore conceptual and artistic achievements in the history of Daoism, including scroll paintings, sculpture, calligraphy, textiles, ritual objects and rare books borrowed from nearly 70 lenders in more than 10 countries. Thirty-three pieces will be on loan from the PRC, only two of which have been previously exhibited in the West.

Bamboo and the Garden Stone
Gallery Otso (Espoo, Norway)
1 September - 15 November 2000
http://www.espoo.fi/otso

The main part of the exhibition consists of scroll paintings with nature motifs, supplemented by works of porcelain, jade, and seals. The display also includes a re-creation Ming painter's workroom showing artistic materials and equipment. For further information, contact Kati Kilpilampi.

The Chinese Painter as Poet
China Institute in America (New York)
14 September 2000 - 17 December 2000
http://www.chinainstitute.org/gallery/upcoming.html#painter

In the Song dynasty (960-1279), the emergence of literati, or scholar-poets and scholar-artists, lead to an integration of the arts of poetry, painting and calligraphy. Forty works dating from the Song period to the 20th century are either paintings inspired by famous poets of the past, poem-painting combinations evoking the beauty and symbolism of various flowers and other plants, poem-painting combinations used to comment on art or literary history, or on history as such.

Between the Thunder and the Rain: Chinese Paintings from the Opium War to the Cultural Revolution (1840-1979)
Asian Art Museum (San Francisco)
25 October 2000 - 14 January 2001
http://www.asianart.org/exhibits.htm#UpcomingExhibitions

Featuring more than 120 works from a private Bay Area collection, Between the Thunder and the Rain offers a uncommon glimpse of traditional Chinese paintings and calligraphies created between the end of Opium Wars and the Cultural Revolution (approx. 1840-1979). The exhibition documents the divergent artistic transformations shaped by the events of this turbulent era -- one of the most unsettled in China's history. The artistic mix reflected in this rarely studied field reveals a variety of fascinating, rich, and often enigmatic compositions.

Miniatures in the Arts of Asia
Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Connecticut)
5 September - 10 December 2000

From Orientations.

The Embodied Image: Chinese Calligraphy from the John B. Elliott Collection
Seattle Asian Art Museum
1 March - 5 May 2001
http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/Exhibitions/general/Upcoming/Upcoming.htm

More than 50 calligraphic works�hangings and handscrolls, album leaves, and other treasures�and 10�12 objects from the collection will be featured in this exhibition, accompanied by selections from the Metropolitan Museum's renowned Crawford Collection. The presentation of these two collections together in a large-scale exhibition, featuring some 130 works in all, will constitute the most important display of calligraphy ever assembled in the West.

Treasures from a Lost Civilization: Ancient Chinese Art from Sichuan
Seattle Asian Art Museum
10 May - 12 August 2001
http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/Exhibitions/general/Upcoming/Upcoming.htm

This exhibition will be the first comprehensive and in-depth survey of the ancient art of Sichuan Province in southwestern China, featuring 127 major bronze, jade and clay objects dating from the 13th-century BC to the 3rd-century AD.

Living Heritage: Vernacular Environment in China
China Institute in America (New York)
25 January - 10 June 2001

From Orientations.

West Lake and the Mapping of Southern Song Art
China Institute in America (New York)
13 September - 9 December 2001

From Orientations.

Worshipping the Ancestors: Ritual and Commemorative Portraits in Late Imperial China
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC)
17 June - 9 September 2001

An exhibition of 38 near life-size, brightly coloured portraits, mostly of members of the Qing dynasty imperial family and social elite, but also including works that range in date from 1451 to 1943. Most are formal ancestor portraits, but some show the subjects in more casual poses. A few examples of Qing dynasty costume and furniture are also presented, as well as a "book of faces" that served as a guide for professional painters who were often asked to create ancestor portraits posthumously.

From Orientations.

Chinese Paintings from Local Collections (Two Parts)
Seattle Asian Art Museum
July 2001 - July 2002

From Orientations.

Sunken Treasure: Fifteenth Century Chinese Ceramics from the Lena Cargo
The Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art (London)
6 September - 15 December 2000

From Orientations.

Modern Chinese Painting, 1840�1980: Selections from the Robert H. Ellsworth Collection at the Metropolitan Museum
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
30 January - 19 August 2001
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId=%7BBEEB8BBB-FF01-11D3-936F-00902786BF44%7D

This selection from the nearly 500 paintings in the Ellsworth Collection at the Metropolitan Museum will focus on Chinese painting created during the period of clashing social visions and dramatic political change that marked China�s entry into the modern world. In the arts, it was a time when the tensions between tradition and innovation, native and foreign styles reached an unprecedented level of intensity.

[museum news]

Xixia Art Museum Opens

After the establishment of the Xixia Museum, yet another museum exhibiting the mysteries of Xixia history and culture -- the Xixia Art Museum -- opened to the public in June. The museum is located inside the Xixia cemetery in Yinchuan, Ningxia province, in a newly renovated building which previously held the office in charge of managing the Xixia imperial tombs. Eighteen rooms over 6000 square meters present various aspects of Xixia government and culture, with sculpture and painting constituting the majority of objects displayed.

Zhou Gu, Zhongguo wenwu bao (25 June 2000).

Norton Simon Museum Asian Galleries Reopen

In new galleries, designed by the internationally known architect Frank Gehry and imaginatively installed by the noted art historian Pratapaditya Pal, the spectacular Asian art collection of the Norton Simon Museum is once again available for museum patrons on 3 October 2000.

From AsiaEVENTS.

AUCTION & MARKET NEWS

[upcoming auctions]

Rongbao Studio Autumn 2000 Auctions
Beijing
November 2000 (date TBA)
tel (86-10) 6554 2766; 6554 2765
fax (86-10) 6554 1644

Auction of Asian Art
Eldred's, East Dennis, Massachusetts
22-26 August 2000

From Orientations.

Arts of Pacific Asia Show
Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Los Angeles
7-8 October 2000

Dealers exhibiting include L'Asie Exotique, Robert Barndt, Robert Brundage, Robin Buntin of Honolulu, Contes D'Orient Ltd, Dennis George Crow, Hobbs & Bishops Fine Art Ltd, Imari Gallery, The Jade Dragon, Jazmin International, Robin Kennedy, Marc Richards, Jon Eric Riis, Shakris, Silk Roads Design Gallery, Marsha L. Vargas-The Oriental Corner and Zentner Collection.

From Orientations.

Toronto International Art Fair
Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto
16-20 November 2000

From Orientations.

The International Asian Art Fair
The Seventh Regiment Armory, Park Avenue at 67th Street, New York
23-28 March 2001

From Orientations.

20th Biennale Des Antiquaires Carrousel du Louvre
Paris
15 September - 1 October 2000

Dealers exhibiting include Vincent L'Herrou, Zen Gallery, Gisele Croes, Sam Fogg Rare Books, Oriental Bronzes Ltd, and Lefebvre & Fils.

From Orientations.

Un automne Asiatique a Paris 2000
Paris
26 September - 10 November 2000

Dealers exhibiting include Galerie Luohan, Christian Deydier, Jacques Barrere, La compagnie de la Chine et des indes, Antoine Lebel, Myrna Myers, Kokoro, Valerie Leversque, Espace4, Graffiti, Tanakaya, Burawoy.

From Orientations.

Radiant Stones - Archaic Chinese Jades
Myrna Myers, 11 rue de Beaune, Paris
29 September - 2 December 2000

From Orientations.

Salon International d'Art Asiatique
Paris
19-23 October 2000

Dealers participating include Christian Deydier, Linda Wrigglesworth, Luohan Gallery, Jacques Barrere, Jacqueline Simcox, La Compagnie de la Chine et des Indes, Kyoto Gallery, Antoine Lebel and Gregg Baker.

From Orientations.

Asian Art in London
9-17 November 2000

From Orientations.

Phillips
Chinese and Japanese Ceramics and Works of Art, including Textiles and Fans
London
13 November 2000

From Orientations.

Sothebys
Fine Chinese Ceramics and Chinese Export Porcelain
London
14 November 2000

From Orientations.

Christie's
http://www.christies.com/

Oriental Ceramics and Works of Art
London
17 August 2000

The Season Sale
Amsterdam
13 September 2000

Oriental Ceramics and Works of Art
London
14 September 2000

Asian Decorative Arts
New York, Christie's East
19 September 2000

Chinese Works of Art
New York, Rockefeller Center
21 September 2000

Oriental Ceramics and Works of Art
London
28 September 2000

Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art and Fine Chinese Export
London
15 November 2000

Oriental Art Auction - Japanese and Chinese Art
Kunsthandel Klefisch GmbH, Ubierring 35, Cologne, Germany
2 December 2000

From Orientations.

Chinese Antique Furniture, Curios & Artworks Fair 2000
Shanghaimart, 4F, No. 2299 Yan An Road (W), Shanghai, China
23-26 November 2000

From Orientations.

Fine Asian Works of Art
Butterfields, San Francisco
12 December 2000
http://www.butterfields.com/index2.html

In the Eye of the Beholder
Kaikodo, 164 East 64th Street, New York
16 September - 21 October 2000

From Orientations.

Roger Keverne Limited
16 Clifford Street, London
Opened 6 June 2000

An exhibition encompassing the achievements of Chinese craftsmen from as early as the Warring States period to the late Qing with an emphasis on jade carvings.

From Orientations.

Nicholas Grindley
13 Old Burlington Street, London
Until 7 July 2000

An exhibition of Chinese epitaphs and their influence on the paintings of Brice Marden.

From Orientations.

CONFERENCES & SYMPOSIA

Readers may wish to view a calendar listing all May 2000 to April 2001 conferences and symposia reported in this and previous e-bulletins.

Academic Symposium Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Hidden Manuscripts Cave at Dunhuang

The Capital Normal University and the Dunhuang and Turfan Studies Group jointly sponsored this three-day symposium, held in Beijing at the Capital Normal University conference center. Among the over 100 luminaries attending the opening ceremony were Ren Jiyu (Director, National Library of China), Xiu Xianlin (Director, Dunhuang and Turfan Studies Group), Zhou Shaoliang (Vice-Director Emeritus, Buddhist Society of China), Zhou Yiliang (Peking University), Qi Shirong (Honorary Director, Capital Normal University). Professor Makita (Saitama? Industrial University, Japan), Jiang Boqin (Zhongshan University), and Wu Fangsi (Director, Chinese Section, British Library) also delivered opening remarks outlining and praising the progress of Dunhuang research. The over 70 symposium participants hailed from mainland China, Taiwan, Japan, England, France, Singapore, Turkestan, the U.S., Germany, and Denmark. The papers and discussions demonstrated that the high level of research on Dunhuang studies merits this stellar showing.

Zhu Wei and Wang Zheng, Zhongguo wenwu bao (28 June 2000).

Other Worldwide Events Commemorating the Dunhuang Anniversary

25-26 July 2000		International Symposium Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Hidden Manuscripts Cave at Dunhuang, co-sponsored by the Chinese Studies, Chinese Cultural Studies Departments and the Center for the Promotion Chinese Culture of the University of Hong Kong.
27 August - 1 September 2000		The 36th Annual International Congress of Asian and North African Studies, held in Montreal, Canada, will have panels devoted to Dunhuang and Turfan. http://www.bcoc.umontreal.ca/icanas/english
9-10 September 2000		Dunhuang 2000: The Medical Manuscripts, School for Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Speakers include Susan Whitfield, Xie Guihua, Zhao Pingan, Wang Shumin, Vivienne Lo, Marc Kalinowski, Catherine Despeux, Liu Lexian, Wang Shumin, Prof. Mayanagi, Sakade Yoshinobu, and Paul Unschuld.

Ma Yuping, Zhongguo wenwu bao (28 June 2000); Chinese and Japanese Art History WWW Virtual Library.

Second Worldwide Society of East Asian Archaeologists Conference
University of Durham (England)
6-9 July 2000

Scholars from China, Korea, Japan, the U.S., and Europe participated in fourteen panels covering various aspects of East Asian archaeology. For the full program and paper abstracts, consult the conference web page.

From the Chinese and Japanese Art History WWW Virtual Library.

Audiences, Patrons and Performers in the Performing Arts of Asia
Leiden University (The Netherlands)
23-27 August 2000

This conference looks beyond performance as a "self-contained act" towards what performance essentially constitutes: an on-going and dynamic interaction with the environment -- the audiences, the patrons who protect the arts, the people who organise and support, politically or otherwise, the arts. For further information, check the conference website.

From AsiaSource.

The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology
University of San Francisco Pacific Rim Conference Center
26 August 2000

Scheduled lecturers include Albert Dien (Stanford University), David N. Keightley (UC Berkeley), Michael Knight (Asian Art Museum), Jeffrey K. Riegel (UC Berkeley), Lothar von Falkenhausen (UCLA), and Golden Age curator Yang Xiaoneng (The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art). Direct all inquiries to +1 (415) 379-8895 or e-mail Deborah Clearwaters.

From the Chinese and Japanese Art History WWW Virtual Library.

European Association of Chinese Studies XIII CONFERENCE: "The Spirit of the Metropolis"
Torino, Italy
30 August - 2 September 2000
http://hal9000.cisi.unito.it/wf/ATTIVITA_C/Congressi-/Area-Umani/Convegno-S

European scholars will deliver papers covering all aspects of the urban landscape: city planning, architecture, gardens, and graveyards. Within the Conference films shot in Chinese cities from the beginning of the century up to the 1930s will also be screened.

From the Chinese and Japanese Art History WWW Virtual Library.

Thirtieth International Congress of the History of Art: "Time"
London
2-8 September 2000