128.
A ‘FAMILLE VERTE’ BALUSTER VASE, GUANYIN ZUN
Qing dynasty, Kangxi period, early 18th century
44 cm high
Provenance: Naples, Villa della Floridiana, Museo Duca di Martina, Placido de Sangro (1829-1891) collection.
inv. n. 3359.
The decoration on the body of this vase is rather unusual, for the large laughing figures, the density of the arabesque which forms the ground and the stylization of the lotus corollas.
The figures shows some affinities with the style of Chen Hongshou (1598-1652), one of the most talented artist of the late Ming dynasty. During his career, Chen realized not only paintings but also images to be reproduced on print, such as the ones used to illustrate the “Romance of the Western Chamber” (Xixiangji) and “The Water Margin” (Shuihu zhuan). Chinese ceramists active during the Kangxi period knew these prints and in some occasions were inspired by them for the decoration of porcelain (R. Kerr, Chinese Ceramics. Porcelain of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), London 1986, pp. 102-103, n. 81, for a dish in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London with a group of figures modeled after Chen Hongshou’s “Water Margin”).
The relation between the decoration on this vase and the style of Chen Hongshou appears clearer if we compare the figures on the porcelain to the personages on some of his paintings, such as the one dated to 1635 in the Berkeley Museum of Art which depicts “The farewell of Su Wu and Li Ling” (inv. 2003.2.4).
When the shou character (“longevity”) appears together with the swastika character (wan, “ten thousands”), such as on the neck of this vase, the wish for a long life is further reinforced.
