two of the twelve bronze zodiac animal sculptures that once surrounded the fountain in the gardens of the old summer palace (yuanmingyuan), a qing dynasty (1644-1911) imperial retreat near beijing, have been returned to china by french billionaire francois-henri pinault.
christie's sold the the two sculptures for 31.4 million euros (US$40 million) during the february 2009 auction of the collection yves saint laurent et pierre berge. but, the buyer, a chinese national, withheld payment in protest. so, the two sculptures remained in the collection of pierre berge until they were acquired by the pinault family.
bronze rabbit and rat zodiac animal sculptures | from the fountain at the yuanmingyuan | qianlong period (r. 1736-1795)
collection yves saint laurent et pierre berge | christie's paris | 23-25 february 2009 | sale 1209 | lots 678 and 677
the pinault family controls kering, the french luxury brand group formerly known as ppr, which also owns christie's.
coincidently, christie's was recently granted a license to become the first independently operated international auction house in china. (the chinese operations of christie'scompititor, sotheby's,are a joint venture with state-owned beijing gehua cultural development group.)
circle of animals/zodiac heads, a public outdoor sculpture exhibition by chinese artist/activist, ai weiwei, recently debuted in new york and london, following a september-december 2010 appearance at the biennale in são paolo, brazil.
the world tour of the exhibition continues at the los angeles county museum of art (lacma) from 20 august 2011-12 february 2012, followed by appearances in pittsburgh, PA, houston, TX, and washington, DC.
it seems ironic that the exhibition debuted in london, since the sculptures were inspired by the bronze heads of the twelve animals of the chinese zodiac that once surrounded the fountain in the gardens of the old summer palace (yuanmingyuan), a qing dynasty (1644-1911) imperial retreat near beijing.
the european-style gardens were designed by jesuit missionaries giuseppe castiglione and michel benoist for the qianlong emperor (r. 1736-1795), who was fascinated by western architecture, science, and engineering. unlike western cultures, the chinese measured time in twelve two-hour periods. so, the missionaries engineered the fountain, which functioned as a water clock, to pump water from the head of a different zodiac animal every two hours.
the twelve zodiac animal heads disappeared when british and french troops ransacked the old summer palacein 1860during the second opium war.
bronze rat head | from the zodiac fountain at the yuanmingyuan | qianlong period (r. 1736-1795) from the collection of yves saint laurent and pierre berge
bronze rabbit head | from the zodiac fountain at the yuanmingyuan | qianlong period (r. 1736-1795) from the collection of yves saint laurent and pierre berge
the sale of the bronze rat and rabbit heads from the collection of yves saint laurent and pierre berge created a controversy.
first, china's foreign ministry issued a statement that the rat and rabbit heads were national treasures that should be returned to china, and attempted to block the sale. but, christie's and pierre berge refused to withdraw the lots.
then, a chinese national, cai mingchao, bid 31.4 million euros (US$40 million) for the rat and rabbit heads, and withheld payment in protest.
so, the rat and rabbit heads from the zodiac fountain remain in the collection of pierre berge. since 2000, the tiger, monkey, ox, boar, and horse heads from the fountain have been acquired by or donated to the poly art museum in beijing. the locations of some of the other animal heads from the fountain remain unknown.
according to ai weiwei, the animal heads from the fountain were
'...designed by an italian, and made by a french[man]...'
'...i don't think that's [a chinese] national treasure...'
this is not surprising, since ai weiwei'swork explores what is fake, real, authentic, or valuable.
he often incorporates antiquities like classical chinese furniture or chinese ceramics into his work---some of my favorite antiques to combine with modern furnishings in my projects at innerspace interior design.
but, the way that he reinterprets these classics could be considered either inspired or irreverent.
constructive?
altar table (qiaotouan) | huanghuali wood | ming-qing dynasty | 16th-17th century grace wu bruce | hong kong photo by grace wu bruce
ai weiwei | table with three legs | qing dynasty table (1644-1911) | 2008 ai weiwei four movements exhibition | phillips de pury | london, united kingdom | 3-28 march 2009 photo by phillips de pury
ai weiwei's work is considered so controversial in china that, on 11 january 2011, chinese officials ordered the demolition of his shanghai art studio because it did not comply with building regulations.
then, he was arrested on 2 april 2011 in beijing. and then, he was charged with tax evasion. now, everyone is wondering when he will be released.
release ai weiwei
sign posted on the facade of the tate modern museum | london, united kingdom
and, i'm also wondering why circle of animals/zodiac heads is appearing in pittsburgh and houston, but not in san francisco.
note:
on 22 june 2011, ai weiwei was released on bail. however, the conditions of his bail forbid the artist/activist from speaking to the media for at least a year.
