China Guardian's 2009 Spring Auction will be held in grand style May 17-30, presenting Chinese painting and calligraphy, porcelain and jade handicrafts, oil paintings, sculptures, portraits, rare books and manuscripts, coins, banknotes and bronze mirrors in a total of over 5400 lots. There will also be a live jewelry exhibition and sale. In addition, introductory events and lectures will be held in Hangzhou and Ji’nan.
The preview for Chinese painting and calligraphy, porcelain and jade handicrafts, oil paintings and sculptures, and rare books and manuscripts will be held May 26-28, and the auction will be held May 29-30. The location is the Beijing Kerry Center Hotel. The preview for the coins and bronze mirrors will be held May 17-18 at the Beijing International Hotel, and the auction will be held May 19-22 at the same location.
The works in each section of this Spring Auction are all extremely brilliant, and moreover, they are quite attractive in terms of appraised value. In the category of classical Chinese painting and calligraphy, three treasures will be presented, all from the imperial collections of the Qing Dynasty. They are the massive, nearly twenty-meter scroll, "Arhats in the Style of Li Gonglin" by the Ming Dynasty's Wu Bin; "Painting of Luck and Beauty" from the Southern Song Dynasty; and Dong Bangda's "After Snow." In addition, the calligraphy section features the peerless works of Tang Bohu and Guo Moruo. And in order to commemorate the 110th birthday of Zhang Daqian, China Guardian will also meticulously present over thirty of his paintings.
In the porcelain category, there will be a special showing of traditional Qing Dynasty Boccaro, and in addition, the "Qianlong-era Turquoise-rose Mixed-glaze Lotus Baluster Vase" from a Japanese collector and the "Qianlong-era Underglaze Red Dragon Gourd Vase" from a Shanghai collector will be worth following.
In the Contemporary Art section, Zhang Xiaogang's major 1996 work "Blood Line Series: Big Family 13" and Zeng Fanzhi's major 1994 work "Mask Series: Number 17" will be featured. Shen Jiawei's historically symbolic work "Standing Guard for our Great Motherland" will also take the stage. Other featured works include Chen Yifei's "Girl Playing Clarinet," Jin Shangyi's "Rest," and works from Cai Guoqiang, Wang Guangyi, Yue Minjun and other major artists. There will also be about sixty photography works and a special showing of sculpture from Southeast China.
In the rare books and manuscripts section, both Hu Shi's letters and the "Song Ban Liu Jing tu" [Song edition Six Classics] will be appearing for the first time, a very rare opportunity. In the coins, banknotes and bronze mirrors sections, there will be a special showing from the world's most renowned collector of military banknotes, "Mrs. S. P. Ting's Collection of Chinese Military Notes and Bonds," and also a special showing of Ma Dingxiang's collection. These special showings will be the highlight of the whole event, and many items will be appearing for the first time in what will be an occasion not to be missed.