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Soft paste/steatitic porcelain are slightly misleading terms for a Chinese ware whose body is rarely translucent, is very hard but somewhat brittle, and slightly more porous than ordinary porcelain. This is the result of adding to the usual porcelain clay a powdered white substance called “hue shi” or slippery stone. The ware is noted for its scarcity valve, then its lightness & delicacy, and finally its superior qualities as a surface for painted decoration. This is paraphrased from Chinese Ceramics, Porcelain of the Qing Dynasty 1644-1911 by Rose Kerr.
From Father d’Entrecolles in his second letter dater 1722:
‘A new material, suitable for making porcelain, has been found recently. It is a stone, a sort of chalk called hoe-che [hue shi]… The hoe-che porcelain is rare and much more expensive than the other. It has an extremely fine grain and, regarding work to be painted, it is to ordinary porcelain what vellum is to paper. Furthermore, the lightness of this porcelain surprises the hand used to other porcelains, also, it is much more fragile than ordinary porcelain and it is difficult to predict the proper firing time.....A load of kao-lin (china clay) costs a crown. So it is not surprising that this kind of porcelain sells for a lot more than the ordinary.’
Attached are pictures of my vase. I bought it back in the early eighties and it is only one of two in my collection that have people in the the decorations. So I invite those of you who have studied these types of decorative scenes to comment. Not my area of expertise. I think the vase was slightly over fired.
@william Thanks, Bill! Nice to get a good look at your treasure. Is it the color that makes you think it was overfired, or the degree of crackle, or something else? I can't quite figure out what the figure on the right is doing with his right hand. Is it brought up to the right side of his head like he's talking on the phone but covered in his sleeve? At any rate, for what it's worth, it looks pretty Kangxi to me. Does that little firing imperfection near the mark matter to buyers or would that not detract anything from it's value do you think? Also, I'm curious is it very obviously lighter feeling to you, or is the difference more subtle? I'm also curious if the foot is dark from dirt and if it would wash off to be a whiter color or if that is the actual color?
On the back side of the vase, notice the patchy, pinkish bloom across the overall creamy color of the piece. That is the product of over firing in my opinion. The paste is not the typical snowy white of 18th Chinese porcelain. The foot rim shows the color of the unglazed body. Maybe a parchment or very light beige color. A lot of non-imperial Kangxi wares show minor imperfections on the foot area so that wouldn’t effect value as much as the old repair to the rim. The vase feels definitely lighter than a typical porcelain example.
Now that you mentioned the hand, I notice that both of them have their hands covered by their sleeves. Maybe that was a fashion statement made by the ‘au courant’ scholars?
Hello William,
For info on Chinese soft paste try searching Huaishi porcelain or slippery stone. Also I seem to recall that there is a fair amount of information over at Gotheborg on the subject.
Michael
I asked about the long sleeves a while back. I think it was Stuart or Giovanni who said that it was a throw back to dancers of much earlier times. I don't know if that applies here, as it was women I was asking about. I have no idea what thread it was in but there is some info here, which if not useful, is still interesting.
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Kangxi vases, Kangxi dishes and chargers, Kangxi ritual pieces, Kangxi scholar's objects, Qianlong famille rose, Qianlong enamels, Qianlong period paintings, Qianlong Emporer's court, Fine porcelain of the Yongzheng period. Chinese imperial art, Ming porcelain including Jiajing, Wanli, Xuande, Chenghua as well as Ming jades and bronzes.
The BidAmount Asian Art Forum | Chinese Art
A free Asian art discussion board and Asian art message board for dealers and collectors of art and antiques from China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and the rest of Asia. Linked to all of the BidAmount Asian art reference areas, with videos from plcombs Asian Art and Bidamount on YouTube. Sign up also for the weekly BidAmount newsletter and catalogs of active eBay listing of Chinese porcelain, bronze, jades, robes, and paintings.
The art of calligraphy - and for the ancient Chinese it certainly was an art - aimed to demonstrate superior control and skill using brush and ink. Calligraphy established itself as one of the major Chinese art forms during the Han dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE), and for two millennia after, all educated men were expected to be proficient at it.
The Museum’s collections of Asian art span nearly five millennia and encompass the cultures of China, the Himalayas, India, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia. In 2007, the Museum launched an initiative to create dedicated galleries for the collection, beginning with a gallery for the arts of Korea ...
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China Online Museum is the finest online museum of Chinese art. It features Chinese calligraphy, painting, ceramics, bronzes, carving, and other artworks.
Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art. Overview Upcoming auctions Contacts Auction results ... Christie’s sales of Chinese ceramics and works of art showcase centuries of Chinese history. Held throughout the year in London, New York, Paris and Hong Kong, they attract a wide audience of collectors and connoisseurs vying for pieces as diverse as ...
Explore Asian Art Week. Contact the Specialist Department. Chinese Paintings ... Senior Specialist, Head of Sale. [email protected]. Tel:+1 212 641 5760. Bid in-person or online for the upcoming auction:Fine Chinese Paintings on 10 September 2019 at New York. Bid in-person or online for the upcoming auction:Fine Chinese Paintings on 10 ...
Discover an abundance of must-see art from all corners of a vast continent at Christie’s NY Asian Art Week. From contemporary classical and Chinese paintings to works with exemplary provenance from the Art Institute of Chicago, our Rockefeller Paza galleries will be full of ancient treasures and contemporary masterworks in a salute to the vibrant arts of Asia.
Sold to benefit The Art Institute of Chicago’s Asian Art Acquisition Fund, the sale features 84 lots with a focus on Ming and Qing porcelains, and offers a rare insight into the taste for collecting Chinese ceramics and works of art in the Midwest from the end of the 19th century through the 1980s. Highlights include two Wanli wucai garlic-head vases, a Qianlong mark and period, blue and ...
Specialist, Chinese Paintings, Christie's London Dr Malcolm McNeill is a Specialist in Chinese Paintings at Christie’s, based in London. He previously worked as an assistant curator of the Chinese collections and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, as a researcher at the British Museum, and as a translator and tour guide at the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
The Christie's Education 2020 Conference: The Chinese Art Market 18 Jun 2019 Christie’s Education is delighted to announce our first international academic conference in Asia which will take place in Hong Kong from 26-27 November 2020 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and will run in parallel with Christie’s Hong Kong Autumn Auctions.
The summer Chinese Art sale in Hong Kong will feature works of art from several private collections, including Qing porcelains and textile from the collection of the legendary Chinese art dealer A. W. Bahr (1877–1959), fine gilt bronze Buddhist sculptures from an old Hong Kong collection, an East Asian collection of Qing dynasty wine cups and jades, and a Japanese collection of Song ceramics ...
Sotheby's Chinese Works of Art Department holds two auctions each year in London, New York, Hong Kong and Paris.
Chinese Art - View Auction details, bid, buy and collect the various artworks at Sothebys Art Auction House.
With more than 340 Chinese works of art dating from the Neolithic to the Republic periods, highlights of this sale include a selection of Qing Imperial monochromes from the collection of Arnold and Blema Steinberg, early ceramics from the Art Institute of Chicago and Chinese porcelain and works of art from the collection of Henry Arnhold.
Results: Sotheby's Asia Week achieved $52.4 million in six strong auctions, exceeding pre-sale estimates. With 76.5% of lots sold and 60.3% of lots surpassing high estimates, the Asian art sales at Sotheby's indicate continued collector interest in the finest works of art from China, India and and the Himalayas.
Today's sale of Important Chinese Art will proceed as planned with sessions at 10 AM and 2 PM EDT. Sotheby's will be monitoring the weather conditions throughout the day and will be available to coordinate alternative bidding options should conditions make it difficult for clients to attend the auction in person.
Bonhams Chinese Art department is renowned for offering the finest works of art representing the richness and breadth of China's artistic heritage, particularly Imperial porcelain, white and spinach green jades, cloisonné and Buddhist art. Specialised international auctions are held globally, including London, Hong Kong and San Francisco.
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Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers: auctioneers of art, pictures, collectables and motor cars. We use cookies to remember choices you make on functionality and personal features to enhance your experience to our site. By continuing to use our site you consent to the use of cookies. ... Chinese Art (US) General enquiries
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Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers: auctioneers of art, pictures, collectables and motor cars Bonhams : Asian Art We use cookies to remember choices you make on functionality and personal features to enhance your experience to our site.
Bonhams are international auctioneers of fine Chinese and Japanese art. We specialise in rare Imperial and Export Chinese ceramics and works of art, as well as Japanese ceramics, fine and decorative works of art from the Neolithic Period to the 20th century. View on map
Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers: auctioneers of art, pictures, collectables and motor cars. We use cookies to remember choices you make on functionality and personal features to enhance your experience to our site. By continuing to use our site you consent to the use of cookies. ... Asian Art Bonhams. Work. 22 Queen St.