Page 137 - Bonhams Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Nov 2014 Hong Kong

The apartment of Yoneo Sakai, Washington D.C., photographs circa 1950s/60s;
Images courtesy of the UCLA Library Collections

The Yongzheng emperor with his aesthetic sensibility, assertive This innovative drive was made possible by the direction of Tang Ying
taste, demanding standards and personal interest and involvement (1682-1756) who became Vice Director of the Imperial Household
in the arts, pushed them to unprecedented levels of refinement Department, Neiwu fu upon the accession to the throne of the
and sophistication. His era, though relatively short and certainly in Yongzheng emperor. He was sent to Jingdezhen in 1726, starting a
comparison to those of his father and son, established the identity new era of porcelain production under imperial patronage, combining
of what is perceived as Qing art, leaving little for his successors both archaic forms and designs as models for inspiration as well
to develop, with his son the Qianlong emperor, concentrating on as developing new and fanciful ideas. The present vase is such an
increasing the scale of production and ostentation and connecting example of combining elements of earlier forms and designs to create
himself with a patrimony that he had inherited; see R.Krahl in “The a new innovative shape and elaborate yet highly refined decorative
Yongzheng Emperor: Art Collector and Patron”, E.S.Rawski and scheme.
J.Rawson, eds., China: The Three Emperors 1662-1722, London,
2006, p.245. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art | 135