Vase with nine peach design

Vase with nine peach design

Year	1736-1795
Type	Porcelain
Dimensions	50 cm (19.5 in); 37 cm diameter (14.5 in)
Location	Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis

This vase with a nine peach design is part of the Chinese collection of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, which is in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is a fine piece of porcelain with enamel decorations dating from the Qianlong period of the Qing dynasty, so it was made between 1736 and 1795.^[1]

Description

The six-character reign mark on the bottom of this vase ("Da Qing Qianlong nian zhi") indicates that it was made under imperial patronage. The excellent quality and large size would have made it very suitable for display in the imperial palace. The design of peach buds, blossoms, leaves and fruits appears naturalistic, but that configuration would never appear in nature. Rather, it is a sort of rebus, as is common in Chinese decorations. Peaches symbolize immortality (thanks to the goddess Xiwangmu and her peach tree that only bore fruit every three millennia) and "nine" and "a long time" are homophones, so this design represents longevity and timelessness. The artist handled the theme very skillfully, using the complex shape of the vase to make the peaches most prominent by placing them on the vase's shoulder.^[2]

Historical information

In the early eighteenth century, Chinese artists realized that they could create opaque colors by adding white pigment to translucent enamels. This enabled them to use the same color palette they had recently encountered in oil paintings brought to China by European traders. This discovery led to unprecedented artistic freedom and creativity.^[1]

Location history

This vase was loaned to the Smithsonian Institution to be part of the exhibit "Asia in America: Chinese Art from the Indianapolis Museum of Art" that ran September 18, 2004 to March 20, 2005 in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. It was the first in a series on Asian art in American museums.^[3]

Acquisition

Mr. and Mrs. Eli Lilly gave this vase to the Herron School of Art in 1960, and it remained with the IMA during the division of the institutions. It currently has the accession number 60.116 and is on display in the Valeria J. Medveckis Gallery.^[2]

References

1 2 Lee, Ellen Wardwell; Robinson, Anne (2005). Indianapolis Museum of Art: Highlights of the Collection. Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art. ISBN 0936260777.
1 2 "Vase with nine peach design". Indianapolis Museum of Art. Retrieved 28 May 2013.
↑ "Gallery". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 28 May 2013.

External links

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Artworks in the Collection of the Indianapolis Museum of Art

Significant
Artworks

African Art	Face mask Senufo female ancestor figure Magbo helmet mask for Oro society Palace plaque depicting warrior Guardian figure Healing of Abiku Children

American Painting and Sculpture to 1945	Afternoon Tea Cliff Rock--Appledore Dorothy Hotel Lobby Hurricane Jimson Weed Morning at Grand Manan Preparing for the Matinee Red Kimono on the Roof Reflections Sunlight The Boat Builders The Flight of Europa The Love Song The Rainbow Tidying Up U.S.A. Untitled (The Birth)

Asian Art	Bowl with two violet spots Cong-shaped vase Covered jar with carp design Fine Wind, Clear Morning Ksitigarbha bodhisattva Ritual wine server Shigaraki ware storage jar Vase with carved peony scrolls Vase with nine peach design

Contemporary Art	Acton Courre Merlan (Whiting Chase) Egyptian Barnyard LOVE (painting) LOVE (sculpture) The Quintet of the Silent They Waz Nice White Folks While They Lasted (Sez One Gal to Another) Untitled Untitled Untitled

Decorative Arts	Angel of the Resurrection Coffee service High chest of drawers Portland Vase Side chair

European Painting and Sculpture to 1945	Aristotle Battle Between Carnival and Lent Breton Women at a Wall Broek in Waterland Charing Cross Bridge Crucifix Crucifixion Enclosed Field with Peasant Entry of Christ into Jerusalem Entry of Christ into Jerusalem House in Provence Landscape near Arles Ma Jolie Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist and St. Mary Magdalene Man and Woman Peasant with a Wheelbarrow Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well Roman Capriccio: The Pantheon and Other Monuments Self-Portrait Still Life with a Chinese Porcelain Jar Still Life with Profile of Laval The Banks of the Oise near Pontoise The Boy The Channel of Gravelines, Petit Fort Philippe The Country Dance The Crucifixion The Fifth Plague of Egypt The Flageolet Player on the Cliff The Flight into Egypt The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist The House of the Deaf Woman and the Belfry at Eragny The Negress The Seamstress The Triumphant Entry of Constantine into Rome The Two Sisters The Valkhof at Nijmegen Triptych of the Annunciation Vorhor, the Green Wave

Art of the Americas	Haida ceremonial dance rattle

Oceanic Art	Helmet mask (Tatanua)

Prints, Drawings, and Photographs	Blasting St. Vincent's Rock, Clifton Boreas and Oreithyia Galinthias Outwits Eileithyia by Announcing the Birth of Heracles Mother (Mutter) Moulin Rouge: La Goulue The Holy Family with the Dragonfly Young Woman in Blue

Textile and Fashion Arts	Moroccan wall hanging Chinese Souls #2 Eli Lilly Family Quilt Evening dress Woman's apron Sumbanese woman's ceremonial skirt

Outdoor
Artworks
by Location

Museum Grounds	Above and Below La Hermana del Hombre Bóveda LOVE Memories of Prague Mother and Child Numbers 1-0 Snowplow Stumbling Man Sutphin Fountain Two Figures Two Lines Oblique Down, Variation III

Oldfields	Copy of Diana of Versailles Diana with Dog Female and Male Herm Fountain Four Seasons Landon-Era Birdbath Mother and Child (Gordine) Nymph and Fawn Sundial, Boy With Spider The Three Graces Pair of Urns

100 Acres	Bench Around the Lake Eden II Free Basket Funky Bones Indianapolis Island Park of Laments Stratum Pier Team Building (Align)

Artworks on Loan	East Gate/West Gate Mega-Gem Portrait of History Sewall Memorial Torches Spaces with Iron

De-accessioned Artworks	Broken Walrus II Holistic Image VIII Weather Tower

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