Starting from the 7th of December last year
We held the largest exhibition of Dong Qichang in the Chinese mainland
Since Yuan dynasty, Zhao Mengfu and Dong Qichang are the only two most influential painters who could bridge the past traditions to the future
Dong’s influence is lingering throughout the years
At least a generation of us hasn’t seen Dong’s works
This time the exhibits come from
The collection of The Shanghai Museum
As well as loaned pieces from 15 other museums and institutions
6 from the US, 3 from Japan and 6 from China
The exhibition features 154 pieces of Dong’s works of art
And 6 guest exhibits
Today at the second half, there are around 40 pieces already replaced by other works
Through the rotation of exhibits
Dong was born in 1555
But the span of our exhibition is over one thousand years
Part one “Dong Qichang and His Time”
We are showcasing important artists and calligraphers ahead of him who made a great impact on his art
Such as Dong Yuan
Wang Xizhi
And works from the collection of museums in the US
The six US institutions loaned their exhibits to us throughout
Including Guo Xi, Zhao Ji
Qiu Ying, etc.
Part two “Dong Qichang’s Achievement and Transcendence” presents his works
The early “Eight Scenes in Yan and Wu”
The intermediary “Fang Ge Xing”
The mature “Eight Views of Autumn Moods”
晚期的《關山雪霁》 And the later “Guan Shan Xue Ji”
You have a chance to see them all at one time
Part three “Dong Qichang’s Influence and Works Copying after Him”
Past experience didn’t expect many visitors
But this time, not only did we receive quite a few visitors
But they spent almost an equivalent amount of time with this part
Dong was genuinely a native of Shanghai
He was born in what now is Maqiao, Minxing District
Later documented as Huating, Songjiang born
He passed the jinshi examination
And rose to an official position with the Ministry of Rites
And he was the instructor of the crown prince
It’s a rather high position in the government
But he was not very ambitious in official career
In the 48 years he worked as an official
He was on leave for 27 years
He was more attached to paintings and calligraphy
At the imperial civil service exam
He was dismissed as second
Because of his clumsy calligraphy
Since then he put tremendous efforts in studying calligraphy
And obtained noted achievement in painting and calligraphy
His theory was groundbreaking
He set forth the concept of “literati”
They painted intuitively and appealed to sensitive elite rather than to popular taste
Painting henceforth entered a new era
Dong’s creative approach
Was conscientious, disciplined, seeking out the spirit
At 38, his “Xing Shu Lun Shu Juan”
Demonstrated his mature yet breezy form of brushwork
Was built up yet also retained an airy feeling
And at the age of 62, his own style was fully developed
Emperor Kangxi and Qianlong admired Dong
The royal complimented him as having a peaceful personality
Such simplicity and innocence matched his painting
In 2017, US president Trump visited China
President Xi welcomed him at The Palace Museum
They both had their eyes on a Chinese landscape painting by Dong
With painting and calligraphy as a medium
Dong channeled a highly representative Chinese culture
Ancient times, Jin, Tang, Song dynasty
He learned from the style of the eminent calligraphers
Wang Xizhi
Wang Xianzhi
Yan Zhenqing
Huai Su
Yu Shinan and so on
And even the four masters of the Song dynasty
In a single piece of work
You may find Yan Zhenqing’s dignity
Huai Su’s dynamics
And Mi Fu’s skillful handling of his brush like a sharp sword in a fight
He was able to incorporate the abstract features of beauty into one work
What differentiates Dong’s calligraphy from others?
For one is the generous spacing
Between characters and lines
This tended towards the style of Yang Ning
As a connoisseur, he sorted out ancient paintings and calligraphies in his collection
Including identifying forgeries
What paintings he had examined?
Which scrolls he had commented on?
About 300 pieces
“Admonitions of the Instructress the Court Ladies”, currently at The British Museum
Lu Ji’s “Pingfu Tie”, currently at The Palace Museum, Beijing
Fan Kuan’s “Travellers among Mountains and Streams”, currently at The National Palace Museum, Taipei
Zhao Mengfu’s “Autumn colours on the Qiao and Hua mountains”
(Huang Gongwang)“Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains”
These were Dong’s collection in Shanghai
It’s safe to say that on almost all significant paintings of Jin, Tang, Song and Yuan dynasty
One is able to find traces of Dong’s authentication
There has long been rumors about Dong
Saying that he was a local tyrant stealing innocent women
New findings suggest
That he was wronged
It is possible that Dong was discredited
By his enemies
Forgeries of his works started being spotted at his 50s
There are thousands of works under his name
But the real ones amount to only a few hundred
He lived until the age of 82
His last work “Xi Suo Song Fa Tu”
Was painted two months before he died
The painting was loaded with dynamics and energy
If not for Dong
There wouldn’t have been flourishing painters and painting schools at early Qing dynasty
He developed a time-transcending theory
That was of guiding significance even after his time
And he was able to achieve it both practically and in terms of creation
He was therefore the “real” Dong Qichang