Page 187 - A Re-examination of Late Qing Dynasty Porcelain, 1850-1920 THESIS

paintings. As in previous examples, the artist utilizes the recurrence of peonies in order

to reference the strong association between the empress dowager and the flower. The red

and white-toned flowers grow up the long scroll and appear with large green leaves.

Unlike other paintings analyzed within this research, Peonies, uses rich, vibrant colors for

each flower petal. The result is soft, yet the vivid colors contrast from many of the works

attributed to Cixi that rely almost entirely on nearly imperceptible washes of color. Each

representation of peony and leaf exemplify ranges of shading, creating a highly

expressive representation. Similar to the previously explored Bouquet of Peonies, the

painterly style exhibited within the piece places precedence on loose brushstrokes that

blend together, creating soft, feminine flowers. Since the date of this hanging scroll

places it toward the end of Cixi’s lifetime, it was likely given in an effort to overcome the

lingering negativity associated with the Boxer Rebellion. A variety of diplomats were

invited to have audiences with Cixi, and Peonies was gifted to Frau Olga Julia Wegener.

Wegener was the wife of a German diplomat who resided in China from 1906 to 1908. It

was during this time in China that Cixi presented Wegener with the hanging scroll, thus

forming a critical piece of evidence of Cixi’s diplomatic endeavors. Wegener had a

strong affinity for Chinese art and was known to have collected widely while

accompanying her husband. In 1910, approximately 145 Chinese paintings from

Wegener’s collection were purchased by the British Museum. 236 According to an

archived letter from Wegener held by the Victoria and Albert Collection Registrar Files,

this particular painting was gifted on July 16, 1909. Within the text, Wegener describes

236 Michelle Ying-Ling Huang “British interest in Chinese painting, 1881-1910: The Anderson
and Wegener collections of Chinese and painting in the British Museum,” Journal of the History
of Collections 22, no. 2, (November 1, 2010): 279–287, https://doi.org/10.1093/jhc/fhq009.

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