Page 16 - 2019 September 10th Sotheby's Important Chinese Art Jades, Met Museum Irving Collection NYC

after he became curator of the Department of Asiatic Art at the Museum of ⎎ᶨ㭝䓙㫸暚ằ⃟Ὣㆸ䘬慵天斄Ὢ炻Ⱄ㕤
Fine Arts, Boston, in 1981. On subsequent visits they always made a point 冯⯰⽿ṩ⃰䓇ᷳ攻䚠䞍䚠や䘬⍳ねˤ⯰⃰
of calling on him. In 1985, James joined the Department of Asian Art at 䓇⛐IJĺĹIJ⸜ㆸ䇚㲊⢓枻伶埻棐Ṇ㳚喅埻䫾
⯽Ṣ⼴ᶵᷭ炻䴻㫸暚ằ⃟冒啎ㆸ䁢⤥⍳炻
the Metropolitan and had a chance to visit the Irvings’ home and become
⎒天ḴṢ㭷㫉䴻忶㲊⢓枻⽭㚫倗专ˤIJĺĹĶ
acquainted Þ rsthand with their collection. As one of the world’s foremost
⸜炻⯰⃰䓇≈ℍ⣏悥㚫⌂䈑棐Ṇ㳚喅埻悐
experts in Chinese jade, lacquer, ceramics, and other decorative arts,
攨炻⛐ᶨ㫉㊄姒㫸暚ằ⃟⹄恠㗪炻⼿夳Ḵ
James was the perfect curator to appreciate the Irving Collection. James
Ṣ䱦伶䍵啷ˤἄ䇚ℐ䎫枪⮾䘬ᷕ⚳䌱☐ˣ
immediately brought curators Wen Fong and Martin Lerner to visit the
㺮☐ˣ䒟☐⍲ⶍ喅⑩䘬⮰⭞炻⯰⃰䓇ὧㆸ
Irvings’ home in Old Westbury. But perhaps his greatest feat was persuading
䁢揺岆ḴṢ㓞啷䘬㚨ἛṢ怠ˤ恋㫉ᷳ⼴炻
then Director Philippe de Montebello to visit the Irvings. According to Herb’s
Ṿ楔ᶲ怨婳䫾⯽Ṣ㕡倆⍲ŎŢųŵŪůġ ōŦųůŦų⇵
account, Philippe had resisted going for months, claiming that there was no
⼨㫸暚ằ⃟ỵ㕤冲杳㕗䈡ỗ慴䘬⹄恠⮰攨
worthwhile art on Long Island. When James at last accompanied Philippe on
㊄姒ˤᶵ忶Ṿ㚨⣏䘬届䌣炻ḇ姙㗗ㆸ≇婒
a visit, the two of them stayed the whole day admiring works of art. As they
㚵棐攟őũŪŭŪűűŦġ ťŦġ ŎŰůŵŦţŦŭŭŰ⇵⼨㍊姒ˤ㟡
prepared to depart, Philippe remarked, “Florence and Herb, we have to get
㒂崓ỗ䈡ㅞ徘炻őũŪŭŪűűŦ⸦ᾳ㚰Ἦᶨ䚜㉺䳽
married.” Philippe proposed that Herb become a trustee, but Herb demurred
⇵⼨炻倚䧙攟Ⲟᷳᶲ᷎䃉䱦⑩ˤ䔞⯰⃰䓇
in favor of Florence, who had also served as a trustee of the Brooklyn 䳪㕤昒⎴őũŪŭŪűűŦ⇘㫸暚⹄恠㍊姒ᷳ㗪炻Ḵ
Museum. Florence was duly elected a trustee in 1990 and became one of Ṣ徿䔁Ḯ㔜㔜ᶨ⣑炻㫋岆⎬⺷喅埻䍵⑩炻
the most beloved members of the board. In 1996 she was elected a trustee 冐崘㗪őũŪŭŪűűŦ㚜婒忻烉ˬἃ伭ΐ㕗ˣ崓
emerita. She also served on the Department of Asian Art Visiting Committee ỗ䈡炻ㆹᾹ䳸⨂⏏ˤ˭őũŪŭŪűűŦ㍸嬘䓙崓
and chaired the Department’s support group, the Friends of Asian Art. ỗ䈡↢ả吋ḳ炻⎗㗗崓ỗ䈡⌣㚜ⶴ㛃䓙⎴
䁢ⶫ欗⃳㜿⌂䈑棐吋ḳ䘬ἃ伭ΐ㕗㑼ả㬌
With James Watt’s encouragement, in the late 1980s Florence and Herb
借ˤIJĺĺı⸜炻ἃ伭ΐ㕗䌚怠䁢吋ḳ炻ㆸ䇚
began adding a number of Þ ne examples of East Asian lacquerware to their
㚨⍿ッ㇜䘬吋ḳ㚫ㆸ⒉ᷳᶨ炻㚜㕤IJĺĺķ⸜
collection. Their passion for lacquer culminated in November, 1991 with the
䌚怠䁢㥖ẹ吋ḳˤ㬌⢾炻⤡᷎䁢Ṇ㳚喅埻
opening of the spectacular exhibition East Asian Lacquer from the Collection
悐攨姒⓷⥼⒉㚫ㆸ⒉炻᷎ả娚悐攨䘬㓗㎜
of Florence and Herbert Irving. Co-curated by James Watt and Barbara
䳬䷼ˬṆ㳚喅埻ᷳ⍳˭㚫攟ˤ
Brennan Ford, curator of Japanese art, the exhibition catalogue stands as a
⛐⯰⽿ṩ䘬溻⊝ᷳᶳ炻ἃ伭ΐ㕗⍲崓ỗ
deÞ nitive scholarly resource for that medium. The magnitude of the Irvings’
䈡⛐IJĺĹı⸜ẋ㘂㛇攳⥳岤屟㚜⣂䱦伶䘬㜙
achievement in this one area was summed up by Philippe de Montebello

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