Florence and Herbert Irving. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s announced final details of the most anticipated auction for the Spring season of Asian Art: the sale of the private collection of Florence and Herbert Irving. Aptly titled Lacquer • Jade • Bronze • Ink: The Irving Collection, the sales pay homage to the materials the Irvings spent their lives studying and collecting. The collection will be sold across an Evening Sale on March 20 and a Day Sale on March 21, with a complementary online auction Contemporary Clay: Yixing Pottery from the Irving Collection from March 19 to 26. The full collection will be presented in a public exhibition from March 14-20 during Asian Art Week at Christie’s New York. Additional jewelry highlights will be included in the New York Magnificent Jewels sale on April 16, 2019. 

From modest Brooklyn roots to the triumph that was the Sysco Corporation, the Irvings’ inspiring trajectory allowed them to build a better, more enlightened world. Their many contributions spanned major donations to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, including well over 1,300 works of Asian art, and underwriting acquisitions, curatorial positions, exhibitions, and galleries. In honor of the Irvings’ extraordinary generosity, The Met named the entirety of their Asian art galleries The Florence and Herbert Irving Asian Wing. 

Their commitment to philanthropy is also seen across a network of charities, most notably New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, where the Irvings became the largest donors in its history. Together, the Irvings would pursue a massive philanthropic undertaking totaling over $1 billion in support and innumerable magnificent objects of art to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Columbia University Medical Center, and New York-Presbyterian Hospital, among other causes. 

For Florence and Herbert Irving, the opportunity to live in dialogue with their extraordinary collection of Asian art and European decorative art was an incomparable experience. It was not enough to live surrounded by beauty; they felt obligated to share it with the world. Asian art, in particular, would become synonymous with the Irving name, as the couple came to amass one of America’s most significant private collections. From childhood days at the Brooklyn Museum to seeing their own names inscribed on the Asian art wing of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Irvings’ passion for art was a truly lifelong commitment. 

Tina Zonars, Co-Chairman of Asian Art at Christie’s, comments: “Christie’s is honored to present Lacquer • Jade • Bronze • Ink: The Irving Collection, a grouping recognized for its remarkable quality and beauty. Carefully assembled across several decades, the Irvings created one of the foremost private collections of Asian art built upon scholarship and their personal passion. During their lifetime, the Irvings generously donated an extraordinary number of their treasured artworks to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The selection offered at Christie’s this spring encompasses their most valued objects which they chose to live with in their New York City home: exceptional Asian art set amongst elegantly appointed decorative arts. The March sales will offer the landmark opportunity for collectors to participate in the legacy of one of the leading private collections of Chinese, Himalayan, Japanese, and Korean works of art.” 

Florence and Herbert Irving's interior. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

The Irvings’ Collecting History 
The Irvings made their initial foray into collecting in the 1940s and 1950s. The glassware Herbert Irving acquired during the Second World War was joined by additional glass pieces and “reasonably priced” works by living artists. An eighteenth-century Chinese table, purchased in the early 1960s from the notable dealer Robert Ellsworth, was a harbinger of greater things. However, it was not until the autumn of 1967 that they discovered the possibilities of Asian art, when Mrs. Irving suggested a trip to Japan, and a friend encouraged the couple to visit the esteemed Alice Boney in Tokyo. 

From their first acquisition in Tokyo, the Irvings wholeheartedly embraced Asian art. Mrs. Irving began to study the history of Chinese art, ceramics, and furniture at Columbia University, and attended lectures at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Through annual visits to Asia and in conversation with Boney, Ellsworth, and other dealers around the world, the Irvings honed their unique connoisseurial vision—one greatly aided by Mrs. Irving’s astute eye and enthusiastic scholarship. Behind the Irvings’ commendable acquisition strategy was a network of dealers and experts that came to feel like family. 

The Irvings’ personal ties to dealers, curators, and fellow collectors grew in tandem with their collection. Each work, whether of masterpiece quality or more modest value, was viewed as an opportunity to develop connoisseurship. Throughout their journey in collecting, the Irvings were keen not only to acquire masterworks of Asian art, but also to build enduring relationships. 

Mr. and Mrs. Irving handling lacquer pieces in the National Palace Museum, Taipei in 1990.

Part I: Evening Sale (Lots 801-826) 
The Evening Sale includes a curated cross-section of 26 of the best examples across the Irvings’ most collected categories: Lacquer, Jade, Bronze, and Ink, and some select ceramics. Featured lots include a highly important and extremely rare giltbronze figure of a multi-armed Guanyin ($4,000,000-6,000,000); an important and extremely rare Imperially inscribed greenish-white jade ‘Twin Fish’ washer ($1,000,000-1,500,000); a rectangular lacquer tray with decoration of autumn grasses and moon, Shibata Zeshin (1807-1891), Meiji period ($60,000-80,000); and Lithe Like A Crane, Leisurely Like A Seagull, by Fu Baoshi (1904-1965) ($800,000-1,200,000). 

Lot 814. A highly important and extremely rare gilt-bronze figure of a multi-armed Guanyin, China, Yunnan, Dali Kingdom, 11-12th century; 14 7/8 in. (38 cm.) high. Estimate: $4,000,000-6,000,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Finely cast as a tantric image of Avalokitesvara (Guanyin) with three eyes and four arms shown seated with legs pendent, the primary hands held in anjalimudra, the other pairresting on the knees, wearing an elaborate, openwork crown, as well as beaded necklaces and other jewelry, and a dhoti tied with a sash below the waist, with two large pierced rectangular tenons projecting either side of the un-gilded upper back.

Provenance: The Pan-Asian Collection (Christian Humann, d. 1981), New York, by 1972.
Alice Boney, New York, 1983.
The Irving Collection, no. 871.

Literature: Anita Christy, "The Irving Collection: At Home in The Metropolitan Museum of Art," Orientations, November 1991, pp. 61-67, fig. 11.

Exhibited: On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1972-1978, loan no. 77.1972.

Towards Enlightenment
A Superb Dali Multi-Armed Guanyin

Based on its similarity to a sculpture sold at Christie’s, New York, 24 March 2004, lot 77, which included an image of the Buddha Amitabha in the center of the crown, this compelling sculpture represents the bodhisattvaAvalokiteshvara, known in Chinese as Guanyin. (Fig. 1) The sculpture’s style indicates that it was produced in the Dali Kingdom (AD 937–1253), an independent state in southwestern China that was coeval with China’s Song dynasty (AD 907–1279) and more or less congruent with present-day Yunnan province. Dali sculptures are rare; the large scale, multiple arms, and unusual position in which the figure sits make this an especially rare and important example. 

Fig. 1 A gilt-bronze multi-armed Guanyin, Dali Kingdom (AD 937–1253); 13 5/8 in. (34.6 cm) high. Sold for 567,500 USD at Christie’s New York, 24 March 2004, lot 77.

A bodhisattva is a benevolent being who has attained enlightenment but who has postponed entry into nirvana in order to assist other sentient beings in gaining enlightenment. Richly attired, bodhisattvas are represented with long hair often arranged in a tall coiffure, typically with long strands of hair cascading over the shoulders, and often with a crown surrounding the high topknot. They wear ornamental scarves, dhotis of rich silk brocade, and a wealth of jewelry. Like Buddhas, bodhisattvas have distended earlobes; some wear earrings, others do not. Though generally shown barefoot, bodhisattvas may be shown wearing sandals, as in this sculpture.  

Though usually depicted with a single head, two arms, and two legs, Guanyin—formally known as Guanshiyin Pusa—sometimes appears with multiple heads and limbs. The multiple heads and limbs indicate that the deity is able to assist more beings than can a deity with but one head, two arms and two legs. Though this sculpture originally sported additional arms—the original number is unknown—only four now remain. Separately cast, the additional arms were attached to the tenons that project from the backs of the upper arms. Two of the remaining arms are raised and clasped at the chest in a gesture of respect and reverence known as the anjalimudra; the other arms are lowered, the hands resting on the knees. The lowered left hand likely originally held a rosary, while the lowered right hand probably grasped a coiled rope or lasso as a lifeline to draw back to the path of enlightenment those who have gone astray. 

Bodhisattvas generally are represented as standing but when shown seated are usually presented in the lotus position, or padmasana, with the legs crossed. By contrast, most Chinese images of Buddhist deities seated in “Western style”, or paryankasana, typically represent Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future. The presentation of this Guanyin in Western fashion immediately points to this sculpture’s origins in the Dali Kingdom. The alert, fully open, almond-shaped eyes that look directly outward also point to its origins in the Dali kingdom, as does the vertically set third eye that has been substituted for the traditional urna. In addition, the tall, cylindrical crown embellished with stylized, cursorily rendered clouds, the long, beaded necklace that descends to cross at the abdomen and then loops over the knees, and the low-waisted dhoti, which is secured at the hips, all signal this impressive sculpture’s origin in the Dali Kingdom, likely in the eleventh or twelfth century.  

A twelfth-century bronze sculpture representing a two-armed Guanyin in the Yunnan Provincial Museum, Kunming, shares the same almond-shaped eyes that look directly outward, the low-waisted dhoti secured at the hips, and the long, beaded necklace that descends to cross at the abdomen and then loops over the knees as the present sculpture. (See Denise Patry Leidy, Donna Strahan, et al., Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2010, p. 140, fig. 100). A sculpture closely related in style, iconography, and general appearance in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (56.223) (Fig. 2) has been dated to the eleventh to twelfth century. (See Leidy and Strahan, Wisdom Embodied, pp. 138-40, no. 33).

Fig. 2 A gilt-bronze multi-armed Guanyin, Dali Kingdom, 11th-12th Century; H. 8 1/4 in. (21 cm); W. 7 in. (17.8 cm); D. 4 3/8 in. (11.1 cm). Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1956, accession no. 56.223.© The Metropolitan Museum of Art.  

Robert D. Mowry 
Alan J. Dworsky Curator of Chinese Art Emeritus, Harvard Art Museums, and Senior Consultant, Christie’s.

Lot 806.An important and extremely rare Imperially inscribed greenish-white jade ‘Twin Fish’ washer, China, Qing dynasty, Qianlong incised four-character mark and of the period, dated by inscription to the cyclical bingwu year, corresponding to 1786; 10 in. (25.4 cm.) diam. Estimate: $1,000,000-1,500,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Finely carved with straight, flaring sides encircled by three bow-string bands, the interior carved in high relief with a pair of fish, the base raised on five rectangular feet surrounding an incised imperial poem, Ti hetian yu shuangyu xi (A Khotan Jade Twin Fish Washer), signed Qianlong yuti (imperially composed by Qianlong), dated to autumn of bingwu year (1786), followed by two seals reading guxi tianzi (Son of Heaven at Seventy) and youri zizi (Still Diligent Every Day), all picked out in gilding, the stone of pale greenish-white tone with subtle white flecks, hongmu stand.

Provenance: Sotheby Parke Bernet, Hong Kong, 28-29 November 1979, lot 405.
Ashkenazie & Co., San Francisco, 1982.
The Irving Collection, no. 392.

Literature: Sotheby’s, Sotheby’s Hong Kong - Twenty Years, Hong Kong, 1993, p. 295, no. 514.
Sotheby’s, Thirty Years in Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2003, p. 328, no. 378.

Imperial Archaism and Harmony 
A Magnificent and Rare Jade Washer with Paired Fish and Dated Qianlong Inscription 

This exceptional imperial washer is of fine pale celadon-green jade and bears a four-character Qianlong mark on its base, encircled by a forty-character imperial poem. At the end of the poem is a date - autumn in the bingwu year of the Qianlong reign – equivalent to AD 1786. The poem reads: 

Shuang yu tong Han shi, yuan xi yi Zhou jin, zhu shui se ru yi, fei tong wei bu qin, kan xin jian huan gu, fu zhi ri qu jin, she zhan Xi Jing dui, ying zhi jun zi xin. 

This may be translated as: 

“The pair of fish are in Han dynasty style, 
The round washer differs from Zhou-dynasty bronzes. 
Its colour is that of the stored water, 
But not being metal it does not affect the taste. 
Gradually returning to antiquity, 
There is no need to hasten towards modernity. 
If one were to open the Book of Changes, 
One could understand the heart of a superior man.” 
Qianlong bing wu run qiu yu ti (乾隆丙午閏秋御題 ‘Imperially inscribed in the autumn of the bingwu cyclical year’ [1786] 

Two square seals follow the inscription – one has the characters in gold on the pale jade ground and the other, in reverse, has the characters reserved against a gilt ground. The seals may be read as: “Son of Heaven at Seventy” (guxi tianzi (古稀天子) and “Still Diligent Every Day” (youri zizi 猶日孜孜)). The Qianlong emperor had some 42 seals reading ‘Son of Heaven at Seventy’, and 24 reading ‘Still Diligent Every Day’. It is therefore not surprising to see these seals reproduced on a favored jade washer. The reign mark, the poem, the date and the seals on this washer are all carved and gilt on the base of the vessel. The text of the imperial poem is recorded in Complete Collection of the Imperial Poems of the Qing Emperor Gaozong (Qianlong) (Qing Gaozong (Qianlong) yuzhi shiwen quanji), Beijing, 1993, vol. 8, p. 713 清高宗 (乾隆) 御制詩文全集, 北京, 1993年, 第八冊, 頁713, where it is entitled: “A Khotan Jade Twin-Fish Washer” (Ti hetian yu shuangyu xi題和闐玉雙魚). (Fig. 1) 

Fig. 1 The imperial poem on the present jade washer, as documented in the Qing Gaozong yuzhi shiwen quanji (Complete Collection of the Imperial Poems of the Qing Emperor Gaozong), Beijing, 1993, vol. 8, p. 713.

This washer is the largest of three known Qianlong jade washers of this form with two archaic-style fish carved on the interior. A small example (13.2 cm. diam.), apparently without an inscription, is in the Baur Collection, Geneva (see Pierre-F. Schneeberger, The Baur Collection –Chinese Jades and Other Hardstones, Geneva, 1976, no. B10); a somewhat larger, unpublished example is in a British private collection (17.8 cm. diam.); while the current example is the largest with a diameter of 25.5 cm. Like the present example, the washer in the private collection has low, neatly carved feet, but while the current vessel has five feet, this slightly smaller washer has four feet. The washer in the private collection also has the same imperial inscription and cyclical date.  

The fish carved on these washers have been deliberately rendered in archaistic style, with the two fish carved side by side in high relief, and slightly under-cut, in a more formal style than is commonly seen on other jade pieces. As the inscription suggests, vessels with this type of twin-fish design are well-known in bronze from the Han dynasty, and there were a number of these bronze examples in Qianlong’s own collection. The Xiqing gujian 西清古鑑 illustrated six bronze washers with paired fish dated to the Han dynasty (see Xiqing gujian – Qinding siku quanshu 西清古鑑 欽定 四庫全, Shanghai, vol. 2, 2003, pp. 692-95). (Fig. 2) The Xiqing gujian is a 40-volume illustrated catalogue of ancient bronzes commissioned by the Qianlong emperor. It was compiled between 1749 and 1755 by Liang Shizheng (梁詩正1697-1763), Yu Minzhong (于敏中1714-1778) and Jiang Pu (蔣溥11708-1761) and includes some 1529 bronze objects from the imperial collection. The images in this catalogue exerted considerable influence on the form of jades commissioned by the Qianlong emperor. 

Fig. 2 A Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) bronze “twin fsh” washer documented in the catalogue of the Qianlong emperor’s bronze collection, Xiqing gujian, Shanghai, vol. 2, 2003, p. 694.

An extant Han-dynasty bronze basin with similar twin-fish decoration on its interior is in the Lee Kong Chian Art Museum, Singapore (see National University of Singapore, Lee Kong Chian Art Museum, Singapore, 1990, p. 306, no. 336). On this bronze vessel there is an additional short auspicious inscription, which appears between the fish. Like the jade washers, the bronze vessels depict both fish facing in the same direction – not head to tail as was often the case on other vessels. Bronze basins with similar fish apparently linked by a line – possibly to suggest a cord that would facilitate carrying them - have been found in tombs in Anhui and Jiangsu, dated AD 245 and 295 respectively (see Kaogu, No. 3, 1978, p. 155, fig. 3, and Kaogu, No. 11, 1984, pl. 3, fig. 6). Another similar bronze basin, now in the Liaoning Museum, with a design of a bird and a fish, rather than two fish, but in similar style (see Liaoningsheng bowuguan, Wenwu chubanshe, 1983, pls. 28 and 29), has an inscription dated to first year of the Yongxing period of the Eastern Han dynasty [AD 153]. 

This formal twin-fish motif was also applied to early ceramics. There is a small number of early Yue-ware basins, which were clearly inspired by the bronze vessels with paired fish. One of these is the Western Jin dynasty (late 3rd-early 4th century) basin in the collection of Sir Percival David (see Rosemary Scott, Percival David Foundation – A Guide to the Collection, London, 1989, p. 33, pl. 13). On the David Collection basin, the fish are joined at the mouth with an incised undulating line. There is another early Yue ware basin from the Ingram Collection in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (see Mary Tregear, Catalogue of Chinese Greenware, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1976, no. 13), which has similar formal paired fish on the interior, but the fish on this basin are not joined by a line. Fish also occasionally appear on Western Han-dynasty cold-painted vessels, such as the 1st century dish preserved in the Yamato Bunkakan Museum, Nara (see Special Exhibition - Jixiang –Auspicious Motifs in Chinese Art, Tokyo National Museum, 1998, p. 66, no. 42).  

The choice of fish as the motif to decorate the current imperial jade washer would not simply have been a reference to ancient vessels, but also to the meaning behind the depiction of fish. A source for the link between fish and harmony can be found in philosophical Daoism, specifically in the Zhuangzi 莊子, attributed to Zhuangzi, or ‘Master Zhuang’ (369-298 BC), who, after Laozi, was one of the earliest philosophers of what has become known as Daojia 道家, or the "School of the Way". Among other things, Zhuangzi consistently uses fish to exemplify creatures who achieve happiness by being in harmony with their environments. As part of a much more complex discussion in chapter seventeen (Qiu shui秋水 “The Floods of Autumn”), Zhuangzi, who is crossing a bridge over the Hao river with Huizi, notes: “See how the small fish are darting about [in the water]. That is the happiness of fish.” In chapter six (Dazongshi 大宗師”Great Ancestral Master”), Zhuangzi recounts Confucius’ comments to illustrate Daoist attitudes. Confucius said: “Fish are born in water. Man is born in the Dao. If fish, born in water, seek the deep shadows of the pond or pool then they have everything they need. If man, born in the Dao, sinks deep into the shadows of non-action, forgetting aggression and worldly concern, then he has everything he needs, and his life is secure. The moral of this is that all fish need is to lose themselves in water, while all man needs is to lose himself in the Dao.” It is therefore not surprising that the depiction of fish in water came to provide a rebus for yushui hexie 魚水和拹 “may you be as harmonious as fish and water”. When the fish in the bottom of the present jade washer were covered with water they would perfectly represent this wish for harmony.  

The Qianlong emperor’s great love of jade combined with his passion for antiques resulted in his commissioning significant numbers of archaistic jade items for his court, a number of which were inscribed with the characters Qianlong fanggu 乾隆仿古 – “Qianlong copying the ancient." In the case of the present jade washer, the emperor’s intentions are made quite clear from the inscription that he commanded to be applied to the base of the vessel. Of all the Ming and Qing emperors, Gaozong (the Qianlong emperor) was perhaps the most fervent collector and patron of jade carving. In the early part of his reign the emperor was frequently dissatisfied with the work of the lapidaries producing carved jades for the court and encouraged the craftsmen to achieve higher standards of perfection. One of the problems for the jade carvers in the early years of the reign was the lack of suitable jade, and it was only in the 1750s, after the punitive battles against the Dzungar tribes and Hui people, that the Xinjiang area was captured for the Chinese empire and Khotan jade was sent to the court as tribute each spring and autumn. With this newly available source of fine, raw jade, the lapidaries in the palace workshops could produce carved jade pieces of the exemplary standard sought by the emperor. Clearly, the present jade washer met the extremely high imperial expectations and was deemed a fitting vessel on which to inscribe a poem from the imperial brush and two of his imperial majesty’s favorite seals. 

Rosemary Scott
Senior International Academic Consultant, Asian Art

Part II: Day Sale (Lots 1101-1422) 
The Day Sale is divided into a Morning Session of Asian Works of Art (Lots 1101-1237) and an Afternoon Session for English and European Decorative Arts, Carpets, Fine Art, and Asian Works of Art (Lots 1301-1422). The morning session spans impressive bronzes, jades, Chinese and Japanese lacquerware, paintings, and Japanese gold-leaf screens. Highlights include a silver-and copper-inlaid bronze figure of a Buddha, Western Tibet, 11th-12th century ($100,000-150,000), a sandstone figure of a male deity, Khmer, Angkor period, Angkor Wat Style, 12th century ($100,000-150,000), a rare and finely carved white jade ‘Bridge Scene’ brushrest and spinach-green jade base, 18th-19th century ($80,000-120,000), and a rare carved black lacquer circular dish, Ming dynasty ($30,000-50,000). 

Lot 1102. A silver-and copper-inlaid bronze figure of a Buddha, Western Tibet, 11th-12th century; 12 ¼ in. (31 cm.) high. Estimate USD 100,000 - USD 150,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Seated in vajrasana upon a rectangular throne decorated with lotus petals below addorsed lions and a draped textile, the broad chest partially wrapped in a diaphanous robe with an incised diaper pattern along the hems, the face with copper-inlaid lips, downcast, silver-inlaid eyes, and arched brows, the hair covering a spherical ushnisha.

Provenance: The Pan-Asian Collection (Christian Humann, d. 1981), New York, by 1971.
Collection of Robert H. Ellsworth, New York, by 1982.
Eastern Pacific Co., Hong Kong, 9 July 1990.
The Irving Collection, no. 2944.

Literature: Marilyn Rhie and Robert A. F. Thurman, Wisdom and Compassion: The Sacred Art of Tibet, New York, 1991, p. 344, no. 137.
Himalayan Art Resources (himalayanart.org), item no. 31426.

Exhibited: On loan to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (L.71.29.32), by 1971.

Note: This rare bronze figure of a buddha sits in a meditative posture, his hands overlapping so that the fingertips on each of his hands reach just beyond his opposite wrist. The roundness of his downcast eyes is emphasized by the light-catching silver inlay contrasting with the copper inlay of the full lips. He is modeled with pronounced facial features, a notably short neck, round shoulders, tubular limbs, and robust proportions. The rice-grain hem of his robe, draped over the left shoulder, comes to a narrow, folded end at the shoulder in the shape of a swallow’s tail. Despite the lions adorning his square lotus throne, which typically support the historical Buddha Shakyamuni, this buddha remains iconographically unidentifiable and may represent Shakyamuni or Amitabha. 

While few published examples share these stylistic details, a similar figure of a buddha, with an almost identically unusual representation of dhyanamudra, can be found in the collection of the British Museum (acc. no. 1966,0216.1). The British Museum describes the sculpture as an 8th-century Kashmiri work, whereas Ulrich von Schroeder attributes it to the sixth-century in Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1981, p. 112 fig. 13A. Both attributions are certainly based on the Gupta-style, full facial features and the medieval Indian-style inlay used to render the figure’s eyes and lips. The present figure certainly shares these features but is not as worn from handling, possibly suggesting a later date.  

Lot 1107. A sandstone figure of a male deity, Khmer, Angkor period, Angkor Wat Style, 12th century; 28 in. (71.2 cm.) high. Estimate USD 100,000 - USD 150,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Clad in a short sampot carved with parallel pleats and secured with a jeweled belt and with a double-butterfly sash in front, his rounded face with delicately outlined lips and long pendulous earlobes, the hair arranged in a cylindrical chignon and fronted by a foliate tiara, stand.

Provenance: Spink & Son, Ltd., London, 1984.
The Irving Collection, no. 933.

Note: This figure dates from the Angkor Wat period, in the twelfth century, when the Khmer Empire was at territorial zenith. This starts with the reign of Suryavarman II (r. 1113-1145), who ordered the construction of Angkor Wat, the largest temple of the Angkor period, dedicated to Vishnu. The last great king of the period, Jayavarman VII (r. 1181-1218), expanded into the territories of the Champa to the east. Jayavarman VII also adopted Mahayana Buddhism as the official state religion, replacing the cult of Vishnu which had predominated in the Khmer Empire for previous centuries. 

Stylistically, the sculpture of the Angkor Wat period is marked by a return to the somewhat angular and upright modeling of the periods preceding the Baphuon style of the eleventh century. This angularity can be seen in the wide shoulders and hips of the upper torso, as well as in the drapery of the sampot, which sits roughly straight across the hips, and in the fish-tail folds which fall in heavy vertical pleats, in contrast to the earlier Baphuon period in which the drapery is full of curling flourishes. The size of sculpture from the Angkor Wat period, however, is generally in line with the more diminutive Baphuon-period works, in contrast to the monumental sculpture of the tenth century and earlier. 

Lot 1111. A rare and finely carved white jade ‘Bridge Scene’ brushrest and spinach-green jade base, China, Qing dynasty, 18th-19th century; 6 ½ in. (16.5 cm.) long. Estimate USD 80,000 - USD 120,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Intricately carved with a scene of figures crossing a bridge between the leafy branches of trees on the sides, with two fishermen in a sampan below, the stone of even white tone with a few minor, snowy inclusions, the river and rocky banks carved from a separate stone of spinach-green color.

Provenance: Sir Anthony Stainton (1913-1988), KCB, QC, Collection, London.
The Hartman Galleries, Inc., Palm Beach, 1986.
The Irving Collection, no. 447.

Note: This rare brush rest is testament to the skill and sensitivity displayed by the jade carvers of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Carved in the form of a miniature scene of figures crossing a bridge, but functionable as a brush rest, this piece represents a microcosm of everyday life upon which the user could meditate while going about scholarly activities. Although several comparable examples of white jade bridge-form brush rests exist within museum collections, there appear to be no published examples with spinach-green jade base representing the river. One other known example with a spinach-green base, but of somewhat larger size (8 ½ in. long overall), was sold at Christie's, Paris, 12 December 2018, lot 117. See, also, a white jade bridge-shaped brush rest in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 42 - Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, p. 195, no. 159. Another brush rest, of a size similar to that of the present example, also in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 6, Hebei, 1991, p. 200, no. 286.

Fig. 1. A White and Spinach-Green Jade “Bridge Scene” Brush Rest, Qing dynsty, 18th – 19th century. Sold for 487,500 EUR  at Christie’s Paris, 12 December 2018, lot 117. © Christie’s Images Limited 2018.

Lot 1126. A rare carved black lacquer circular dish, Ming dynasty (1368-1644); 7 ¼ in. (18.4 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 30,000 - USD 50,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

The interior well carved with two three-clawed dragons separated by the long, rippling ends of two bows "tied" either side of the narrow, raised, petal border encircling the central diaper medallion, all amidst a dense ground of leafy lotus scroll, the design repeated on the exterior with the addition of two ribbon-tied endless knots that separate the dragons.

Provenance: The Irving Collection, no. 3820

Stylistically, this rare dish may be compared to other dishes of sixteenth century date. These dishes are characterized by the density of the decoration and the style of carving that creates the impression of movement or energy. One such dish (18.1 cm. diam.), described as a typical example of Yunnan work, and at the time dated Yuan dynasty, fourteenth century, illustrated by Lee Yu-kuan in Oriental Lacquer Art, New York/Tokyo, 1972, p. 163, pl. 97, is carved with two similar dragons surrounding an endless knot amidst the scrolling stems of lotus and other water plants in a lotus pond represented by the ground of dense rolling waves. The manner in which the dragons on the Lee dish are carved, their bodies filled with diagonally set parallel ridges, can be seen on the bodies of the dragons on the present dish. This stylistic technique is also seen on the bodies of three lions and a dragon encircling a ribbon-tied brocade ball in the center of a carved red lacquer dish (17 cm. diam.), described as Yunnan style, from the Lee Family Collection, Part II, sold at Christie's, Hong Kong, 28 November 2012, lot 2105. On this dish the brocade ball is tied with four bows, the trailing ends of the ribbons rippling around and between the four animals racing amidst a dense field of scrolls, coins and chimes. The same carving technique can be seen on the bodies of four lions on a brown and red lacquer dish (16.9 cm. diam.) dated early sixteenth century, in the Linden-Museum, Stuttgart, illustrated by Monika Kopplin, Im Zeichen des Drachen, Museum für Lackkunst, Munster, 2006, pp. 132-33, pl. 52. On this dish the lions are separated and surrounded by the knotted and trailing ends of four ribbons "tied" to the sides of a raised diaper border encircling a medallion of a kneeling foreigner on a gold ground. A black lacquer rectangular tray, dated fifteenth-sixteenth century, from the collection of Jean-Pierre Dubosc, illustrated in Chinese lacquer from the Jean-Pierre Dubosc collection and others, Eskenazi, London, December 1992, pl. 17, displays two similarly carved lions flanking a ribbon-tied brocade ball in a similarly dense field of decoration. The catalogue entry notes that "this type of lacquer is generally known as Yunnan ware."

The afternoon session presents a selection of decorative arts from the Irvings’ New York City apartment. Included in the offering English and European decorative arts, carpets, fine art, Asian works of art, and a group of art reference books. Among the featured lots are a set of eight George III solid mahogany dining chairs, possibly by Wright & Elwick, circa 1765 ($40,000-60,000); a Chinese Export reverse mirror painting, last quarter 18th century ($25,000-40,000); and a pair of George III silver candelabra by John Wakelin & William Taylor, 1777 ($20,000-30,000).  

Lot 1315. A set of eight George III solid mahogany dining chairs, possibly by Wright & Elwick, circa 1765. Estimate USD 40,000 - USD 60,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

Each with pierced back above a yellow silk damask covered seat on shell and acanthus carved legs terminating in scrolled feet, minor variations to carving; together with four George III style mahogany dining chairs, modern.

Provenance: Acquired from Partridge, London. 
The Irving Collection, no. DR01.

Literature: F.L. Hinckley, A Directory of Queen Anne, Early Georgian and Chippendale Furniture, New York, 1971, pl. 125, fig. 263.
Eight chairs from this set were illustrated in the Partridge Summer Exhibition Yearbook, 1990, no. 22.

Note: Eight chairs from this set were illustrated in the Partridge Summer Exhibition Yearbook, 1990, no. 22. These chairs are closely related to a set of twelve chairs at Nostell Priory, Yorkshire, which were possibly supplied by Wright & Elwick of Wakefield, and probably those recorded in the household inventories of 1806 and 1812 as '12 Mahog- Chairs and Castors'. The attribution to Wright & Elwick is based on a further set of closely related chairs thought to have been supplied by the firm to Kippax Park, Yorkshire (see Moss Harris, The English Chair, London, 1946, p. 123). Wright & Elwick were undoubtedly employed at Nostell; in a letter to Sir Rowland Winn dated 26 August 1767, Chippendale was obliged to confess why he had failed to dye some old crimson wall hangings: ‘I find it will not take a garter blue as the Ingenious Mr. Elwick said it would, I trusted his knowledge for which I am sorely vexd, it will take a dark blue and no other coloure’ (L. Boynton, N. Goodison, ‘Thomas Chippendale at Nostell Priory’, Furniture History, 1968, p. 22). 

Online Sale (Lots 1-68) 
The online sale, Contemporary Clay: Yixing Pottery from the Irving Collection, takes place from March 19-26 and comprises 68 teapots, figures and objects made by well-known Yixing pottery artists. Florence and Herbert Irving, known for their great eye for exceptional quality in art and form, appreciated the unique charm of contemporary Yixing ware. Steeped in earlier Ming and Qing traditions, while drawing creative inspiration from nature and the daily life, each potter has a distinct style.

Erwin Olaf, Palm Springs, The Family Visit, Portrait #1 (The Niece), 2018, digital C-print© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Hamiltons Gallery, London / Edwynn Houk Gallery, New York

THE HAGUE.- Gemeentemuseum Den Haag and The Hague Museum of Photography are honouring one of the Netherlands’ most famous photographers, Erwin Olaf (b. 1959), with a double exhibition. Olaf, whose recent portraits of the royal family drew widespread admiration, will turn sixty this year – a good moment to stage a major retrospective. The Hague Museum of Photography will focus on Olaf’s love of his craft and his transition from analogue photojournalist to digital image-maker and storyteller. Olaf will himself bring together some twenty photographs by famous photographers of the past who have been a vital source of inspiration to him. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag will show non-commissioned work by Olaf from 2000 to his most recent series, including the work he produced in Shanghai and his most recent series Palm Springs, on display for the first time. Olaf will be showing his photography in the form of installations, in combination with film, sound and sculpture. 

"What I want to show most of all is a perfect world with a crack in it. I want to make the picture seductive enough to draw people into the narrative, and then deal the blow. " - Erwin Olaf 

Erwin Olaf, Squares, Pearls. 1986.

Journalistic training 
Erwin Olaf was studying journalism in Utrecht in the 1980s when, having noticed that he was unhappy, one of his lecturers pressed a camera into his hands. ‘I loved the thing right from the word go,’ says Olaf, ‘the weight, the cool metal in my hand. It felt so natural. And when I took my first photographs, I knew I had found my calling.’ Olaf began taking journalistic photographs of theatre performances, worked for progressive magazines and volunteered for COC Nederland (which represents LGBTI interests). In his early work Olaf often depicted the human body quite graphically, breaching the restrictions on sexuality, the body and gender. He describes himself at that time as an angry adolescent, though his taboo-breaking work was highly significant in terms of visual freedom in the Netherlands. 

Early work at The Hague Museum of Photography 
The exhibition at The Hague Museum of Photography will start with his early work. Chessmen (1987-88) was one of Olaf’s first non-commissioned series, which came about when he was given the opportunity to produce a photobook. He had to fill 32 pages and he wanted to focus on the theme of power. He had heard an item on the radio about chess, a game of war consisting of 32 pieces. Olaf portrayed the game in a series of provocative images, featuring visible genitals, small half-naked people with kinky attributes, and extremely fat women in bondage outfits. The series did not go unnoticed. He received criticism for it, but also the Young European Photographers Prize. 

Erwin Olaf, Chessmen, XVII, 1988© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Flatland Gallery.

Skill 
Another early series shows the engagement that has remained important throughout Olaf’s career. Blacks (1990) is based on a song by Janet Jackson with the line, ‘In complete darkness we are all the same. It is only our knowledge and wisdom that separates us’. The series reflects Olaf’s battle for equality, and also his technical skill. In these baroque portraits, literally everything is black as coal, yet Olaf managed to give the images a rich tonality, both with his camera and in the developing process. A self-taught photographer, he has shown himself to be a master, not only of old-fashioned darkroom processes, but also of new techniques that have emerged in rapid succession since the digital revolution. He did pioneering work with Photoshop in the famous series Royal Blood (2000). Thanks to this new technique, he is even better able to experiment to his heart’s delight in his staged photography. 

Sources of inspiration 
Besides his own work, at The Hague Museum of Photography Erwin Olaf will be bringing together some twenty photographs by photographers who are his most important sources of inspiration, ranging from a vintage still life with roses by the late nineteenth-century photographer Bernard Eilers to self-portraits by Robert Mapplethorpe and Rineke Dijkstra. The work of these photographers inspired him, made him look in a different way at his own artistic practice, or pushed his photography in a new direction. By showing these pictures alongside his early work, which is imbued with his love of his craft, Olaf will give visitors to the Museum of Photography an idea of what has shaped him as a photographer.  

Gemeentemuseum Den Haag 
The exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum will begin, even before the entrance to the galleries, with the life-sized installation Keyhole (2012). The exterior has two long walls with panelling above which framed photographs hang, as in a classic interior. But visitors can watch two films through the keyhole in the doors on either side of the installation. It will be immediately apparent that the Gemeentemuseum is highlighting a new development in the work of Erwin Olaf. Here, he is going one step further, presenting his photography in exciting combinations of film, sound and sculpture. 

Erwin Olaf, Keyhole # 6. 2012© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Flatland Gallery

Social engagement 
Erwin Olaf’s work has always been highly personal and socially engaged. The clearest influence on the development of his work has been the events surrounding 9/11. Since then, the bombastic, baroque staging of his previous work has made way for more vulnerability and serenity. This has produced images that are very popular with the public: highly stylised film scenes staged perfectly down to the smallest detail, often bathed in light as if they were paintings, with an uncomfortable underlying message. As in the series Rain (2004), which appears to capture the moment between action and reaction after a shocking event. The series Grief (2007), shot in a 1960s setting, is about the first moment of response, the first tear. 

Erwin Olaf, Rain, The Ice Cream Parlour. 2004© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Hamiltons Gallery, London / Edwynn Houk Gallery, New York.

Recent events are also reflected in Olaf’s work. He made the Tamed & Anger self-portraits (2015) in response to the Charlie Hebdo attack. In other works he addresses issues like the position of the individual in a globalising world, the exclusion and stereotyping of certain groups of people, and taboos associated with gender and nudity. The exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum will thus afford a glimpse inside Olaf’s turbulent and sometimes dark mind. A visit to the exhibition will be like wandering through his head. 

Palm Springs: final part of a triptych 
Erwin Olaf’s most recent series, Palm Springs (2018), will premiere at the exhibition in the Gemeentemuseum. It is part of a triptych about cities undergoing change, the other two parts being Berlin (2012) and Shanghai (2017). The Berlin series was produced in a period when dark clouds were gathering above Europe. It highlights Olaf’s concerns about freedom of expression and democracy, and the transfer of power from an older to a new generation. Shanghai is a hypermodern metropolis in China with a population of 24 million. The series made in this city explores what happens to the individual in an environment like this. In Palm Springs, Olaf again focuses on topical issues. One of the key themes is climate change, though at the same time the images also recall the America of the 1960s. In a beautiful series of portraits, landscapes – this was the first time Olaf had photographed landscapes – still lifes and filmic scenes he refers to issues like teenage pregnancy, discrimination, religious abuses and polarisation. The series tells the story of people withdrawing into gated communities as reality invades their paradise. 

Erwin Olaf, Palm Springs, The Kite, 2018.© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Flatland Gallery

Erwin Olaf, Berlin, Freimaurer Lodge Dahlem, 22nd of April, 2012, 2012© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Flatland Gallery

Erwin Olaf, Shanghai, Huai Hai 116, Portrait # 2, 2017© Erwin Olaf. Courtesy Flatland Gallery

Photographs of royal family 
A very special addition to the double exhibition will be Erwin Olaf’s photographs of the Dutch royal family. As part of the exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum he will bring together many of the photographs that the Government Information Service commissioned him to take of the royal family. He also took the picture that the family used as a Christmas greeting last December. ‘I’m proud of the royal family,’ says Olaf, ‘because they are a binding factor in a democracy that is sometimes very divided. I’m happy to be able to contribute to that.’ 

Successful artist 
The double exhibition will show how Erwin Olaf has developed from angry provocateur to one of the Netherland’s most famous and popular photographers. His work now features in the collections and exhibitions of museums the world over, including China, Russia, The United States of America and Brazil. In 2008 The Hague Museum of Photography showed his Rain, Hope, Grief and Fall series. In 2011 he won the prestigious Johannes Vermeer Prize, and in 2018 the Rijksmuseum purchased almost 500 photographs and videos by Erwin Olaf. 

Together, the exhibitions at the Gemeentemuseum and the Museum of Photography will constitute the biggest retrospective of Olaf’s work ever staged, spanning the period from the early 1980s to his most recent work. In the words of Erwin Olaf: celebrating 40 years of visual freedom. 

The double exhibition has been curated by Wim van Sinderen with the assistance of Hanneke Mantel (both of Gemeentemuseum Den Haag and The Hague Museum of Photography), and has come about in close collaboration with Erwin Olaf and his studio.

Lot 750. A small Junyao saucer dish, Song Dynasty (AD 960-1279); . Estimate $2,000 – $3,000. Price Realized $22,500. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The dish has widely flared sides and is covered inside and out with a crackled glaze of milky sky-blue color that thins to mushroom on the edges of the everted rim and falls irregularly to the edge of the foot ring. 4½ in. (11.5 cm.) diam.

Property from the Collection of Charles and Margot Nesbitt, Oklahoma City.

Christie’s. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART, 18 – 19 September 2014, New York, Rockefeller Plaza. 

Lot 751. A Longquan celadon ‘Dragon’ jar, Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279); 8 1/8 in. (20.7 cm.) high. Estimate $12,000 – $18,000. Price Realized $50,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The body is carved with upright petals below a scrolling band on the rounded shoulder on which an applied dragon stands as it encircles the neck below the upcurved rim. The jar is covered overall with an unctuous glaze of soft sea-green color that thins on the raised areas, and also covers the inside of the foot, Japanese double wood box.

Lot 752. A Qingbai conical bowl and a box and cover, Southern Song dynasty, 12th-13th century. Bowl 7 1/8 in. (8.1 cm) diam.; box and cover 3 in. (7.5 cm). Estimate $5,000 - USD 7,000. Price Realized $6,250. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The bowl is carved with dense cloud scroll with combed details, stopping short of the rim, and is covered allover with a crackled glaze of aquamarine color that also surrounds the unglazed center of the base, which has burnt pale brown in the firing. The circular box and cover of the box is carved on the top with a flower head within a triple-line border, and both cover and box are covered overall in a clear glaze stopping short of the unglazed foot., Japanese double wood box.

Lot 754. A Cizhou-type cut-glaze meiping, Jin-Yuan dynasty, 12th-13th century; 13 in. (33 cm.) high. Estimate $5,000 - USD 7,000. Price Realized $10,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The bottle is carved through the dark khaki-brown glaze to the buff- colored ground before firing with a broad band of leafy scroll above a band of petal decoration in the center and a band of petal lappets above the foot, all within double-line borders, Japanese double wood box.

Lot 757. A Cizhou-type russet-decorated blackish-brown-glazed bottle, xiaokou ping, Jin dynasty, 13th century; 8½ in. (21.5 cm.) high. Estimate $4,000 - USD 6,000. Price Realized $15,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The broad ovoid bottle is covered with a blackish-brown glaze and is freely painted in russet with a leafy chrysanthemum spray. The bottom of the foot is unglazed, Japanese double wood box.

Lot 758. A Cizhou-type painted ovoid jar, Jin-Yuan dynasty, 12th-14th century; 13 1/8 in. (33.4 cm.) high. Estimate $8,000 - USD 12,000. Price Realized $16,250. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The body is painted in brown on a white ship with two wide bands of flowers and leafy sprays below a classic scroll border encircling the shoulder, all under a clear glaze.

Chinese Floral motif carved bricks, Southern Dynasties (5th-6th century), Changzhou Museum, Jiangsu province.

Peter Paul Rubens, Venus in front of the mirror, around 1614/1615. Oil on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

VIENNA.- On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Principality of Liechtenstein in 2019, the Albertina Museum is presenting a comprehensive selection of the most outstanding works from the Princely Collections under the title From Rubens to Makart. The museum is also devoting a simultaneous, separate jubilee exhibition to the Viennese watercolor, an important and central category of works within the Princely Collections, in an exhibition entitled Rudolf von Alt and his Time. 

Five Centuries of Art History 
Well over 100 of the most important paintings and sculptures from the exquisite collection of this family, rich in tradition like few others in Europe, span an impressive range from the Early Renaissance in Italy to the Baroque period, from Viennese Biedermeier to the historicism of the Makart era. Iconic works such as Antico’s Bust of Marcus Aurelius, which was acquired for the Princely Collections just recently, the life-size bronze sculptures of Adrian de Vries, and Peter Paul Rubens’s famous Venus in Front of the Mirror are the focus of an exhibition that amounts to a veritable promenade through five centuries of art history.

Giuseppe Arcimboldo, The Earth, around 1570. Oil on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

A Private Collecting Passion of The Highest Order 
The documentation of the Liechtenstein Princes’ continuous and passionate collecting activities goes back over 400 years—a period during which outstanding personalities and their individual artistic tastes gradually gave rise to a private collection that remains unparalleled to this day. And as a city in which the princely family maintained a permanent residence until 1938, Vienna is of exceptional significance: under Prince Johann Adam Andreas I, who acquired numerous masterpieces of the Flemish Baroque, the collection was presented on the second bel étage of the newly built Liechtenstein City Palace on Bankgasse (formerly known as Schenkenstraße) beginning in 1705. In 1810, Prince Johann I of Liechtenstein made his masterpieces accessible to the Viennese public for the first time at the family’s Garden Palace in the Rossau neighborhood. 

During the Second World War, the family transferred its residence—and thus also its collections—to the Principality of Liechtenstein. Ever since then, the official home of the Princely Collections has been in Vaduz. Selected works are permanently displayed in the galleries of the Liechtenstein Garden Palace and City Palace in Vienna, however, and these can be viewed by the general public as part of guided tours. 

Anthonis van Dyck, Portrait of Maria de Tassis, ca. 1629/30. Oil on canvas. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Recontextualization 
This exhibition presents the Princely Collections’ greatest treasures, providing an exemplary impression of their formidable richness. In contrast to the permanent presentation at the Liechtenstein family’s two Viennese palaces, within which these works can be experienced more or less in their traditional context, one of the central intentions of this exhibition lies in their recontextualization: the reduced setting of the ALBERTINA Museum, with its modern spaces, makes possible a fresh look at the masterpieces on exhibit. In lieu of art-historical stringency, the primary objective here has been to arrive at a form of presentation determined by aesthetic considerations. And it is thus that, through alternative groupings and/or deliberate isolation, these paintings and sculptures now tell entirely different stories.

Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller, Roses, 1843. Oil on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz.

Friedrich von Amerling, Young Girl, 1834. Oil on canvas. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz.

Friedrich von Amerling, Portrait of Princess Marie Franziska von Liechtenstein (1834–1909) at the Age of Two, 1836. Oil on cardboard.© LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Jan Jansz. den Uyl (1595-1631), Breakfast with Pewter Pitcher, 1635. Oil on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Naddo Ceccarelli, Christ as the Man of Sorrows, ca. 1347. Tempera and gold on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Pier Jacopo Alari-Bonacolsi, known as Antico, Bust of Marcus Aurelius, ca 1500. Gilded Bronze. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Quentin Massys der Ältere, The Tax Collectors, late 1520s. Oil on panel.© LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna

Hyacinthe Rigaud, Portrait of Prince Joseph Wenzel I von Liechtenstein in the Full Regalia of the Order of the Golden Fleece (1696-1772), 1740. Oil on canvas. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Canaletto, View of the Estuary of the Canale di Cannaregio, ca 1735-1742. Oil on canvas. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Hans Makart, The Death of Cleopatra, 1875. Oil on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Peter Paul Rubens, Portrait of Clara Serena Rubens, the Daughter of the Artist (1611-1623), ca 1616. Oil on canvas on wood. © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna.

Mark Rothko, Untitled. Oil on canvas, 69 by 50 1/8 in. 175.26 by 127.33 cm. Executed in 1960. Estimate $35/50 million© 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

NEW YORK, NY.- Sotheby’s announced that they will offer Mark Rothko’s Untitled, 1960 on behalf of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) this May in New York, sold to benefit the institution’s Acquisitions Fund. 

An important work completed at the apex of Rothko’s artistic powers, Untitled, 1960 is one of just 19 paintings completed by the artist in 1960. This year marks a critical juncture in the iconic Abstract Expressionist’s career, following his defining commission of the Seagram Murals (1958-59) and his representation of the United States in the XXIX Venice Biennale (1958) – organized by the Museum of Modern Art, New York, which would subsequently hold Rothko’s first and only major lifetime retrospective in 1961. Untitled, 1960 is distinguished further by its connection to Peggy Guggenheim, preeminent philanthropist and patron of the 20th century. 

Untitled, 1960 will travel to London, Taipei and Hong Kong, before returning to New York for exhibition and auction this May. The painting is estimated to sell for $35/50 million in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction. 

Following a collection review, and working within the guidelines of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), proceeds from the sale of Untitled, 1960 will only be used to purchase works for the museum. 

Neal Benezra, Helen and Charles Schwab Director of SFMOMA, said: “With a spirit of experimentation, diversity of thought, and openness to new ways of telling stories, we are rethinking our exhibitions, collections, and education programs to enhance accessibility and expand our commitment to a global perspective, while sustaining our dedication to Bay Area and California art. Untitled, 1960 is being sold in order to broadly diversify SFMOMA’s collection, enhance its contemporary holdings, and address art historical gaps in order to continue to push boundaries and embrace fresh ideas.” 

Gary Garrels, Elise S. Haas Senior Curator of Painting and Sculpture, said: “SFMOMA is very fortunate to have rich holdings of Mark Rothko, including his undisputed masterpiece No. 14, 1960, which was acquired in the late 1990s as the result of another strategic deaccession. The proceeds from the upcoming sale will allow us to make great strides in diversifying the collection. Janet Bishop, Thomas Weisel Family Curator of Painting and Sculpture, and I are creating a focused plan and list of priority acquisitions. Works will be proposed to our Accessions Committee for review as early as May 29, 2019.” 

Saara Pritchard, Senior Vice President and Senior Specialist in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Department in New York, said: “Sotheby’s is honored to present Mark Rothko’s Untitled, 1960 on behalf of SFMOMA this spring. This exquisite work embodies the height of Rothko’s artistic practice, and provokes an intense emotional reaction in the viewer which was his preoccupation at this time. While featuring all of the expressive and transcendent qualities of Rothko’s 1950s pictures, there is a nuance to the surface, brushwork and layering of colors in the present painting that creates a compelling sense of vibration, movement, breath, life and depth. Given the rarity of works from this period on the market, as well as its connection to the great Peggy Guggenheim, the appearance of Untitled, 1960 at auction this spring will be a major market moment – one we are privileged to present to collectors around the world in the coming months.” 

The ownership history of Untitled, 1960 unites the artist and institution with one of the preeminent philanthropists and patrons of the 20th century. A champion of Abstract Expressionism broadly and of Rothko specifically, Peggy Guggenheim’s pioneering vision and commitment to the artists she promoted paved the way for one of the most significant artistic movements in history. Determined to provide a voice and platform to this new generation of artists, Guggenheim gave Rothko one of his first important solo shows in 1945, at her famed Art of This Century gallery. The following year, she loaned the artist’s Slow Swirl at the Edge of the Sea to SFMOMA’s exhibition of Rothko’s work titled An Environment for Faith, and subsequently donated the work to the institution. Slow Swirl at the Edge of the Sea remained in the museum’s collection until 1962, when SFMOMA made the direct request to Rothko to exchange the work for a more contemporary example of his oeuvre. The artist obliged, and the museum selected Untitled, 1960, which has remained in their collection to present. Slow Swirl at the Edge of the Sea now resides in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York. 

Untitled, 1960 triumphantly embodies Rothko’s creative crescendo and the full maturation of his extraordinary artistic practice. Committed to more intensively exploring the power of art to elicit strong emotional reactions, the artist began to abandon his characteristic bright colors of the 1950s, in favor of more romantic and spiritual deep reds and burgundies. The subdued color palette of deep burgundy, warm blush, royal blue, black-grey and ephemeral cloud-white is reminiscent of the palette he explored in the famed Seagram Murals, a portion of which remain on view at The Tate Modern. The scale, proportioned directly to the human body, creates an emotional – and indeed, sublime – viewing opportunity that allows one to experientially enter the painting.

Lot 761. A green-glazed pottery flask, Liao dynasty (AD 907-1125);14 in. (35.6 cm.) high. Estimate $4,000 – $6,000. Price Realized $5,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The tall, pouch-shaped body tapers to a pinched neck and is applied with nine bosses below a rope-twist handle and cylindrical spout from which trail three slender straps. The flask is covered with a bright green glaze over a white slip falling short of the splayed foot to expose the pale buff ware.

Property from the Collection of James E. Breece III

Note: Vessels of this type were derived from nomadic leather pouches. A very similar flask is illustrated by R. Krahl in The Anthony de Rothschild Collection of Chinese Ceramics, The Eranda Foundation, vol. 1, 1996, pp. 50-51, no. 27, and another in the National Trust, Ascott Collection is illustrated by M. Medley, T'ang Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1981, p. 131, no. 125.

Lot 762. A Cizhou-type carved dark brown-glazed meiping, Jin dynasty, possibly Xixia Kingdom, 12th-early 13th century; 13 in. (33 cm.) high. Estimate $25,000 - USD 35,000. Price Realized $30,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The meiping is carved through the dark-brown glaze to the body with two foliate-shaped panels enclosing a peony blossom borne on a leafy branch, and separated by fish swimming in crashing waves.

Provenance: Cyrus and Mildred Churchill Collection, Concordia House, Illinois.
The Concordia House Collection; Sotheby's New York, 19 March 2007, lot 139 (part).

Property from the Collection of James E. Breece III.

Note: The technique used to decorate the present vase, which involved fully glazing the vessel and then cutting away or incising the design through the glaze before firing, was employed at several kilns producing Cizhou-style ceramics in Henan and Shanxi provinces. However, stonewares decorated using the same technique were also made at the kilns to the northwest of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The highpoint of ceramic production in this region was under the Xi Xia or Western Xia (AD 1038-1227), a Tibetan-related people greatly influenced by Chinese culture who allied with the Liao to prevent Song incursion into the their territory. Despite numerous attacks by the Song armies, the Xia Xia remained undefeated until conquered by the invading Mongols in AD 1227.

Lot 1664. A white and russet-stained white jade pillow, possibly Ming dynasty or later; 7 1/8 in. (18.3 cm.) wide. Estimate USD 10,000 - USD 15,000. Price realised USD 3,250 © Christie’s Image Ltd 2016

The rectangular pillow has a concave top and a large channel drilled horizontally, and the white stone has large areas of russet color, box.

The collection of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth.

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art part I, New York, 17 - 18 March 2016

Lot 801. A mottled pale greenish-white and russet jade rectangular pillow, China, Ming dynasty (1368-1644) or later; 6 7/8 in. (17.4 cm.) long. Estimate USD 10,000 - USD 15,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2019

Pierced through the center with a wide circular aperture, the well-polished stone with a large, long fissure across one end, other smaller fissures in the base and traces of a drilling ridge in the center of the aperture, hongmu stand.

Provenance: Alice Boney, Tokyo, 1968. 
The Irving Collection, no. 001.

Literature: Anita Christy, "The Irving Collection: At Home in The Metropolitan Museum of Art", Orientations, November 1991, pp. 61-67, fig. 2.

Note: In 1968, the Irvings met Alice Boney (1901-1988), the doyenne of Asian Art dealers in New York, who was then living in Japan and who became their principal mentor for appreciating and collecting Asian art. This jade pillow from Alice Boney was the first substantive piece of Asian art the Irvings collected and remained as one of their sentimental favorites. Mr. Irving remarked in an interview that this jade pillow appealed to him “simply because I liked the feel of the stone” (see Anita Christy, "The Irving Collection: At Home in The Metropolitan Museum of Art", Orientations, November 1991, p. 63).

Lot 802. A yellowish-green jade ruyi scepter, China, Qing dynasty, 18th century; 12 ¼ in. (31.1 cm.) long. Estimate USD 120,000 - USD 180,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2019

The handle well carved with a dragon pursuing a flaming pearl amidst clouds, the terminal carved with an archaistic taotie mask, the stone of yellowish green color, hongmu stand.

Provenance: P. C. Lu & Sons, Ltd., Hong Kong, 1986.
The Irving Collection, no. 462.

Note: Yellow jade was highly regarded as early as the Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) but rose to particular prominence during the Qianlong period (1736-1795). Yellow jade carvings are relatively rare compared to their spinach-green or white jade counterparts. The material was generally reserved for the very finest carvings and vessels of the Qianlong period, often carved with archaistic designs or forms. It is recorded in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) text Zun sheng bajian, (Eight Discourses on the Art of Living) that yellow jade is considered the most valuable type of jade, superior even to mutton-fat jade. 

The Qianlong emperor’s great love of jade combined with his passion for antiques resulted in his commissioning significant numbers of archaistic jade items, some inscribed with the characters Qianlong fanggu (Qianlong copying the ancient), such as lot 805 in the present sale. The present ruyi scepter conveys an archaistic style in both motif and form. The carving on the ruyi head resembles the taotie mask seen on archaic bronzes and the handle terminates in a form that is reminiscent of an archaic jade guiscepter. 

Four closely comparable yellow jade ruyi scepters dated to the eighteenth century are known. One larger ruyi (36.5 cm. long), with compartmentalized decoration and openwork flanges on the handle, rather than the continuous decoration of the Irving ruyi scepter, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is illustrated in Auspicious Ju-I Scepters of China, Taipei, 1995, p. 93, no. 20. A second example that is almost identical to the National Palace Museum ruyi scepter was sold at Christie’s, New York, 16 September 2016, lot 1291. Two other examples carved with chilong on the edge of the ruyi heads were sold at Bonhams, London, 12 May 2011, lot 81, and Christie’s, Hong Kong, 30 November 2011, lot 3251.

Lot 803. A yellow jade «chilong» vase and cover, China, Qing dynasty, 18th century; 6 ½ in. (16.5 cm.) high. Estimate USD 100,000 - USD 150,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2019

Well carved in relief around the body with a chilong on one side and two smaller chilongon the reverse pursuing a flaming pearl, the neck flanked by a pair of S-shaped handles, the cover with C-shaped finial, the stone with some russet mottling

Provenance: Louis Joseph, London, no. 3826 (according to label).
Spink & Son, Ltd., London, 1983.
The Irving Collection, no. 420.

Literature: Roger Keverne, Jade, London, 1991, p. 151, fig. 55.

Note: The shape of the current vase, with its C-scroll finial and pair of S-shaped handles, is inspired by archaic bronze vessels, in keeping with the prominent eighteenth-century theme of archaism and imitation in the arts. A yellow jade covered vase of a shape very similar to that of the current example, dated to the Qianlong period (1736-1795), but decorated with taotie and cicada motifs, is in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 42 -Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, p. 181, no. 148. Also popular during the eighteenth century was the motif of dragons clambering around the sides of archaistic jade vases, as can be seen on another yellow jade vase and cover of slightly more elongated form, carved in high relief with comparable chilong, also in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji, vol. 6, Qing, Hebei, 1991, p. 163, no. 241.

Lot 1081. A white and russet jade rhyton, Qing dynasty (1644-1911); 6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm.) high. Estimate USD 80,000 - USD 120,000. Price realised USD 235,500.© Christie’s Image Ltd 2017

The cup is well-hollowed and carved on the exterior as an upturned makara or dragon with wide open jaws, a finely incised scaly body, sharp claws and scrolling wings, all on a ground of scale pattern below a narrow rope border and a wide band of archaistic bird scrolls, with a narrow band of key fret at the rim. The handle is formed as a chilongclambering up one narrow side to grip the rim with one paw. The stone of cloudy white tone has some fine flaws and highlights of added russet color, hongmu stand, box.

Lot 804. A finely carved white jade archaistic rhyton, China, Qing dynasty, 17th-18th century; 7 in. (17.8 cm.) high. Estimate USD 200,000 - USD 300,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2019

The lower body carved in relief around the sides with a sweeping, abstract design of a finely detailed, winged dragon, its head forming the base, all below a narrow rope-twist border separating it from a field of small detached scrolls on the upper body, with a narrow key-fret band encircling the shaped rim, the handle formed by a bearded dragon with single horn and long mane crawling up one narrow side to the rim, the semi-translucent stone of even color, hongmu stand.

Provenance: Spink & Son, Ltd., London, 1981.
The Irving Collection, no. 375.

Literature: Spink & Son, Ltd., An Exhibition of Fine Jade, London, 1981, no. 13.

Exhibited: London, Spink & Son, Ltd., An Exhibition of Fine Jade, December 1981.

Note: Archaistic jade rhytons of this type have their antecedents in jade rhytons of Han-dynasty date, such as the example from the Han-dynasty tomb of the King of Nanyue, illustrated by Jessica Rawson in Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, British Museum, 1995, p. 70, fig. 61. That vessel (18.4 cm. high), which was inspired by a Western Asian form, is in the shape of a horn that rises from a twisted, bifurcated tail-form handle at the bottom and is incised around the sides with scroll decoration. By the Song and Ming dynasties and into the Qing dynasty, this shape was modified and the sides were carved with bands of decoration inspired by that found on bronzes and jades of the Eastern Zhou and Han dynasties, often with the addition of chilong carved in high relief around the sides, and sometimes with a dragon-form handle, as on the present rhyton. 

This type of later, archaistic rhyton is exemplified by a dark green jade example of mid-Qing date in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated by Yang Boda, ed., Chinese Jades Throughout the Ages - Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, vol. 11, Qing Dynasty, 1996, pl. 38, that has a similar shape and very similar archaistic decoration on the body, but does not have a dragon-form handle. Like the Palace Museum example, two other jade rhytons of the same shape and with the same decoration as the present rhyton, but also without a handle, have been published. One is a pale grey jade rhyton in the collection of Mr. H. T. Hodgson which was included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition, Chinese jade throughout the ages, London, 1975, no. 447, where it is dated Qianlong period, and where it is noted that it is incised below the rim on the interior with a eulogistic poem with a date corresponding to 1792. The other is a white jade example illustrated by Giuseppe Eskenazi in A Dealer's Hand: The Chinese Art World Through the Eyes of Giuseppe Eskenazi, London, 2012, p. 235, pl. 151. A white jade rhyton, also from the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated by Yang Boda, ibid., pl. 40, which has a similar shape, but different archaistic decoration on the body, does have a dragon-form handle, but of a chi dragon rather than the long dragon of the present rhyton. See, also, the white jade example with similar decoration on the body and a similar dragon handle, sold at Christie's, New York, 17 March 2017, lot 1081, which also has the head of a makara or dragon decorating the bottom of the vessel.

A white and russet jade rhyton, Qing dynasty (1644-1911); 6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm.) high. Sold for 235,500 USD at Christie's, New York, 17 March 2017, lot 1081. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2017

Cf. my post: A white and russet jade rhyton, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

Christie's. Lacquer, Jade, Bronze, Ink: The Irving Collection Evening Sale, New York, 20 March 2019

Lot 805. A rare pale greyish-white jade slender pear-shaped vase, China, Qing dynasty, Qianlong incised six-character fanggu mark and of the period (1736-1795); 7 ½ in. (19.1 cm.) high. Estimate USD 100,000 - USD 150,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2019

The slender ovoid body tapering to a tall neck that flares slightly towards the mouth rim, with a pair of mask and loose-ring handles carved on the shoulders and two similar handles on each side of the lower body, the semi-translucent stone of pale greyish white tone with russet veining on one side of the lower body and some areas of pale brown and opaque white mottling, the base inscribed with a six-character Qianlong fanggu mark.

Provenance: Spink & Son, Ltd., London, 1982.
The Irving Collection, no. 369.

Note: As evidenced by the records of the Qing dynasty and the enormous size of the imperial collections, there was an intense interest in Chinese antiquities at the imperial court reflected in the commissioning of pieces in archaic styles during the eighteenth century. This certainly pertained to jades that were made in a broad range of archaic styles during the reign of the Qianlong emperor, who had a passion for jade and preferred those of ancient type, not only those that directly imitated jades of earlier date but also jades that alluded to the antique without directly copying. Many of the pieces he commissioned are inscribed fanggu (to imitate the ancient). 

The present vase is of the second type. The shape appears to be based on fuller-bodied bronze hu of late Warring States date, such as the chain-handled hu from Hubei Jiangling, of late fourth-third century BC date, illustrated by Jenny So in Eastern Zhou Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, vol. III, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, 1995, p. 287, fig. 51.3. Like the present jade vase, the bronze hu has a pair of mask and loose-ring handles flanking the shoulder and has mask and ring handles on the lower body, although there appear to be four rather than two. 

The Qianlong six-character fanggu mark (Qianlong made in imitation of the original) on the Irving vase indicates that it was one of the special group of jade vessels which were inspired by ancient bronze forms and were inscribed with this mark. Larger jade vases of this type, most of hu shape, have been published. Two in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated by Yang Boda, ed., Chinese Jades Throughout the Ages - Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, vol. 12, Qing Dynasty, Chinese Art Foundation, 1997, pls. 39 and 40, have the more typical shape of bronze hu of Han dynasty date. The first, pl. 39, of white jade, has plain raised bands encircling the shoulder and lower body and a pair of mask handles suspending loose rings flanking the neck. The second, pl. 40, is carved with raised borders enclosing a band of kui dragons on the neck and two bands of fish, birds and turtles encircling the shoulder and body. The arrangement of the pair of mask and loose-ring handles flanking the neck and the pair on the lower body is similar to that seen on the Irving vase. The mark on both of these vases is similar to that on the present vase. Another large hu-shaped vase, also carved with bands of birds, turtles and fish, and with similarly positioned handles, but with a four-character Qianlong fanggu mark, is illustrated by Roger Keverne, Jade, New York, 1991, p. 181, fig. 132. See, also, a jade archaistic hu-form vase with Qianlong six-character fanggu inscribed mark sold at Christies, New York, 24 March 2011, lot 1522.

Savannah, Georgia - Rembrandt lived and worked in Amsterdam during the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century. Although most residents of Amsterdam during Rembrandt’s lifetime practiced Dutch Calvinism, the city was renowned for its welcoming spirit toward immigrants, especially the Sephardic Jews who had been expelled from Spain and Portugal during the Inquisition. Rembrandt never formally joined any church, but he was an astute student of the Bible. At times, he turned to Jewish theologians for insight into his depictions of Old Testament imagery. He also hired models from the Jewish community and received commissions from Jewish patrons.

This exhibition contains 21 etchings by Rembrandt and one drawing by Rembrandt’s teacher Pieter Lastman (Dutch, 1583-1633). These works highlight the artist’s nuanced relationship with Amsterdam’s citizens of the Jewish faith and the keen insights Rembrandt brought to interpretations of Old Testament Bible stories.

Rembrandt’s legacy as an etcher is characterized by the new and innovative techniques he introduced to printmaking. He broke with longstanding, traditional depictions of biblical narratives; instead, Rembrandt added emotional and psychological depth to his subjects through expressive faces, dramatic body language, and his bold use of shadow and light.

Rembrandt and the Jewish Experience is organized by Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, California. The presentation of this exhibition at Telfair Museums is curated by Courtney McNeil, Chief Curator & Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs.

March 15 - June 30, 2019

Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606–1669); The Angel Departing from the Family of Tobias (detail), 1641; etching and drypoint on wove paper; Collection of Howard and Fran Berger, Gift to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.

Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606–1669); Abraham’s Sacrifice, 1655; etching on laid paper with pen and ink ruled lines; Collection of Howard and Fran Berger, Gift to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.

Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606–1669); The Return of the Prodigal Son, 1636; etching on laid paper; Collection of Howard and Fran Berger, Gift to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.

Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606–1669); Abraham and Isaac, 1645; etching and drypoint on laid paper; Collection of Howard and Fran Berger, Gift to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.