Page 150 - C.T. Loo A paper about his impact and activities in the Chinese art Market

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Zuyin. The second type of materials also contained references to Chinese literature,

including Bo gu tu lu, Wu Chi-chang’s Jin wen shi zu pu.

Discovery Lore and Display Context

The construction of the narrative that Loo’s objects had been directly secured in China

was an important strategy to convey the message of their Chineseness, freshness, and

authenticity, as indicated by the letterhead of Loo’s company, “Importation directe

d’objets d’Art Anciens DE CHINE”, 313 and the prominent position of “PEKING

SHANGHAI ” and the Chinese name of Lai-yuan & Co. in another letterhead (Fig.

48). 314 The message that Loo was actually in China hunting treasures was clearly

communicated by the postcard that he sent from Beijing to the Harvard professor Paul J.

Sachs in 1917. The colored photographic image of “Country View with Pagoda in China”

on the postcard is a visual statement Loo’s presence in China. Loo wrote to Sachs that he

was traveling in China, and after he came back to the U.S he would like to show Sachs a

few things he secured in China. 315

As Christopher Steiner notes, the quality and authenticity of an object is determined

not only by its own properties, but also to a large extent by the characteristics of the

person who sells it (Steiner 1991, 90). Loo’s construction of an adventurous persona and

discovery tales was used to authenticate an object and to psychologically engage his

313 C. T. Loo to J.E. Lodge, September 1, 1919, folder: Lai-Yuan Co., box: Unofficial
Correspondence L, 1910-1922, AAOA-MFA.
314
C. T. Loo to J.E. Lodge, February 5, 1918, folder: Lai-Yuan Co., box: Unofficial
Correspondence L, 1910-1922, AAOA-MFA.
315 C. T. Loo to P. Sachs, August 20, 1917, Folder Loo T.C. Dealer, HUAMA.