Xu Guan, A Private Assignation, Qing dynasty, 18th century | 清十八世紀　徐莞〈歲華韻事〉一冊十二幀全　設色絹本　「徐莞之印」印

Collection of Felix Wiesner, Austria.

Felix Wiesner 收藏，奧地利

Ferdinand M. Bertholet, Les Jardins du Plaisir: Érotisme et art dans la Chine ancienne / Gardens of Pleasure: Eroticism and Art in China, Paris, 2003 (rev. English ed., Munich, Berlin, London, New York, 2010), pp. 9, 14, 18, 28-29, 33, 45, 132-147.

貝索烈，《Les Jardins du Plaisir: Érotisme et art dans la Chine ancienne / Gardens of Pleasure: Eroticism and Art in China》，巴黎，2003年（英文再版，慕尼黑、柏林、倫敦、紐約，2010年），頁9、14、18、28-29、33、45、132-147

The present album captivates its readers through carefully staged scenes of arousal. According to the seal impression at the margin of the eighth leaf, it is believed to be painted by an otherwise unknown artist named Xu Guan.

The fluently drawn figures in this album are richly adorned with beautiful clothes. The rooms and gardens are decorated with antiques, suggesting the affluence and discerning taste of the figures. There are also auspicious items such as pomegranate flowers and finger citrus, which symbolise abundance. Architectural structures and screens are conscientiously used to divide the space and convey a sense of privacy (or sometimes an intentional illusion of it).

Each of the seemingly unconnected pictures tells a story through charming details. For example, the first leaf shows a virgin identifiable by her unshaved forehead hesitating to join another girl for a voyeuristic experience. In the second picture, a naked couple is about to consummate their love after browsing an erotic album that is now lying on a side table. In the sixth scene, a woman secretly climbs through a ‘moon’ window to join her lover under the veil of the night; the candle on her table is left burning. In the ninth picture, a husband is dragged away by his wife from his preferred concubine late at night, leaving one of his shoes behind. In the last scene, framed by a blossoming prunus tree, a duo finds their joy in proximity of a furnace.