I did not expect for our study of early Chinese collections and antiques would expand to include Western collectors. It was interesting to read passages and watch a video that supported information that I already learned from perusing through sources for my final project. For example, a European imitation of Chinese art, chinoiserie, has been very popular with Europeans since the 18th century. This week, I learned that after the Europeans’ initial fascination over the chinoiserie, which was styled by the Chinese to European taste, Western collectors and museums favored the antique porcelain, calligraphic, bronze objects that were very valuable to Chinese owners and collectors. There was a shift in Western perception of aesthetic, which aligned with aesthetic artwork that was cherished and valued by the Chinese.
John C. Ferguson was a Western collector of Chinese art. In order to find antiques and understand their value, Ferguson consulted not only the texts and records written in various Western languages, but also those in Chinese.
Bibliographic References
Netting, Lara Jaishree. A Perpetual Fire : John C. Ferguson and His Quest for Chinese Art and Culture. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2013.
“The Treasures of China”, by Justin Jacobs. Indiana Jones in History: From Pompei to the Moon.
