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Stephen Solovy Fine Art
Splendors of Chinese Art
980 North MichiganAvenue
13th Floor
Chicago, Illinois6061
Telephone: 312.664-4860
Facsimile: 312.664-6726
This catalogue would not have been possible without the invaluable assistance
of Dr. Francis Li, whose great knowledge and tireless support have guided me in
mydiscovery of Chinese art.
Dr. Li's magnificent generosity is further evidenced in the Chinese translations
which he provided forthis catalogue.
am indebted to the kindness and erudition of Fan Dongqing, of the Shanghai
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Museum, who has illuminated my understanding and appreciation of the Spring
and Autumn period gold-inlaid bronze stem-cup (cat. no. 8).
I would also like to thank Dawn Odell for hersignificant contributions in
cataloguing and research.
Photography: Patrick O'Neill
Catalogue Cover Design: Use Krause
Printed in the U.S.A.
© 1996 Stephen Solovy Fine Art. Chicago
This catalogue is dedicated to Mary Kohl from whom inherited
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my eye and appreciation for the beautiful.
Illustrated(detail)andonpage23
8
Extremely Rare Gold Inlaid Bronze Stem-Cup
EasternZhou Dynasty, SpringandAutumn Period (770-476 B.C.)
Splendors of Chinese Art
INTRODUCTION
It is with great pleasure and excitementthat I present my gallery's inaugural
exhibition of Chinese art, an event which celebrates our new location in the One
Magnificent Mile building.
inviteyou tojoin with me in this adventurous quest back intothe depths of
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time. Chinese art embodies an inherently unique sensibility. Ifyou look closely
atan archaic bronzevessel ora Han dynasty potteryfigure, you will immediately
recognize their raw primordial powerand abstracted form-qualities which
constitute ourWestern definition of 'modern'.
The works offered for sale in this exhibition reflect ourefforts to maintain the
highest standards of qualityand connoisseurship. Before considering a work for
acquisition, we evaluated its rarity and condition, asking ourselves whether it
was the very best example of its kind.
Peruse this catalogue and discoverthe Warring States bronze figure ofa tapir
standing majestically in a position of repose. This enigmatically profound
creation ofthe fourth century BC could have leaped offthe canvas of a Magritte
painting. Examine the dynamic composition of 'Boys at Play', the 17th century
woven silk tapestry, and you will be struck bythis Ming artist's prefiguring of
Cezanne, as he conveys a rocky landscape through the lyrical interplay of
intersecting geometric planes. You could easily mistake the pair of black
Neolithic goblets -stunning in their reduction ofform to its purest essence — as
a striking example of modern design.
You may also be humbled when you contemplate the sophistication ofthe
Longshan culture which had the refinement oftaste to create these magnificent
goblets over4,500years ago! Asyou explore the myriad intricacies of Chinese
art, yourconception oftime, and our place within the continuum of man's
evolution, will be forever altered. Coming from a culture which measures time
and cultural evolutions in decades, it is a great leap to step back to the art ofthe
Chinese civilization whose interstices are measured in millennia.
Stephen Kohl Solovy
CHRONOLOGY
B.C. A.D.
Neolithic period Circa5500 - 1700
Xia dynasty Circa2100 - 1600
Shang dynasty Crca 1600 - 1045
Western Zhou dynasty 1100 - 771
Eastern Zhou dynasty 770 - 256
Spring and Autumn period 770 - 476
Warring States period 475 - 221
Han dynasty 206 - 220
Western Han 206 - 9
Eastern Han 25 - 220
The Six Dynasties 220 - 581
Northern and Southern dynasties
Sui dynasty 581 - 618
Tang dynasty 618 - 906
Five Dynasties 907 - 960
Liao dynasty 907 - 1125
Song dynasty 960 - 1279
Northern Song 960 - 1127
Southern Song 1127 - 1279
Jin dynasty 1115 - 1234
Yuan dynasty 1279 - 1368
Ming dynasty 1368 - 1644
Qing dynasty 1644 - 1911
1
A Fine Pair of Eggshell Black Earthenware Goblets
Late Neolithic Period, Longshan Culture (circa2700-2100 BO
Height: 9.25 in (23.5 cm) and 7.75 in (19.6 cm)
These black earthenware goblets are remnants of the long-vanished Neolithic Longshan culture of Shandong
Province. Little is known ofthe people who produced these objects beyond their ability to create pottery
vessels of a rare delicacy and elegance. Made from an exceptionallyfine-grained clay, the goblets were thrown
on the wheel in individual pieces which were then luted together before firing. This potting method and the
overall quality of the clay allowed forthe astonishing thinness ofthe gobletwalls, in places merely one tothree
millimeters thick. Burnished to a glossyfinish, the cups are simply decorated with fine horizontal score marks
around the bowljust beneath the flaring lip, and with small incisions in the bulb ofthe stem- refinements which
do not detractfrom the simple beauty ofthe goblets' angular, elongated form.
Similar Examples:
Margaret Medley, The Chinese Potter, Oxford, 1976, fig. 12, p. 25.
William Willets, Foundations ofChineseArt, London, 1965, fig. 17, p. 39.
