Reigning from 1736 to 1796, the Qianlong emperor led China to sweeping administrative, military and cultural achievements while far surpassing European monarchs of his day in wealth and power. As the fourth emperor of the Qing (pronounced ching) dynasty to rule China, his 60-year reign spanned the American and French Revolutions, and the reigns of a veritable parade of Georges, Fredericks and Catherines of Europe. The Qianlong emperor was a multi-faceted monarch — an aggressive military conqueror of vast territories and a passionate patron of the arts. Many of our impressions of imperial China's splendor date from the 18th century, and owe much to the tastes, fashions and style of the Qianlong court. While incorporating classic Chinese design features such as elements of nature and expressions of Confucian morality, the Qianlong emperor also added new concepts from European painting styles. His desire to innovate within the Chinese aesthetic touched the objects, architecture and landscapes that he commissioned, transforming what we recognize as Chinese art.
Objects of imperial contemplation
The artworks crafted for the Qianlong emperor echoed and supported his dedication to Buddhist spiritual pursuits, Confucian morals, love of literature and reverence for nature. "Visitors to this exhibition will be invited to walk through our galleries the way the Qianlong emperor would have strolled through his rooms and gardens. Around each corner are opportunities to encounter objects of beauty and exceptional craftsmanship," said Nancy Berliner, exhibition curator and curator of Chinese art at the Peabody Essex Museum.
A spectacular hanging Buddhist shrine painted on silk (shown left) evokes a paradisiacal realm, radiant with color and glittering with gold. The work is a mandala, a Buddhist cosmogram depicting a portion of the universe with deities and other supernatural beings arranged in a ritually auspicious design that can aid the meditation of initiated worshippers. In an innovative combination of two and three-dimensional formats, painted figures sit nestled in glass-covered insets, dotting the piece like set gemstones. The emperor, a devotee of a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Mongolia, is depicted in gold as the Bodhisattva Manjusri at the center.
The magnificent throne (shown right) exemplifies the exceptional craftsmanship of artisans engaged by the emperor to furnish his private world. This piece was carved from zitan, a wood so hard and dense that it sinks in water. Techniques including gold painting on lacquer, bamboo thread marquetry, fine wood carving, and jade and hardstone inlay contributed to the elegant solidity of the piece, which likely took well over a year to complete.
An impressive sight for Buddhist devotees or art connoisseurs is the monumental jade-and- lacquer screen (shown left) of 16luohan, or enlightened beings — the celebrated, quasi-legendary disciples of the Buddha. Each character is depicted in a surprisingly grotesque manner after an earlier painting by a master who saw them appear this way in a dream. Visually arresting in black and white, the reverse side of the screen is equally striking, with glorious botanical images painted in gold. Long hidden from view due to its orientation flush with a chamber wall, the reverse images were a great discovery for Palace Museum and WMF conservators working on the project.
Also included in the exhibition is one of the rare extant examples of imperial trompe-l'oeil mural painting, a fifteen-foot-wide work depicting women and children in a palace hall celebrating the New Year. The mural is one of only six such surviving 18th century works. Painted by Chinese court artists who had been trained by a European artist, the mural reflects a successful blending of European and Chinese traditions.
Other objects range from the quietly personal to the flamboyantly crafted and hued. Calligraphy written in the emperor's own hand conveys a sense of his refined thinking and brush technique. Panels carved in semiprecious gemstone or rendered in brilliantly pigmented cloisonné are as vibrant and pleasing as the day they were created.
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