China-US museum collaboration brings historic bronze artworks to Shanghai
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The exhibition Recasting the Past: The Art of Chinese Bronzes, 1100-1900, jointly curated by the Shanghai Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (The Met), officially opened to the public at the Shanghai Museum on Wednesday. This exhibition, based on the Shanghai Museum's collection of bronzes from the Song (960-1279), Yuan (1279-1368), Ming (1368-1644), and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, brings together important collections from museums across Asia, Europe, and the US.
Many of the objects are being shown to the public for the first time, making this one of the most significant exhibitions of Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties' bronzes in recent years, both in China and internationally. The first stop of the exhibition was successfully held at The Met in New York from February 28 to September 28.
At a press conference held on Tuesday, Chu Xiaobo, director of the Shanghai Museum, noted that this is the first time the Shanghai Museum and The Met have co-curated such an exhibition. Drawing on the latest academic research, the exhibition focuses on the development of Chinese bronzes in the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, breaking through previous stereotypes about archaistic bronzes. It aims to present their aesthetic pursuits and cultural spirit, which were characterized by innovation within tradition and evolution within inheritance, according to information sent to the Global Times from the Shanghai Museum.
Max Hollein, director of The Met, said, "We were thrilled to present this exhibition at The Met earlier this year, which offered a new appreciation of archaistic bronzes as creative adaptations of antique precedents. These bronzes possess their own aesthetic merits, distinct functions, and profound cultural significance." He added that this exhibition is one of the many ways The Met engages with the art of China. The museum's galleries for Chinese art present exhibitions and acquisitions, which aim to challenge accepted concepts and explore areas that have been less well studied in the West.
The highlights of the exhibition include a Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) bronze ox ding from the Hebei Museum; a Ming Dynasty bronze gui vessel from the Shanghai Museum; a bronze zun vessel in the shape of an ox made in the Qing Dynasty from the Palace Museum; a Ming Dynasty goose-shaped incense burner collected at The Met and, from the British Museum, a late 19th-century French imitation of a gilt bronze double-phoenix ewer originally made during the era of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty.
Among more than 170 exhibits, the Qing Dynasty's bronze zun from the Palace Museum stands out for its exquisite craftsmanship and dignified, archaic form. Shaped like an ox with short legs and a slender, drooping tail, the vessel features a crescent on its head and a gourd-shaped treasure vase on its back. The vase body is decorated with dragon motifs and four raised flame-like ridges, topped with a beaded knob, while the lid can be opened. Originally, this bronze vessel would have been displayed in the Imperial Ancestral Temple and was used to hold wine during annual sacrificial ceremonies.
The bronze ewer in the British Museum's collection, made in France in the 19th century and marked "Christofle & Co.," was modeled after Qianlong-period Chinese bronzes. This shows the European fascination with Qing Dynasty bronzes during that era, resulting in highly accurate French-made Chinese-style archaistic bronzes.
Speaking about the exhibition's previous run in New York, which attracted around 300,000 visitors, Hollein noted that it took decades to cultivate such an audience. The Met houses many important exhibits originally from China. The museum staff anticipated the exhibition would generate significant interest, but they were still surprised by the excitement and curiosity visitors showed in discovering new aspects and insights.
(Global Times)
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