Lot 584
  • 584

Fang Xun 1736-1799

Estimate
25,000 - 35,000 USD
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Description

  • Fang Xun
  • GLIMPSES OF THE DUANWU FESTIVAL
  • ink and color on paper, handscroll 
Inscription on painting by Zhang Xiong (1803-1886), signed Yuanhu houxue Zhang Xiong Zixiang, dated gengchen of the Guangxu reign, winter, the sixth day of the tenth lunar month (November 8, 1880), at the age of seventy-six, with a dedication and one seal, zhang xiong
Colophon by Fang Tinghu (active 19th century), signed Tinghu, dated xinwei (1811) of the Jiaqing reign, winter, with one seal, fang ting hu yin
With one collector's seal of Liu E (1857-1909), tie yun shen ding jin shi shu hua, and one other collector's seal, illegible

Exhibited

1. Scent of Ink: The Roy and Marilyn Papp Collection of Chinese Painting, Phoenix Art Museum, September 2-October 9, 1994; The Chrysler Museum, Virginia, November 13, 1994-January 8, 1995; Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Berlin, September 9-November 11, 1995; Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, December 15, 1995-February 18, 1996; China Institute, New York, February 4-June 10, 1998
2. Le Parfum de l'encre: Peintures Chinoises de la Collection Roy et Marilyn Papp, Musée Cernuschi, September 23-December 30, 1999
3. Lyrical Traditions: Four Centuries of Chinese Paintings from the Papp Collection, The Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, June 22-October 7, 2007

Literature

1. Scent of Ink: The Roy and Marilyn Papp Collection of Chinese Painting, Phoenix Art Museum, 1994, cat. 30, pp. 104-106
2. Le Parfum de l'encre: Peintures Chinoises de la Collection Roy et Marilyn Papp, Musée Cernuschi, 1999, cat. 32, pp. 119-121
3. Anne Kerlan-Stephens, Traduction et Commentaire d'un Texte sur la Peinture Chinoise:  Fang Xun (1736-1799) et son Shanjingju Hualun (Doctoral dissertation), University of Paris, 2000, cat. no. 65
4. Anne Kerlan-Stephens, "Un peintre lettré de la région de Hangzhou au XVIIIes.: Fang Xun (1737-1799) et les cercles de la reconnaissance", in Arts Asiatiques, tome 60, 2005, fig. 8a-b, p. 47
5. Anne Kerlan-Stephens, "Glimpses of the Duanwu Festival by Fang Xun (1736-1799):  Commemorative Painting or Private Souvenir?", in Claudia Brown (Ed.), Myriad Points of View, Arizona State University, Phoebus 9, 2006, fig. 1, 4, 5, pp. 117-142
6. Claudia Brown, Great Qing: Painting in China, 1644-1911, University of Washington Press, 2014, fig. 6.7, p. 159

Condition

- Paper bears tanned tone due to age. - Minor dirt and stain.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

Note:
Fang Tinghu is the son of the artist.

Fang Tinghu's colophon:
The scroll's length is not more than five [Chinese] feet. The subject concerns the Duanwu Festival, with essential details intact. I, Hu, carefully examined the scroll, and felt that this scroll must have painted in either 1782 or 1783. At the time, my late father was residing in the Tonghua Guan (Flowering Paulownia Studio), [at the estate of] the venerable Jin [Deyu]. On that occasion, elders like Zhu Fang'ai, Zhao Huaiyu, and Bao Tingbo were present. Consequently, given the circumstances, [my late father] depicted the scene on this scroll to record the festive spirit of that day. In that, he was but following in the footsteps of the Elegant Gathering at the Western Garden on the past.
Scent of Ink, p. 105

Zhang Xiong's inscription:
This scenery of Tianzhong mountain is indeed painted by Fang Xun, but without his signature and seal. Having shown this to people, Jiang Fengzao [1845-1908] obtained and collected it. I recognize that the style is of Master Fang with even a single glance. The painting should be kept as a treasure. 
On the 6th day in the 10th month in the 6th year of the Guangxu reign period [1880], I, Zhang Xiong, after examining and appraising the painting, write this, when I am seventy-six.
- Translation courtesy of Yang Wu