Page 60 - C.T. Loo A paper about his impact and activities in the Chinese art Market

60

80
tantalizing invitation to those who had not seen Loo’s exhibition. In addition to

catalogues, exhibition announcements, and reviews, more direct advertisements of Loo’s

business and special exhibitions appeared in the Art News, and Parnassus on a regular

basis. Loo’s advertisement often featured one eye-catching item in his current exhibition.

The cover of the January 6, 1940 issue of the Art News for example was occupied by the

image of the stone lion (MFA 40.70) on display at the Loo’s Exhibition of Chinese Stone

Sculptures (Fig. 4).

Compared with catalogues and reviews devoted to Loo’s collections and exhibitions,

publications of a scholarly nature served as equally effective advertisements for Loo. Loo

often supplied scholars or museums with objects for their publication/exhibition projects.

Alfred Salmony’s monograph, Carved Jade of Ancient China, included at least twenty

81
pieces in Loo’s collection (Salmony 1938). Loo also contributed several pieces to the

University Museum’s exhibition and the accompanying catalogue, Archaic Chinese

Jades in 1940. Several items included in Loo’s 1950 Exhibition of Chinese Archaic Jades

benefited from their publication history in Salmony’s book and the University Museum’s

1940 exhibition catalogue (Loo 1950).

Exhibition

Objects in Loo’s holding could be organized and displayed in various ways. Some of

the exhibitions showcased objects in a wide range of media. Loo’s 1941-2 sale, the

Exhibition of Chinese Arts, included all the major categories that Loo dealt in: bronze,

80
The future display of the bronze vessel as a loan in the Met could well be an extension
of Loo’s publicity campaign.
81 The number may be larger because the book also included a few pieces from
G.L.Winthrop and Freer Gallery collections, which were acquired from Loo.