Speaking of Ming-style furniture collectors, you may have heard of Mr. Wang Shixiang, Mr. Chen Mengjia, Ms. Wu Jia'en... There is also a famous collector, he caught up with the serendipity created by the times for him, coupled with the pursuit of Ming-style furniture collection, built his dream road, he is the world's leading Ming-style furniture collector, the owner of the Jade Mountain House Mr. Ye Chengyao.
Mr. Ye Chengyao, a collector of Ming-style furniture and the owner of the Jade Mountain House
© Art Business
Mr. Ip Hassan Yew has served as the two-term chairman of Min Qiu Jing She, one of the most influential collection groups in the Chinese world. (Founded in 1960, the group of collectors is a group of Hong Kong collectors who are fascinated by the collection of Chinese heritage and artworks, and who have a unique collection of Chinese paintings and calligraphy and a variety of different heritage categories.) ）
People used to call Mr. Ip Chengyao Dr. Yip, which was related to his profession. Born in 1933, he was born into a family of three generations of hanging pots, as a Harvard MD, at the age of 32, he opened a private clinic in Hong Kong and became a well-known dermatologist in Hong Kong. And its embarkation on the road of collecting can be called a coincidence.
Mr. Ip Seung-yiu, dressed in a crisp suit and smiling, is behind the Exhibition of Ming-style Huanghuali Furniture in the House of Attacking Yushan, photographed in September 1991
In September 2003, a large Ming-style furniture auction held at Christie's in New York was a sensation. At the auction, 40 of the 68 lots were auctioned, with a total transaction value of about HK$22.62 million. Among them, the three pieces of furniture with the highest deal are the Minghuanghuali three-screen single-panel dragon pattern Luohan bed, the Minghuanghuali Lingzhi pattern hanger and the Minghuanghuali two-roll horn tooth piano table, which were auctioned for more than HK$2 million respectively. And all of these lots come from a big collector in Hong Kong, Yip Chengyao.
The Path to Enlightenment in the Collection
Ye Chengyao's two uncles can be said to be the enlightenment teachers of his collection path. One likes ancient jade, one loves porcelain, under their influence, Ye Chengyao heard about it, and gradually had a certain study of ancient jade porcelain, in 1971, an uncle who collected ancient jade died, and left the ancient jade he had collected for many years together with the book number of "Attacking the Jade Mountain House", since then Ye Chengyao's collection fever has been out of control, and soon after, Ye Chengyao became a member of the "Minqiu Jingshe" with the ancient jade collection in his hand.
In 1988, Hong Kong Minqiu Jingshe was reunited with collectors.
The third from the left is Mr. Yip Shing Yew
Attacking the Jade Mountain House is no stranger to people entering and leaving the collection world. The collection includes jade, porcelain, calligraphy and painting, furniture, etc., emphasizing the three characteristics of "high, fine and sharp". Ye Chengyao immersed himself in research on the road of collecting, and at the same time he actively visited famous teachers to continuously improve his level of appreciation. In terms of porcelain, thanks to the famous porcelain collector Mr. Hu Huichun, and laid down his collection concept: only collect the real and fine products. The cause of calligraphy and painting depends on Mr. Jiang Zhaozhong of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Mr. Liu Jiu'an of the Palace Museum in Beijing and Mr. Liu Zuochu, the owner of the Hong Kong False White House, whose careful guidance has gradually collected many famous relics of the past and enjoyed a prestigious reputation in the field of classical calligraphy and painting in Hong Kong.
Huang Binhong's "Mountains and Rivers Lying Tour"
In 2005, China Guardian Auctions held a special exhibition for Ye Chengyao's calligraphy and paintings that best reflected his achievements in calligraphy and painting collections, with a total of 92 ancient and modern paintings and calligraphy auctioned, including a 3-meter-long Huang Binhong's "Mountain and River Sleeping Scroll" purchased in 1980 and finally sold for 6.38 million yuan.
Furniture collection is a godsend
The fruitful collection of calligraphy and painting did not seem to satisfy Ye Chengyao, so Ye Chengyao began to dabble in furniture collection.
"Attacking the Jade Mountain House" Ming-style Huanghuali furniture collection pansizes the spiritual temperament of the literati
And using "time, place, people" to describe Ye Chengyao's furniture collection road should be the most appropriate. He not only caught up with the golden age of collecting furniture, but also received the help of antique dealer Wu Jia'en, but also because Of Ye Chengyao's continuous pursuit of fine and typical utensils, he achieved the highest level of classical furniture collection.
Ye Chengyao's first contact with Ming-style furniture was due to the famous collector Wang Shixiang. In 1985, Ye Chengyao first came into contact with Wang Shixiang's first book on Ming-style furniture - "Ming-style Furniture Appreciation"
"I think my collection of calligraphy and paintings and porcelain, jade is not fine enough, I think it is still good to use this price to buy precious furniture, and there are only a few books of Wang Shixiang that need to be read from the research side, it is easy to start studying (furniture collection), of course, in-depth research is not simple." Ye Chengyao once said.
Ye Chengyao really began collecting Ming-style furniture in 1988. "At that time, furniture collection was already very popular. I remember someone telling me that you collected too late, but Mr. Wang Shixiang said a very good sentence, he said that people have this boom in collecting furniture, the price of furniture has risen, and many fine products have appeared. Ye Chengyao said.
Yellow pear cross begonia pattern six-column shelf bed
Late Ming Dynasty (1573–1644)
Length 214 cm / width 126 cm / height 205.5 cm
It is Mr. Yip's favorite
In fact, Ye Chengyao caught up with the golden age of Ming-style furniture collection. As early as before Wang Shixiang, few people conducted theoretical research or artistic discussions on classical furniture; after Wang Shixiang, a boom in the collection of Ming-style furniture arose in society.
"Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Buyers in Hong Kong scoured the globe for genuine goods in order to make a profit, and the Ming-style furniture on the market was diverse and affordable. Hong Kong is also the world's Huanghuali furniture trading center, and I have bought these furniture first when it has not yet flowed to the world. ”
Mr. Yip Shing Yew's Series of Books on the Furniture collection of the Jade Mountain House
Huanghuali square corner kang cabinet
Huanghuali high back nanguan hat chair
In this way, Ye Chengyao had the convenience of time and place, and began to collect as one of the first Ming-style furniture collectors in China.
"The wood is silent. But the yellow pear, bright brown and texture all reveal a peaceful spirit and beauty, and will give people a sense of calm, harmony. The simple carvings and decorations create a gentle contrast, like the light ripples on a lotus pond. And this is the living environment of the Ming Dynasty literati, in this calm atmosphere, the Ming Dynasty literati enjoyed it to the fullest, playing with bronze, jade, porcelain... And he is attached to art and music. Obviously, the furniture creates a powerful atmosphere for this literati life. ”
(Note: Excerpted from Mr. Ip Seung-yew's 1991 book "Dream Clan of Tan Tan Room - Attacking the Jade Mountain Fangzang Ming-style Huanghuali Furniture", which is an English paraphrase.) ）
Art is enjoyed by the world
Mr. Ip's furniture collection not only benefited from his travels around the world, but also from Ms. Wu Jia'en, who is known as the "Queen of Huanghuali".
In 1991, Ms. Ng Ka-eun, Director Ko Mei-hing, Dr. Yip Chengyao, Mr. Wong Sai-yiu and Mrs. Ip Shing-yew at the opening ceremony of the exhibition "Tapping the Jade Mountain House" at the Heritage Museum of the University of Chinese, Hong Kong (from left to right)
Wu Jia'en is a consultant to many of the top collectors of Ming and Qing dynasty furniture, and her furniture store Grace WuBruce in Central, Hong Kong, is a must-visit place for furniture museum experts and collectors to come to Hong Kong, and later won the Chinese name "Jia Mu Tang" inscribed by Wang Shixiang. She provided many professional guidance to Ye Chengyao. It is reported that 90% of Ye Chengyao's "Attacking Jade Mountain House" collection was purchased from the "Jiamu Hall" founded by Wu Jia'en. She also helped Ye Chengyao to hold three special exhibitions of Ming-style furniture at the University of Chinese in Hong Kong since 1991, which had a great influence on the dissemination of Ming-style furniture collection.
Bright yellow pear saves a reclining circle chair
Late 16th and early 17th centuries
Ming/Qing huanghuali transparent carved backrest rose chair
17th century
Ye Chengyao believes that furniture exhibitions can let more people understand the essence of Chinese culture, and this way of "storage" is better than putting them in the warehouse to "sleep".
From 1988 to 1991, Mr. Wang Shixiang came to the opening ceremony when He purchased 68 pieces of Ming-style furniture and exhibited them at the University of Chinese in Hong Kong in 1991, when Mr. Wang Shixiang believed that this exhibition was the world's first private Chinese furniture exhibition. Mr. Ip Chengyao was encouraged to continue to do it more diligently, and then exhibited more than 20 times in the United States, Britain, Singapore and other places.
In October 2012, Ms. Ng Ka Eun and Mr. Ip Shing Yew of Jia Mu Tang exhibited at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre "Jia Mu Tang Presents A Selection of HuangHua Pears for Attacking Jade Mountain House"
Another type of "custody" he had was lending, and he had lent furniture to the capital of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. To this day, more than 50 pieces of furniture are still placed in the VIP hall of the Macao East Asian Games.
Bright yellow pear chuck tenon phoenix pattern tooth head large flat head case
Bright yellow pear high tunic with drawer small Kang table
Mr. Ip's collection includes rare and rare works, as well as classics of major furniture categories. Decades of searching have also built the collector's path to his dreams. More than 160 collections and more than 20 international touring exhibitions have laid the foundation for Mr. Ye Chengyao's international influence in the ming-style furniture collection industry. The huanghuali and Ming-style furniture of "Tapping Jade Mountain House" are of high quality and exquisite, and the series is complete, which has been identified and recognized by Mr. Wang Shixiang.
"Beauty goes out of the mountains, and philosophers become square circles."
It is a wood that fits the heavens. ”
(Note: In 1996, the famous collector Mr. Wang Shixiang translated it according to an English poem written by Mr. Ip Chengyao praising furniture.) ）
Yellow pear inlaid boxwood dragon pattern carrying box
Late Ming to early Qing dynasty (1600–1700)
On August 13, 2015, 38 pieces of "Attacking Jade Mountain Fangzang Ming-style Furniture" from Yip Chengyao were exhibited at Sotheby's Art Space in Hong Kong, and Ms. Wu Jia'en said, "I believe that I will hardly see such a concentrated Ming-style furniture masterpiece photographed in the future." ”
Ip Chengyao once said, "The beauty of classical art should be shared by the whole world." ”
Indeed, art knows no borders, and human perceptions of beauty are interconnected. When you are in Ming-style furniture, it seems to be a high-level artistic enjoyment, rather than a cold and dull accumulation of utensils. Such a classic and magnificent Ming-style furniture needs to be discovered and appreciated by more people, and passed on in an orderly manner.
Figure | is partly from the network
Partly excerpted from "Yu Tan Room Dream Clan - Attacking Jade Mountain Fangzang Ming-style Huanghuali Furniture"
Text| Source Network
Finishing | Yonghua Mahogany