The Collector’s Encyclopedia of
Geisha Girl Porcelain

By: Elyce Litts

The book shows what was done during the late Qing Dynasty where high artistic standard was developed within a group of Qianjiang color artists, painting on porcelain.

The small booklet is extremely well illustrated in color despite its small size. Around 100 items are shown, often from several perspectives; regularly front and back. 64 artist porcelain painters are presented, the book includes a “China Qianjiang colour artist list” for easy reference.

Hangzhou: Zhejiang University Press, 2006
21×14 cm, Paperback.
102 pages, more that 200 Colour illustrations
Marks, seals and inscriptions are illustrated and occasionally prices of the items are given.
The text is entirely in Chinese.
In the captions any date in the inscriptions are given in Arabic numerals.

For Qianjiang pieces this book is one of the better published so far. It illustrates many pieces from more accomplished Qianjiang artists. It’s a useful and well-illustrated addition to the literature on the subject of Qianjiang painted porcelains from the late Qing and Republic periods. Illustrated throughout in color. Text in Chinese.

Shijiazhuang 2003.
58 pages introduction in Chinese, 193 pp. colour plates.
B/w text illustrations and drawings.
30×21 cm.

]]> http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/268/qianjiang-caici-hua-qianjiang-painted-porcelains-by-chen-jianxin-et-al/feed 0 http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/266/minguo-ciqi-jianding-taiyou-caihui-qixing-by-tie-yuan-and-xi-ming http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/266/minguo-ciqi-jianding-taiyou-caihui-qixing-by-tie-yuan-and-xi-ming#comments Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:56:05 +0000 Jan-Erik Nilsson http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/?p=266

Part I – Republican Period Ceramics: Paste, Glazes, Painting and Shapes

This is one book is a set of two, both written by Tie Yuan and Xi Ming detailing Republican period ceramics. This volume start with a discourse on the production of ceramics complemented by early black-and-white photographs. Follows with an examination of glazes, painting on Republican ceramics and an in-depth presentation of the many new and prevalent shapes from this period. Illustrated with hundreds of color plates showing many previously unpublished pieces.

Part II – Republican Period Ceramics: Designs, Seals and Forgeries

Second book in this set by the same authors continues the in-depth discourse on Republican period ceramics. Many inscriptions on porcelain are shown that include artists’ seals plus hall and studio marks. Finishes with a section on the problem of forgeries of Republican period ceramics and Republican period imitations of earlier works.

Both books are recommended on behalf of the illustrations although the text remains a closed door to non-Chinese readers. Dates are occasionally given in western numerals in the captions.

Beijing, 2004.
302 resp. 310 pages.
Colour plates throughout.
Book I – Two foldout color illustrations on porcelain figures.
B/w illustrations.
Size 29×22 cm.
Hardbound. Text in Chinese

]]> http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/264/the-great-fortune-das-grosse-gluck-by-georg-weishaupt/feed 0 http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/262/innovations-and-creations-by-lai-suk-yee-ed http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/262/innovations-and-creations-by-lai-suk-yee-ed#comments Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:22:46 +0000 Jan-Erik Nilsson http://www.gotheborg.com/bestbooks/?p=262 Catalog of an exhibition jointly presented by the Art Museum, The Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Jingdezhen Ceramic Museum which gives an overview of ceramic production in Jingdezhen in the last century.

This book created quite a stir in the west and in all circles that had held the opinion that no porcelain of any merit had been made since the mid 10th century. This exhibition proved that there were lot to be found also from later periods and in excellent taste and workmanship. There are several books published now from this period, but this one still stands out as one of the most important.

The catalog illustrates and details 186 items of porcelain plaques, wares and sculptures decorated in famille rose enamels, wucai enamels, monochromes and under glaze blue. The rich contents include imperial wares for the last Qing Emperor Xuantong and also the short-lived Hongxian regime, painted porcelain by accomplished ceramic artists including the celebrated group of the “Eight Friends of Zhushan”, sculptures and painted plaques of the Cultural Revolution period (1960s and 70s), a variety of antique-type wares and porcelain painted with new techniques.

The majority of the pieces are selected from the collection of the Jingdezhen Ceramic Museum – this is augmented by items from private and public collections in Hong Kong. Most pieces are here published for the first time. The catalog contains full color plates of all items with detailed descriptions and an introductory essay by Cao Ganyuan, Academic Director of the Jingdezhen Ceramic Museum. Dual text in English and Chinese.

Hong Kong, 2004. 255 pp. Over 150 colour plates.
Text in English and Chinese.
Format 30×24 cm. Cloth.

The book includes a report on the excavation work that from the 1970 and onwards was made under the direction of Prof. Liu Xinyuan. The report covers the first period of ceramic activity during the Five Dynasties when mostly Yue green wares was imitated; over the Song dynasty when the industry stared to boom and the later development into Ming times. The main emphasis is on the early history and Song, some on Yuan and the touching upon the Ming dynasty in general.

I feel this is an important report, in particular about the Song and Yuan excavations in and around Jingdezhen but however thick with its 366 color illustrated items, I feel it is spread too thin over a too large an area to be really valuable. It is interesting, yes, and I believe if you have that kind of mindset that you want to get to the bottom of the Jingdezhen kilns, this belongs among the must have’s. However you also need to prepare for a long journey, before you have got the full picture because considering the wealth of material dug up in Jingdezhen during the last decades, this book really does not contain much at all. One good point is that quite often bases, foot rims and marks are shown. Something that is missing in the earlier book, Imperial Porcelain of the Yongle and Xuande Periods.

Still, what is here is here and I figure we need to be grateful for that, but as I said, many important areas are covered badly or not at all and is probably awaiting publication in their own sweet time.

JE

Text in English and Chinese, Around 400 pages of which 168 pages with introduction plus around 250 pages with 366 color photos of the exhibits. Any index is strangely missing and there are no pagination on the pages in the section with catalog entries.
University of Hong Kong 1992.

A Legacy of Ming: Ceramic Finds from the Site of the Ming Palace in Nanjing

Since the 1950′s, several important excavations of porcelain wares have been conducted at the site of the Ming Palace in Nanjing, which has proved to be another important find for Ming ceramics in addition to Jingdezhen. In 1964, while the city dredged the Yudai River, ceramic archaeologists from the Nanjing Museum found a large number of ceramic shards, mainly blue and white wares dating from the late Yuan to the early Ming reigns of Hongwu, Yongle and Xuande. Through careful analysis and extensive research, their findings help identify wares of the Hongwu reign and styles and development of porcelain wares in the Yongle and Xuande reigns. The archaeologists also recognized wares produced in the interregnum period during the three reigns of Zhengtong, Jingtai and Tianshun.

This comprehensive catalog features more than 200 shards illustrated in color-including lead glazed tiles and bricks, porcelain bricks, triangular and circular tile terminals, monochromes, blue and whites and polychromes-together with detailed descriptive entries and two introductory essays.

Paperback: 180 pages
Publisher: Museum and Art Gallery, University of Hong Kong; 1 edition (December 1995)
ISBN-10: 962710132X
ISBN-13: 978-9627101321
Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8 x 0.5 inches

Beauty’s Enchantment, Seventeenth-century Jingdezhen Porcelain from the Shanghai Museum and the Butler Collection, by Sir Michael Butler and Prof. Wang Qingzheng.

This book is a catalog from a joint exhibition between the Shanghai Museum and the Butler Collection, covering the period from 1621 to the Mid Kangxi period. The section introductions and captions take their basis in the historical events of the time and explains how this is reflected in the porcelain pieces discussed. The text as well as the illustrations are first class. If you look for one book only covering the Ming-Qing Transitional period, this volume would be my personal choice. It’s really outstanding.

Another highly appreciated feature is that whenever possible, the bases and any present marks are illustrated in full color. All entries in the catalog are also individually signed by the authors.

If you can find a hardbound version it would definitely be worth it. My copy is paperback but given a choice, the quality of the content definitely motivates a better binding.

Paperback: 360 pages
Publisher: Scala Publishers Ltd (March 15, 2006)
ISBN-10: 1857594177
ISBN-13: 978-1857594171
Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 9.1 x 1.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.5 pounds

Sheaf, Colin & Kilburn, Richard, The Hatcher Porcelain Cargoes. The Complete Record.

Overview and general presentation of the two first of Michael Hatchers porcelain cargoes, the Ming junk cargo (c. 1643-1646) from a seventeenth century Chinese junk, and the Dutch East Indiaman Geldermalsen that foundered in 1752.

I think this is a good reference for the Hatcher cargoes, in particular the 1640′s junk. This book and the actual auction catalogs covers it very well. I would not call this book indispensable but the color pictures of the 1640s junk cargo are good and considering the precise dating of the pieces this is a valuable reference.

192 pages
212 illustrations of which 138 in color
Phaidon/Christies, 1988.
ISBN. 0 7148 8046 9