Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

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Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

A catalogue of the Ashmolean collection of Chinese paintings by Shelagh Vainker (published Oxford, 2000).

Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford by Shelagh Vainker

Publications online: 222 objects

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Flowering branch

  • Literature notes

    Gao Jianfu was born in Panyu district, Guangdong province. He is best known as one of the masters, together with his brother Gao Qifeng, of the Lingnan School which is associated with Guangdong and was noted for its modernity and assimilation of foreign painting styles. Gao Jianfu was a pupil of the influential plant and insect painter Ju Lian (1828-1904) who, with his brother Ju Chao, advocated painting from life and direct observation. Gao also studied painting in Japan, at the Tokyo Institute of Fine Arts; while there he became involved in the anti-Manchu revolutionary campaign and thereafter engaged in educational and publishing work, most notably the Zhenxiang huabao (Truth Pictorial), as well as art. He held numerous academic posts and in 1923 he founded the teaching establishment Chunshui Art Studio.
  • Description

    Gao Jianfu was born in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. He is best known as one of the masters, together with his brother Gao Qifeng (1889-1933), of the Lingnan School which is associated with Guangdong and was noted for its modernity and assimilation of foreign painting styles. Gao Jianfu was a pupil of the influential flower and insect painter Ju Lian (1828-1904) who, with his brother Ju Chao (1811-1889), advocated painting from life and direct observation. Gao also studied painting in Japan, at Japan Fine Art Institute (Nihon bijutsu in). He was teaching, publishing, and painting at the same time. He held numerous academic posts and in 1923 he founded the Chunshui Art Studio for art education. This painting depicts a flowering branch of a kapok tree. Kapok flowers have been one of the most popular subjects among Lingnan artists because they are symbol of strength with their thick trunks and the flowering of the petals in early-Spring. In addition the red colour of kapok flowers has been widely associated with war and revolutionary China in the 20th century.

  • Details

    Associated place
    Asia China (place of creation)
    Date
    1934
    Artist/maker
    Gao Jianfu (1879 - 1951) (artist)
    Material and technique
    ink and colour on paper
    Dimensions
    painting 91.5 x 42.5 cm (height x width)
    along roller 64 cm (width)
    Material index
    Technique index
    Object type index
    No. of items
    1
    Credit line
    Purchased, 1991.
    Accession no.
    EA1991.73
  • Further reading

    Vainker, Shelagh, Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2000), no. 27 on p. 49, illus. p. 49 fig. 27

Past Exhibition

see (1)

Location

    • currently in research collection

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Publications online

  • Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford by Shelagh Vainker

    Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

    Gao Jianfu was born in Panyu district, Guangdong province. He is best known as one of the masters, together with his brother Gao Qifeng, of the Lingnan School which is associated with Guangdong and was noted for its modernity and assimilation of foreign painting styles. Gao Jianfu was a pupil of the influential plant and insect painter Ju Lian (1828-1904) who, with his brother Ju Chao, advocated painting from life and direct observation. Gao also studied painting in Japan, at the Tokyo Institute of Fine Arts; while there he became involved in the anti-Manchu revolutionary campaign and thereafter engaged in educational and publishing work, most notably the Zhenxiang huabao (Truth Pictorial), as well as art. He held numerous academic posts and in 1923 he founded the teaching establishment Chunshui Art Studio.
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