beastly behavior When we were considering a topic for this year’s catalogue, we particularly wanted to choose a subject which would cover a wide range of periods and materials. We came to realize that with selecting animals as a subject, we had an even wider scope than we initially thought. In fact, the choice of animals was so enormous, that we even had to limit ourselves when making our selection. It has proved impossible to be all-inclusive and cover every animal in this publication. We had to make a selection, which was largely arbitrary and based on our personal taste. Nonetheless, we believe we have succeeded in finding a decent balance of objects, spanning many periods; achieving a good cross-section of animals, covering a wide variety of materials. The combination of the exotic and realistic animals in Chinese art, have made the catalogue appealing and interesting at the same time. The often charming and funny portrayals, making the compilation an enjoyable process.
we have experienced a great increase in the appreciation and knowledge of symbolism and the deeper lying meaning of the objects. For us it has added great depth and significance when studying the pieces in our collection; challenging the way we look at the objects and bringing them even further to life. Beasts & Creatures, our fifth and final catalogue in this series, is the end result of many months of photography, research and writing. We hope you will enjoy reading it, as much as we did making it. All in the spirit of acquiring knowledge and adding to the enjoyment of Chinese art.
Floris van der Ven
As in any society, in the past or the present, animals play a significant role. They are part of our everyday lives in agriculture, the home and the arts. They have always featured widely in Chinese artistic representations, even as far back as Neolithic times. Animals were reproduced in many forms and materials and evident in all layers of Chinese society. Apart from depicting everyday life, when portrayed they also often have a deeper symbolic significance, as you can read in the essay by Rose Kerr and the catalogue entries. Before the mid 1990’s, appreciation of (animal) symbolism in Chinese art, was not very widespread in the West. Formerly for us, it did not really play a significant role when making choices in buying or selling our objects. More recently, after the opening up of China, there has been a burgeoning of the Chinese art market, as well as increased research on all aspects of Chinese art - both in China and the West. Since then,
Vanderven Oriental Art The Netherlands Tel. +31 (0)73 614 62 51 info@vanderven.com www.vanderven.com www.vanderven.cn
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