Feast of awesome and remarkable Hong Kong Art
Hong Kong Art Personalised Masterpieces
Yuan IV, (detail), 2015, Lam Yau-sum
Hong Kong Art
The Hong Kong Museum of Art presents Art Personalised: Masterpieces from the HKMoA with 100 artefacts and artworks from their collections of Chinese Antiquities, Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, China Trade Art, Modern and Hong Kong Art.
Summer outing, Early 1980s, Ink and acrylic on paper, Walasse Ting
China Trade Art is a unique collection of artworks created during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that reflect the artistic exchange and cultural interactions between China and the West through trade.
Jar with dragons amidst wave design in underglaze blue, Kangxi period (1622-1722), Qing dynasty, Ceramics
I am fascinated by images of Chinese dragons, so unsurprisingly, I was drawn to Jar with dragons amidst a wave design in underglaze blue.
Chinese dragon motif
This large, fine white vase is decorated with three blue dragons chasing a pearl amid waves.
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The dragon is both terrifying and beautiful, further dramatised by the contrast between the pure white and the different shades of blue, which testify to the technical brilliance of ceramic craftsmen during the Kangxi period.
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That this vase was made for the emperor’s household is undeniable.
Vases?, 2002, Porcelain, Lee Yee-mei
Similar technical brilliance can be seen in three fencai enamel vases.
Qing Ceramics
Fencai is a form of overglaze, a decorative technique used on Qing imperial ceramic wares.
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It is created by first applying a layer of opaque lead arsenate white enamel to diffuse the colours and form shades of varying intensity and brightness for a vivid three-dimensional effect.
3-dimensional effect
This technique originated in the late Kangxi reign, with the finest examples produced in the Yongzheng and Qianlong periods.
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The golden age of glassmaking occurred during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (1711-1799).
Golden age of glassmaking
My favourite glass piece is the Long-necked vase with landscape and figures design in transparent red overlay on snowflake white ground.
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The imperial workshops in Beijing produced exquisite pieces using a glass overlay technique, which involves creating a base layer of glass in one colour and applying a second layer of coloured glass.
(left) Long-necked vase with landscape and figures design in transparent red overlay on snowflake white ground, Late 18th century, Glass (centre) Vase with carved dragon design in transparent amber, Qianlong period (1736-1795), Qing dynasty (right) Glass Snuff bottle with mask handle in aventurine glass, 18th century, Glass
A skilled craftsman would then carve through the outer layers to reveal the base.
The difficulty is on par with carving jade.
Kraak porcelain
Two Kraak dishes were my first exposure to China Trade Art. Kraak ware is a type of porcelain that emerged during the Ming dynasty to be exported to the Netherlands by the Portuguese.
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They had uplifted rims with painted panels that included landscapes, human figures, birds, flowers and auspicious motifs.
The lesser quality of these export wares is apparent when compared to those intended for emperors.
Kraak type dish with Buddhist emblems design in underglaze blue, Tianqi period (1621-1627), Ming dynasty, Ceramics
Inspired by Kraak ware, Hong Kong contemporary artist Angel Hui transformed classic panel patterns into paintings with anti-epidemic supplies.
Kraak type dish with bird and flower design in reserved panels in underglaze blue, Late Ming to early Qing dynasty, Ceramics
The idea of painting self-portraits of Dutch painters, Vincent van Gogh and Johannes Vermeer, came from Angel’s trip to the Netherlands before the outbreak of the global pandemic.
My little Hong Kong – bewilderment series, 2020-2021, Hui Hoi-kiu, Angel
With a humorous yet meaningful approach, she reflects on the history of Chinese trade porcelain and its European market while examining the relationships between everyday items and traditional art.
Guan Lianchang
Another China Trade artist is Guan Lianchang (also known as Tingqua), a Canton-based artist who adopted European techniques to capture perspective and chiaroscuro (using light and shadow to create volume).
Insects, (Tingqua, act. 1840-1870) (attrib.), Gouache on paper, Guan Lianchang
His photo-realistic paintings of insects, birds and flowers were bought as souvenirs by merchants to satisfy their curiosity and spark the imagination of friends and relatives in their home country.
Birds, (Tingqua, act. 1840-1870) (attri.), Gouache on paper, Guan Lianchang
British landscape painters, topographical artists, and European Realism influenced the style of China Trade artists who painted images like Victoria City and harbour to appeal to the taste of their export market buyers.
Patchwork, Oil on canvas, 2009, Wu Guanzhong
However, unlike the Kraak ware, the quality of these exports could satisfy any connoisseur.
Victoria City and harbour, (act. 1840-1870) (attri.), 1850s, Oil on canvas, Youqua
However, as foreign buyers cared more for the subject than the artist, images like this were frequently copied and left unsigned.
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For this reason, many of the paintings in this style were attributed to the known painter Youqua, who ran a studio at Queen’s Road No. 107 in Hong Kong.
Bamboo shoots, not dated, Ink and colour on paper, Gao Jianfu
Using computers, contemporary artist Zhang Wei juxtaposes classic masterpieces from Chinese and Western art history on a canvas, creating an interesting composition.
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In Fountain – Fan Kuan vs Duchamp, he enlarges the waterfall in Travelers among mountains and streams, an iconic piece of Northern Song painter Fan Kuan, as the background.
Hong Kong art fusion of East and the West
At the bottom of the waterfall is Fountain created by Marcel Duchamp, pioneer of Dadaism, using a found object (a urinal).
Fountain – Fan Kuan vs Duchamp, 2000, Digital image on canvas, Zhang Wei
This work expresses the collision between the East and the West, and the old and the new.
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Both its content and the artist’s creative method challenge the traditional definition of Chinese art.
Moon reflection, 1942, Ink and colour on paper, Gao Jianfu
My favourite sculpture in the exhibition is Yuan IV, which is made of water pipes, electrical wires, and other industrial materials to create a shan shui (mountain-water) landscape scene.
Yuan IV, 2015, Lam Yau-sum
This sculpture is remarkable because even though you first see the industrial materials, you are transported to another miniature of natural scenery within a few seconds, providing a god’s eye view of creation.
Another mountain (I), 2007, Cast stainless steel, Mok Yat-san
The exhibition, Art Personalised: Masterpieces from the HKMoA (Phase IV), presents exquisite pieces from their four core collections.
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The artworks on show circles around Western influences on Chinese art and vice versa.
The footprints of Bai Juyi (Su Zhou Moon Bay), 2013, Oil on canvas, Pang Jiun
Using this perspective, I appreciate the artwork to a greater extent by acknowledging the contrast between Hong Kong art and the world’s viewpoints.
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This exhibition connects Hong Kong art to the world by curating examples of contrasting elements with the Hong Kong viewpoint, offering fresh experiences and understanding.
Text and photos by Martin Wray
