Date: Tuesday 4 April 2023
Registration: 8:45 – 9:00am
Guided viewing: 9:00 – 10:00am
Place: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center
The Oriental Ceramic Society of Hong Kong is delighted to announce a private preview of Sotheby’s Spring sale of Chinese works of art with Nicolas Chow. Nicolas will guide members through this season’s highlights including a selection of objects formerly owned by renowned collectors in their respective fields.
Among the highlights are a blue and white porcelain ewer from the collection of T.Y. Chao produced for the personal use of the Yongle Emperor during the pinnacle of the Ming dynasty, as well as a falangcai bowl from the collection of Dr Alice Cheng. This falangcai bowl is a gem of imperial porcelain with a delicate, creamy white body decorated by master court enamellers in Beijing in close proximity to the Qianlong emperor. The superb painting of two loving swallows beside a flowering apricot tree intertwined with a willow tree is complemented by a short poem evocative of the spring. During the latter years of the Qing dynasty in the late 19th century, the bowl and its pair entered the collection of Captain Charles Oswald Liddell, whose collection was sold in 1929. Since then, one of the bowls entered the collection of Sir Percival David, the greatest private collector of Chinese Imperial porcelain in history, and is today the pride of the British Museum. The present bowl meanwhile entered the collection of Charles Ernest Russell, Barbara Hutton, J.T. Tai, Tianminlou, Robert Chang and since 2006 has been the crown jewel of the celebrated collection of Dr Alice Cheng.
Nicolas Chow is Chairman of Sotheby’s Asia and Worldwide Head and Chairman of the Chinese Works of Art Department, orchestrating auctions with a focus on ceramics and works of art from the Ming and Qing dynasties. Mr. Chow joined Sotheby’s in 1999 and has been responsible for leading the Chinese art market across the Asia Pacific region since 2003. In 2006/07 he took over global oversight for the Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art departments.
Registration starts at 8:45am. Members are reminded that as the preview takes place before the public are admitted, this event is strictly limited to current members only. A limited number of places are available, and pre-registration is required. Drop-ins will not be entertained. Members are further reminded that photography is not ordinarily permitted.