The Art of Princely Courts in Fifteenth-Century China

When:

Oct 9, 2015 – Jan 10, 2016

Where:

The RingLing Museum of Art, Sarasota, USA

Royal Taste offers a unique glimpse into the luxurious lifestyles and religious practices of princely courts in early- and mid-Ming China (1368-1644). Organized by The Ringling, this exhibition of more than 140 works of pictorial, sculptural, and decorative arts reveals some lesser-known aspects of palatial lives, religious patronage, and afterlife beliefs of Ming princes, whose world has long been a mystery. The quality of craftsmanship and beauty of design testifies to the richness and sophistication of the art and culture of the nobility in the provinces.

The majority of the objects on view were selected from recent archaeological finds now in the collections of four museums in the Hubei province in China, and from imperially-commissioned statues housed at Daoist temples on Mount Wudang, the birthplace of Tai Chi. Through these important loans—all of which are traveling to the US for the first time—the exhibition provides a more complete understanding of the visual and religious worlds of Ming princes and demonstrates the vital role of their courts in shaping Ming material culture. 

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Circular carving from the side zhaobi screen at Zhoufu an

16th century

Limestone

Wudang Museum

周府庵石雕照壁盒子

Stem cup with cover and holder

1437

Porcelain, gold lid, and silt silver stand

Excavated from the tomb of Prince Zhuang of

Liang, Zhongxiang, 2001

Hubei Provincial Museum

金鍾, 金鍾蓋, 銀鎏金托盤

Dai Jin (1388–1462)

Reading a Scroll under a Pine Tree

15th century

Hanging scroll, gold and ink on silk

Hubei Provincial Museum

戴進 松下讀書圖

Model for acupuncture and moxibustion instruction

16th century

Bronze with gold

Hubei Provincial Museum

針灸銅人立像

Statue of the Celestial Worthy of the Great Unity, Savior from Suffering

15th century

Gilt bronze

Wudang Museum

銅鎏金太乙救苦天尊

建文元年山簡

Inscribed slip (1st year of the Jianwen Reign)

1399

Stone, L. 11. in. (28.5 cm), W. 2⅞ in. (7.2 cm),

H. ⅓ in. (0.8 cm)

Wudang Museum