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CUHK Art Museum Exhibits the Art of Prof. Jao Tsung-i
The Art Museum of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and the Department of Fine Arts, CUHK, will jointly present the exhibition Enduring Presence: The Art of Professor Jao Tsung-i in the Collection of the Department of Fine Arts and Art Museum, CUHK from tomorrow (25 March) to 14 May 2017 on the occasion of the Department’s 60th anniversary. This exhibition will showcase 45 paintings and calligraphic works by Prof. Jao Tsung-i, most of which have hitherto been displayed. Members of the public are welcome to visit the exhibition. Admission is free.
The opening ceremony of the exhibition was held today (24 March). Those present included Prof. Joseph J.Y. Sung, Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK; Prof. Jao Tsung-i, Honorary Advisor of the Institute of Chinese Studies and Wei Lun Honorary Professor of Fine Arts; Mr. Christopher Mok, Chairman, Advisory Committee of the Art Museum; Prof. Leung Yuen-sang, Director of the Institute of Chinese Studies; Prof. Harold Mok, Chairman of the Department of Fine Arts; Prof. Josh Yiu, Director of the Art Museum and Dr. Phil Chan, Research-Assistant Curator (Painting & Calligraphy) of the Art Museum, CUHK.
The Department of Fine Arts, CUHK, originated in a fine arts programme launched by the New Asia College in 1957. Over the past six decades, the Department has trained up a great number of talents by remaining true to its mission of ‘promoting traditional Chinese culture and bridging Chinese and Western art’ with an emphasis on traditional Chinese art for its core courses. An important partner of the Department is the Art Museum (formerly Art Gallery), which was founded in 1971. All of its directors, past or present, have been the Department’s faculty, three of whom have been concurrently the Department’s chairmen, and there has been an ongoing collaboration in teaching, curating and research between the two entities. This unique and complementary partnership has proved to be successful, leading to the recognition of CUHK as a principal cradle of art professionals. The credit goes to the dedicated teachers and scholars, preeminent amongst them being Prof. Jao Tsung-i.
Professor Jao, born in Chaoan, Guangdong, in 1917, is an erudite scholar of international renown and an undisputed authority on a wide range of subjects that cover archaeology, Dunhuangology, oracle bones, stones and bronzes, Songs of the South, manuscripts on bamboo slips and silk, and Chinese poetry, painting and calligraphy. Whether in terms of art or scholarship, the Department of Fine Arts and the Art Museum have benefited immensely from his expertise. As early as 1952, he taught at the New Asia College and was a part-time teacher at the Department between 1975 and 1977. In his capacity as Honorary Professor since 1982, he has supervised many of the Department’s MPhil and PhD students. The Art Museum has also been fortunate to have had valuable advice from him on many aspects.
Grouped under the four sections ‘Inscriptions and Connoisseurship’, ‘Modelling on the Past’, ‘Creativity and Originality’, and ‘Paintings with a Difference’, the exhibition aims to showcase the professor’s proficiency in Chinese art and his longstanding ties with the Department and the Museum. Most importantly, it serves as a token of gratitude from the two institutes to the professor. To complement the exhibition, the Art Museum has not only published an exhibition catalogue, but also invited Prof. Harold Mok, and Prof. Tong Kam-tang from the Department of Fine Arts to present two public lectures. This will provide an excellent opportunity for the public to learn about Professor Jao’s Chinese art and teaching objectives.
Details of the exhibition are as follows:
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Exhibition Period: |
25 March to 14 May 2017 |
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Exhibition Venue: |
Gallery I, Art Museum, Institute of Chinese Studies, CUHK |
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Opening Hours: |
Mondays to Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays: 10:00am-5:00pm |
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Closed: |
Thursdays, Easter Holidays (14-17 April, 2017) |
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Enquiries: |
3943-7416 |
Colophon to Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra Datable to the Tang Dynasty Dated 1985 25.4 x 32 cm The Sutra Handscroll, ink on paper 25.4 x 680 cm Collection of Art Museum, CUHK Acc. no. 2000.0072 Gift of Bei Shan Tang Previously in the collection of the Bei Shan Tang, the sutra carries an inscription by Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983) that suggests a dating to the late Tang. The dating is disputed by Professor Jao in this colophon based on the text, the occurrence of variant characters and the use of a tabooed character. Again, it is a testimony to the calligrapher’s friendship with Dr Lee Jung-sen (1915-2007).
Five-character Couplet in Regular-running Script Dated 1989 Pair of hanging scrolls, ink on gold-flecked paper 128.5 x 31 cm each Collection of Art Museum, CUHK Acc. no. 2004.0351 Gift of Prof. To Cho-yee Graceful and elegant, the couplet was a gift to Professor To Cho-yee, the founding dean of the Faculty of Education, The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Grapes Dated ca. 1985-1986 Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper 138.5 x 34.5 cm Collection of Art Museum, CUHK Acc. no. 1986.0035 Gift of Prof. Jao Tsung-i Expressive and unimpeded, this specimen in ink and colour was painted after the style of the Ming painter Xu Wei (1521-1593). The poem on grapes in the inscription was composed by the late Song and early Yuan painter Wen Riguan (?-1291).
Script Stretching to the Horizon Dated 1996 Horizontal scroll, ink and colour on paper 61.6 x 559.4 cm Collection of Art Museum, CUHK Acc. no. 2016.0075 Portrayed in light ocher and refined brushwork, the riverscape scroll unfolds a tranquil and magnificent vista of rocky banks in the foreground, with dwellings nestling in the woods overlooked by rolling hills in the background. Stylistically, it immediately invites comparison with Huang Gongwang (1269-1354), Ni Zan (1301-1374) and Monk Hongren (1610-1664) and culminates in a masterpiece that best illustrates how the past is tapped for the sake of originality.
Prof. Joseph J.Y. Sung, Vice Chancellor and President of CUHK delivers a speech.
(From left) Dr. Phil Chan, Research-Assistant Curator (Painting and Calligraphy) of the Art Museum, CUHK; Prof. Harold Mok, Chairman, Department of Fine Arts, CUHK; Mr. Christopher MOK, Chairman, Advisory Committee, Art Museum, CUHK; Prof. Jao Tsung-i, GBM, Honorary Advisor of the Institute of Chinese Studies and Wei Lun Honorary Professor of Fine Arts, CUHK; Prof. Joseph J.Y. Sung, Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK; Prof. Leung Yuen-sang, Director of the Institute of Chinese Studies, CUHK and Prof. Josh Yiu, Director of the Art Museum, CUHK officiate at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the exhibition.
A group photo of officiating guests, Prof. Jao’s family, Prof. Lee Chack-fan, Director of Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole and Dr. Cheng Wai-ming, Deputy Director of Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole, The University of Hong Kong.
A group photo of officiating guests, contributors who have assisted with the exhibition and the exhibition catalogue and the existing and former teachers of Department of Fine Arts, CUHK.
