EACS-2016. Book of Abstracts

Section 7 21st Biennial Conference of the European Association for Chinese Studies 77 and lithography technology; 2) education and enlightenment: politics, ethics and the future of nation; 3) renovation and re-creation of culture: the preservation and innovation of history; 4) history and new citizen: evolvement, historiography and national identity; 5) general history of art and history of artefact: Han painting from the perspective of modern art history/archeology. The cultural interpretation of Han painting has become an important topic for academic studies of modern China and this paper would like to focus on the history of reception of Han painting in the Late Qing and Early Republic Period. Chiang Nicole (Museum of East Asian Art, Bath) Reconsidering the Qianlong Emperor’s Personal Taste and the Imperial Taste Key words: Qing, Qianlong, tea, ceramics, poetry It is generally assumed that the Qianlong emperor (r. 1736–1795) was the absolute monarch, and that his personal preferences determined the development of the imperial taste at the Qing court. However, this assumption might need to be re-evaluated. While many objects produced by the imperial workshops during the Qianlong reign were elaborate and extravagant, evidence suggests that the emperor personally preferred a much simpler style. The tea wares he used alone in his private tea houses did not have as many colors and decorations as the ones he used in daily life when he was seen by many people. According to his poems, the emperor also detested the intricately carved jades that filled the court at the time and favored a more frugal style. This paper will suggest that the emperor’s personal taste might not be the imperial taste he established. The imperial image the emperor needed to project in public might not necessarily reflect his personally preferred style. Cura Nixi (University of Glasgow / Christie's Education) Paintings on/in Boxes Key words: Qing, Qianlong, painting, landscape, collecting This paper examines a category largely excluded from the study of Chinese painting--pictures com- missioned specifically to adorn the exteriors and interiors of cases and boxes designed to store and display collectibles. These works do not warrant mention in painting treatises and catalogues, but ample documentation of the painters and subject matters appears in the Qing (1644–1911) imperial household records. An orderly collaboration among the workshops specialising in paintings, mountings and boxes, and “miscellaneous things” reveal the extent of the labor and craftsmanship involved. Conceived as sup- plemental ornament, the existence of these paintings nevertheless predicated an anticipated visual and spatial relationship with the artwork(s) in these bespoke treasure boxes. Drawing upon recent scholar- ship in material culture and collecting practice during the Qianlong period (1736–1795), this presenta- tion acknowledges that imperial authority accrued via technical excellence and collecting antiques, but focuses primarily on the visual and tactile possibilities in the affective then cognitive perception of these works. Although physically relegated to the margins around the main object(s), these paintings served as fleeting pleasurable ornament, as symbolic or witty commentary, and as a calculated component in the layering of meaning and mood. De Nigris Ornella (Sapienza University) The Guangdong Times Museum and the Institutional Critique: a New Curatorial Approach Key words: Art museum; institutional critique; Guangdong Times Museum; contemporary Chinese art The museum devoted only to art is a relatively novel concept in China. Nevertheless, in the last few years thousands of contemporary art museums have flourished all over the country. Today, this