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拍品專文
The present screen combines the technical mastery of furniture construction and carving with the subtle carving techniques of the lapidary artist. This eight-panel folding screen was reduced from a larger twelve-panel screen, and is constructed from joining vertical posts, and huanghuali panels inset with soapstone figural panels. Larger vertical apertures, which could have held paintings or textiles, would have dominated the center of the screen, and are now lost. In its current configuration, the screen was reduced in height, thereby highlighting the distinctive decorative elements of the screen, most notably the panels. Each huanghuali panel is centered by a singular soapstone figure inlaid into a shaped medallion. The contrast of materials and color create a vibrant decorative effect.
A complete twelve-panel huanghuali folding screen is illustrated by Grace Wu Bruce in The Best of The Best: The MQJ Collection of Ming Furniture, vol. 2, Beijing, 2017, pp. 428-34. This screen is distinguished by twenty-four soapstone-inlaid panels depicting luohans, immortals, and mythical beasts. The present screen, has additional mother-of-pearl embellishments alongside soapstone and includes nearly identical renditions of luohans and immortals, as the screen in the MQJ Collection. Interestingly, the present screen includes European subjects and foreigners, each shown alongside mythical beasts in the lowest register, an element notably absent in the MQJ Collection screen. Another notable difference is the carved dragons encircling the panels, while the panels on the present screen are set within openwork dragons.
The meticulous integration of soapstone and mother-of-pearl in the screen's inlay attests to commendable craftsmanship and the use of high-quality materials. The finely rendered figures, characterized by soft and dynamic folds in their robes, emotively expressive facial features, and intricately detailed hair, are further enhanced by the expert use of natural markings in the stone. A particularly noteworthy example is the portrayal of the luohan Kalika, characterized by his smiling countenance, elaborately curled hair, a buttoned and pleated jacket with incised decoration, and an elaborate mother-of-pearl shawl. The figure is poised on an elephant, with each fold in the body and trunk is meticulously delineated.
The presence of European figures makes the present screen particularly rare. While European figure were a typical subject-matter for the Kangxi Emperor who was particularly interested in European innovations and technical knowledge, decorative arts from the period more commonly depict European subjects in porcelain and not on furniture. One example of a Kangxi-period twelve-panel soapstone-inlaid zitan and hardwood screen, formerly part of the John Wanamaker Collection, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong on July 7, 2003, lot 592, and was also published in J. Wanamaker, A Notable Carved and Painted Twelve-Fold Chinese Screen of the Late Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Centuries from the Imperial Palace in Pekin, New York and Philadelphia, 1928, where the author stated that the screen was 'made as a gift from a Premier to an Emperor', ibid., p. 3. Based on its massive size and superb quality in craftsmanship, it is likely that the screen was carved by artisans in the Imperial workshops, commissioned by Kangxi as a birthday gift to a high official. The Wanamaker screen is much more densely and elaborately decorated than the present screen, but is similar in both its fine quality and its inclusion of European subjects. It is quite possible that the present screen was also a commissioned gift by the Kangxi Emperor, judging both by its refined quality and presence of a subject matter that was of such interest to the emperor.
There are other examples of soapstone-inlaid panels decorated with European figures, which were similar to the Wanamaker screen which feature European figures and European architecture in Western-style perspective. These include a pair of panels from the C. Ruxton and Audrey B. Love Collection, sold at The C. Ruxton and Audrey B. Love Collection: Important European Furniture and Asian Works of Art; Christie’s New York, 20 October 2004, lot 478, and a panel offered at Christie’s New York, 23-24 September 2021, lot 741. Interestingly, the present screen is the only example where the European subjects are rendered similarly to the luohan and immortals, rather than in Western-style perspective.
A complete twelve-panel huanghuali folding screen is illustrated by Grace Wu Bruce in The Best of The Best: The MQJ Collection of Ming Furniture, vol. 2, Beijing, 2017, pp. 428-34. This screen is distinguished by twenty-four soapstone-inlaid panels depicting luohans, immortals, and mythical beasts. The present screen, has additional mother-of-pearl embellishments alongside soapstone and includes nearly identical renditions of luohans and immortals, as the screen in the MQJ Collection. Interestingly, the present screen includes European subjects and foreigners, each shown alongside mythical beasts in the lowest register, an element notably absent in the MQJ Collection screen. Another notable difference is the carved dragons encircling the panels, while the panels on the present screen are set within openwork dragons.
The meticulous integration of soapstone and mother-of-pearl in the screen's inlay attests to commendable craftsmanship and the use of high-quality materials. The finely rendered figures, characterized by soft and dynamic folds in their robes, emotively expressive facial features, and intricately detailed hair, are further enhanced by the expert use of natural markings in the stone. A particularly noteworthy example is the portrayal of the luohan Kalika, characterized by his smiling countenance, elaborately curled hair, a buttoned and pleated jacket with incised decoration, and an elaborate mother-of-pearl shawl. The figure is poised on an elephant, with each fold in the body and trunk is meticulously delineated.
The presence of European figures makes the present screen particularly rare. While European figure were a typical subject-matter for the Kangxi Emperor who was particularly interested in European innovations and technical knowledge, decorative arts from the period more commonly depict European subjects in porcelain and not on furniture. One example of a Kangxi-period twelve-panel soapstone-inlaid zitan and hardwood screen, formerly part of the John Wanamaker Collection, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong on July 7, 2003, lot 592, and was also published in J. Wanamaker, A Notable Carved and Painted Twelve-Fold Chinese Screen of the Late Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Centuries from the Imperial Palace in Pekin, New York and Philadelphia, 1928, where the author stated that the screen was 'made as a gift from a Premier to an Emperor', ibid., p. 3. Based on its massive size and superb quality in craftsmanship, it is likely that the screen was carved by artisans in the Imperial workshops, commissioned by Kangxi as a birthday gift to a high official. The Wanamaker screen is much more densely and elaborately decorated than the present screen, but is similar in both its fine quality and its inclusion of European subjects. It is quite possible that the present screen was also a commissioned gift by the Kangxi Emperor, judging both by its refined quality and presence of a subject matter that was of such interest to the emperor.
There are other examples of soapstone-inlaid panels decorated with European figures, which were similar to the Wanamaker screen which feature European figures and European architecture in Western-style perspective. These include a pair of panels from the C. Ruxton and Audrey B. Love Collection, sold at The C. Ruxton and Audrey B. Love Collection: Important European Furniture and Asian Works of Art; Christie’s New York, 20 October 2004, lot 478, and a panel offered at Christie’s New York, 23-24 September 2021, lot 741. Interestingly, the present screen is the only example where the European subjects are rendered similarly to the luohan and immortals, rather than in Western-style perspective.