Greenware bowl with floral decoration, China, Henan province or Shaanxi province, 11th - 12th century
Greenware bowl with floral decoration, China, Henan province or Shaanxi province, 11th - 12th century (1001 - 1200) , Northern Song Dynasty (AD 960 - 1127) - Jin Dynasty (1115 - 1234), stoneware, thrown, with incised and press-moulded decoration under a green glaze; glazed base; glazed rim, 7.5 cm (height) - 20 cm (diameter). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust, LI1301.431, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Similar to the bowl, [LI1301.288], also in the Barlow Collection, but larger and less fine in quality, this bowl was probably made by one of the kilns copying Yaozhou, in Shaanxi or in the neighboring province of Henan. A similar, but much smaller bowl with a different family name in the centre, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, has been attributed to the Linru kilns of Henan (The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (I), Hong Kong, 1996, no.147).
The bowl has slightly rounded conical sides, the rim is everted with an angle on the outside and curved on the inside, the short tapering foot has a low broad footring. The piece is moulded with a stylized flower scroll with a fully opened bloom in the centre, surrounded by a scroll with three similar blooms between smaller ones seen in profile, among dense overall foliage. The central bloom is inscribed with the chacter yang (a family name). The rim area is left plain, the outside shows simple radiating strokes cut with a knife held at an angle. The pale green glaze leaves only the footring free, where the brown biscuit is revealed. An accidental unglazed patch on the outside has burnt a reddish brown.
White ware measuring jar for rice, 11th - 12th century,South China, Song dynasty
White ware measuring jar for rice, 11th - 12th century (1001 - 1200), South China, Song dynasty, AD 976 – AD 984, porcelain, thrown, with combed and applied decoration under a bluish-white glaze (qingbai ware); unglazed base; glazed rim, 7.8 cm (height) - 9.4 cm (diameter). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.321, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Although bowls of this shape are usually attributed to the Southern Song (1127–1279) or Yuan dynasty (1279–1368), a similar qingbai example has come to light in a Northern Song (AD 960–1127) tomb in Anhui, whose owner died in AD 1089 and was buried in AD 1092.
The rounded jar is slightly flattened at the base to stand securely, and has a straight neck with outward curved rim. The rounded part is combed from one side to the other across the base with parallel lines, and a row of small bosses is applied between body and neck. The light bluish glaze covers the inside of the piece, the neck and the uppermost part of the body outside, but leaves most of the outside in the pale beige biscuit.
Greenware flower holder, Yaozhou kilns, 11th-12th century, China, Northern Song dynasty
Greenware flower holder, Yaozhou kilns, 11th-12th century (1001 - 1200), China, Northern Song dynasty (AD 960 - 1127), , stoneware, thrown, with incised, pierced, and hand-modelled decoration luted to the flower holder with slip under a green glaze; unglazed base; glazed rim, 8 cm (height) - 15.3 cm (diameter) - at foot 6.7 cm (diameter). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.82, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Fragments of similar flower holders have been discovered at the Yaozhou kiln site near Tongchuan in Shaanxi province; see Songdai Yaozhou yaozhi [Yaozhou kiln sites of the Song dynasty], Beijing, 1998, pl.XXXII, fig.3, and p.140, fig.76: 1-3, and pl.LXXXVIII, fig.5, and p.329, fig.166; 5).
The bowl is of deep rounded form, resting on a high flared foot and has an everted slanting rim. A domed openwork support inside is shaped like a small dish, placed upside-down on a raised ridge, its flared rim cut into bracket foliations, its sides and base pierced with circular and gourd-shaped openings. Six bands of clay are attached in an undulating fashion below the rim inside, to create three tubular sockets each. The outside is textured with vertical lines. The piece is covered with a thin olive-green glaze, which leaves the footring exposed in the brown biscuit and has partly fired brown, partly degraded to a whitish layer on the base and foot, where it was thinly and unevenly applied.
Greenware ewer with peony decoration amid waves, Zhejiang province, 11th - 12th century (1001 - 1200)
Greenware ewer with peony decoration amid waves, Zhejiang province, 11th - 12th century (1001 - 1200), China, Northern Song dynasty (AD 960 - 1127), stoneware, thrown, with moulded, incised, and combed decoration under a green glaze; unglazed base; glazed rim, 17 cm (height) - 17.6 cm (diameter) - from handle to spout 18.6 cm (width). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.69, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Although superficially very similar to the celadon wares made in north China, the material, carving style and shape of the lugs of this ewer are characteristic of the manufacture of Zhejiang province. During the Northern Song dynasty (AD 960 – 1127), when the capital was situated in north China, the northern kilns was leading in style and were much copied in the south. The southern kilns developed their own style only in the Southern Song period (1127 – 1279), when the capital was relocated to nearby Hangzhou. Ewers of this shape are very rare, but a related fragmentary piece has been recovered from the Dayao kiln site at Longquan.
The piece has a depressed globular body on a low, slightly tapering foot and unevenly shaped concave base. The wide neck is flanked on both sides by lugs in form of moulded peony flowers, attached on the shoulder and linked to the neck by a stud. A curved pointed spout is attached opposite a flat curved handle with a double groove. The sides of the ewer are divided into four panels by serrated vertical ribs, those on each side carved with a peony bloom, and those at front and back with foliate motifs, with a hatched border surrounding the neck. The olive-green glaze fully covers the piece except for the footring and base where the body has fired a purplish red.
Greenware funerary vase with floral decoration, Longquan kilns, 11th century (1001 - 1100)
Greenware funerary vase with floral decoration, Longquan kilns, 11th century (1001 - 1100), China, Northern Song dynasty (AD 960 - 1127), stoneware, thrown, with combed and incised decoration under a green glaze; unglazed base; unglazed rim, with lid 26 cm (height) - 13 cm (diameter) - at foot 7.8 cm (diameter).Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.258; Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
A similar jar lacking its cover has been excavated from a tomb near Longquan city, which is datable to the Yuanfeng period (AD 1078–1085) of the Northern Song dynasty.
The jar is heavily potted, with an ovoid body on a straight, nearly solid foot with low footring, and a tall wide neck with cup-shaped mouth. The domed cover has an everted rim and a hollow pear-shaped knob with wide flange. The cover is decorated with radiating strokes, the body with six vertical panels, each enclosing a quickly sketched foliage motif with combed details. The glaze is of yellowish-brown colour and leaves the underside of the cover, and the rim, base and footring of the jar free. At the base, remains of thick firing supports are adhering to the grey body.
Greenware gu, or ritual wine vessel, with floral decoration, Yue kiln-sites, China, Song dynasty, AD 976 – AD 984
Greenware gu, or ritual wine vessel, with floral decoration, Yue kiln-sites, China, Song dynasty, AD 976 – AD 984, stoneware, thrown, with incised decoration under a green glaze; glazed base with spur marks; glazed rim, 12.7 cm (height) - 6.9 cm (diameter) - at base 5.4 cm (diameter).Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.237, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
The piece is incised on the base in a semi-circle with the inscription taiping xingguo, a reign period of the Song dynasty (AD 960–1279). Several pieces are known with this inscription, but no such piece appears to have been discovered at the Yue kiln sites in Zhejiang province, where this type of ware was made. The engraved designs are unusually weak, yet the piece may be of the period. A fragment of a similar small gu without decoration was excavated at one of the Yue kiln sites.
The slender vase flares towards the rim and the foot, has a raised central band and a low broad footring. The central band is incised with a foliate scroll, flanked by pointed petals above and below and further foliate motifs. The base is incised with the characters taiping xingguo, in a semi-circular line. The translucent pale greenish glaze fully covers the piece, which shows seven uneven patches from spur marks on the footring.
Two Figures of a young man, China,Tang dynasty, 7th century AD (AD 601 - 700)
Figure of a young man, China,Tang dynasty, 7th century AD (AD 601 - 700), earthenware, moulded and luted together, and with a transparent glaze, 28.9 x 15.3 x 7.4 cm (height x width x depth). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.429.1, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Figure of a young man, China,Tang dynasty, 7th century AD (AD 601 - 700), earthenware, moulded and luted together, and with a transparent glaze, 27.7 x 15.2 x 11.3 cm (height x width x depth). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust., LI1301.429.2, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
Many foreigners lived and worked in Tang China, particularly in the capital, Chang’an (modern Xi’an in Shaanxi province), but the ethnic background of figures such as the present ones is not easy to establish. A very similar figure, with dark skin, curly hair and similar attire, is depicted in a handscroll of Tribute Bearers in the Nanjing Museum, where it is identified as a man from Langyaxiu A Chinese translation of Langyaxiu, a country in the South China sea in the region of Thailand and Malaysia. The handscroll is a fragmentary copy of the Northern Song dynasty (AD 960–1127), after an original of around AD 539, painted by Xiao Yi, later emperor Yuan of the Liang dynasty (AD 502–557); see (Huaxia zhi lu [A journey into China’s history], Beijing, 1997, vol.II, pls 329–3 centre). Compare also the small figure of a sleeping servant boy in the Barlow collection, which seems to depict a person of a similar ethnic background.
The two figures are modelled from similar moulds, but placed on different pedestals, one circular, the other rectangular. Both are shown with the bodies somewhat contorted, the hips pushed forward, the shoulders back, the head turned to the left, the arms in the air, one hand open, the other tied to a fist. They are identified as foreigners through large round eyes, prominent nose and short, thickly curled hair, and are dressed in a cloth that is draped around the back, twisted between the legs, covering one shoulder like a tunic, and hanging down at the side, leaving bare part of the chest, arms and legs. The figures are made of beige-coloured earthenware and covered overall with a transparent glaze with a strong greenish tinge, with patches of the plinths exposed in the biscuit. The figures would originally have been painted.
Figure of a mule with a sack across its back, China, Sui Dynasty (AD 589 - 618)
Figure of a mule with a sack across its back, China, Sui Dynasty (AD 589 - 618), earthenware, moulded and luted together, painted white, and with incised decoration, 18.6 x 22 x 10.9 cm (height x width x depth). Lent by the Sir Alan Barlow Collection Trust. LI1301.403. Ashmolean Museum, Oxford © The University of Sussex
The animal is standing four-square on a rectangular plinth, the head slightly inclined, the ears pricked. The features are faintly indicated, the neck with a sharp ridge to represent a docked mane, the body with slender legs and a long tail. A bulging sack has been slung over a straight saddlecloth, with incised lines to depict folds, and the strap of a harness is visible at the back, raised in slight relief. The grey pottery is covered with a white dressing.
A similarly laden figure of a horse, recovered from the Sui dynasty tomb of Li Jingxun in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, can be dated to the year AD 608. A somewhat earlier figure, preserved in the Datong City Institute of Archaeology, was excavated from the tomb of Song Shaozu which is datable to AD 477.
Pina, Photographies et texte original de Walter Vogel
Pina, Photographies et texte original de Walter Vogel – Réalisation graphique: Susanne Gerhards – L’Arche éditeur – Parution: juin 2014. Prix: 32€
Auteur et photographe allemand de renom, Walter Vogel rend hommage à Pina Bausch au travers une série de photographies qui révèlent l’artiste sous un jour nouveau. Monographie intimiste et touchante, Pina fait défiler sous nos yeux le parcours incroyable de la fondatrice du Tanztheater Wuppertal.
Extrait: « Laisse moi à présent te dire merci. Il faut bien dire que grâce à toi j’ai pu savourer une pièce que je ne connaissais pas encore, même s’il me manque toujours une petite bouchée par-ci par-là. Ton apparition dans Danzon: extraordinaire! Tu parviens à puiser dans ton corps quelque chose de si rare et d’incomparable…Quelle tristesse que tu ne sois pas restée danseuse! quelle tristesse si tu étais restée danseuse! »
Amon Carter Museum of American Art Acquires Masterpiece by Raphaelle Peale in Memory of Ruth Carter Stevenson
Raphaelle Peale (1774-1825), Peaches and Grapes in a Chinese Export Basket, 1813, oil on panel, Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas, acquisition in memory of Ruth Carter Stevenson, President of the Board of Trustees, 1961-2013, with funds provided by the Ruth Carter Stevenson Memorial and Endowment Funds.
FORT WORTH, TX.- The Amon Carter Museum of American Art announced today the acquisition of the painting Peaches and Grapes in a Chinese Export Basket (1813) by Raphaelle Peale (1774–1825). The first work by Peale to enter the collection, the still life painting was purchased in memory of the museum’s founder Ruth Carter Stevenson (1913–2013). The painting is on view beginning July 29 in the main gallery.
“Raphaelle Peale is considered the first American still-life artist,” says Andrew J. Walker, director of the Amon Carter. “His paintings established the tradition in this country, and they remain among the most magnificent images of their kind ever created. Adding this superb painting by Peale gives depth to the collection, and it also provides us an opportunity to tell the story of how still life became a respected art form.”
Raised within a large family of talented artists, Raphaelle differentiated himself from his younger brother Rembrandt (1778–1860) by refraining from the more lucrative career of portraiture. He also distanced himself from his father, Charles Willson Peale (1741–1827), by ignoring his disdain for the genre of still-life painting as an unsuitable pursuit for a professional artist. He did so at a time when the subject was at the bottom on the hierarchy of artistic genres.
“Raphaelle Peale’s work was the foundation for notable American artists such as William Harnett, William McCloskey and John F. Peto, all of whom are represented in the Amon Carter collection,” Walker says.
Peale often found objects for his compositions among the fruits growing at his father’s estate in Philadelphia. Peaches and Grapes in a Chinese Export Basket is one of the artist’s earliest signed and dated pictures. The carefully composed, well-balanced painting displays the artist’s skills at illusionism.
“Peale had the tremendous ability to replicate the uncanny physical presence of three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface,” says Rebecca Lawton, painting and sculpture curator. “The objects depicted in this painting are so visually striking that they evoke our senses of touch, smell and taste. But, this painting, like so many of his works, is far from just an impeccably elegant picture that serves only the senses. It transcends a simple composition and expresses the moral tension between necessity and indulgence. It also reflects the social and cultural aspirations of a young republic after the American Revolution.”
The Amon Carter recently exhibited six paintings by Raphaelle Peale in the Art and Appetite exhibition organized by The Art Institute of Chicago.
“It whetted our appetites, so to speak, for a Peale painting of our own,” says Walker. “In addition to what this new acquisition brings to our collection, it’s also a wonderful tribute to Mrs. Stevenson. She had a special fondness for still-life painting, especially when the subject reflected her other passions, gardening and horticulture. And, like Peale, she was a trailblazer.”
Raphaelle Peale (1774–1825)
Born into an artistic Philadelphia family, Raphaelle was the eldest son of Charles Willson Peale and the nephew of James Peale, both artists. He and his siblings were named after famous Old Master painters. (His brothers were named Rembrandt, Titian and Rubens.) His father was a well-known portrait painter, naturalist and one of revolutionary America’s great cultural leaders.
Academic theory during Raphaelle Peale’s time relegated still life to the bottom of the hierarchy of painting subjects; portraiture was considered more admirable. But Raphaelle ignored its low status and pursued still life, creating some of the most beautiful American paintings of the 19th century.
Raphaelle was steeped in the ideals of the American Revolution. His father served in the war and painted portraits of the era’s great leaders, among them Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. He expressed the aspirations of the new republic through still life, by creating compositions characterized by crisp forms and balance. Most of his paintings portray food (mainly fruit), crockery and glassware arranged on a plain shelf, parallel to the picture plane.
