SHA MENGHAI 1900-1992 Calligraphy in Semi-Cursive and Cursive Scrip (xingcao) Reading: When birds sing they seek a friend. Signed: 84-year old Sha Menghai Seal 1: Sha Wenruo yin "Sha Wenruo´s seal" (Wenruo is one of the artist´s sobriquets) Seal 2: Yuyue binhai zhimin "A man from Yuyue at the sea" (the artists hometown is Ningpo on the east coast and Yuyue is an ancient name of the east coast area) Seal 3: Menghai 129 x 46 cm PROVENANCE: Purchased from the artist in Hangzhou by Professor (Docent) Lars Berglund in 1983. EXHIBITED: Röhsska Konstslöjdmuseet, Gothenburg 1984, Sweden. Etnografiska Museet, Stockholm 1984. Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm 1989. PUBLISHED: Berglund, Lars, Den befriade penseln (Liberated Brushes), Liber förlag, Stockholm 1985. NOTE: The composition here is a short excerpt from China´s oldest book of poetry, the so called Book of Odes (Shi Jing), stanza 165:1, which reads: "When birds sing, they seek a friend; look at those birds, even they search for true friends."The next stanza of the original text continues as follows: "And is this not true of people, too? Should they not also seek friends? When their prayers are answered by the spirits, everything becomes harmonious and peaceful." The text stresses friendship as the most important principle in human conduct and human relations. This is in line with the old Confucian philosophy which considers the good relationship between friends as one of the five most important human conducts. Notice how the artist composed the eight characters in four groups of two characters each. He also prolonged the the last line of the last character so as to resemble a strong bamboo stem. And the lines above this "stem" look like a bunch of bamboo leaves. This is certainly done deliberately, for the bamboo often symbolizes strong ties of friendship and is therefore called the ´ink friend´. Furthermore, the bamboo, the pine and the plum tree are all green in winter and thus known as "The three friends of the winter season", a recurrent symbol in art and design. Sha Menghais strong och vigorous calligraphic works can now be admired in most cultural institutions and famous spots in and around the town of Hangzhou.
SHA MENGHAI 1900-1992 Calligraphy in Semi-Cursive and Cursive Scrip (xingcao) Reading: When birds sing they seek a friend. Signed: 84-year old Sha Menghai Seal 1: Sha Wenruo yin "Sha Wenruo´s seal" (Wenruo is one of the artist´s sobriquets) Seal 2: Yuyue binhai zhimin "A man from Yuyue at the sea" (the artists hometown is Ningpo on the east coast and Yuyue is an ancient name of the east coast area) Seal 3: Menghai 129 x 46 cm PROVENANCE: Purchased from the artist in Hangzhou by Professor (Docent) Lars Berglund in 1983. EXHIBITED: Röhsska Konstslöjdmuseet, Gothenburg 1984, Sweden. Etnografiska Museet, Stockholm 1984. Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm 1989. PUBLISHED: Berglund, Lars, Den befriade penseln (Liberated Brushes), Liber förlag, Stockholm 1985. NOTE: The composition here is a short excerpt from China´s oldest book of poetry, the so called Book of Odes (Shi Jing), stanza 165:1, which reads: "When birds sing, they seek a friend; look at those birds, even they search for true friends."The next stanza of the original text continues as follows: "And is this not true of people, too? Should they not also seek friends? When their prayers are answered by the spirits, everything becomes harmonious and peaceful." The text stresses friendship as the most important principle in human conduct and human relations. This is in line with the old Confucian philosophy which considers the good relationship between friends as one of the five most important human conducts. Notice how the artist composed the eight characters in four groups of two characters each. He also prolonged the the last line of the last character so as to resemble a strong bamboo stem. And the lines above this "stem" look like a bunch of bamboo leaves. This is certainly done deliberately, for the bamboo often symbolizes strong ties of friendship and is therefore called the ´ink friend´. Furthermore, the bamboo, the pine and the plum tree are all green in winter and thus known as "The three friends of the winter season", a recurrent symbol in art and design. Sha Menghais strong och vigorous calligraphic works can now be admired in most cultural institutions and famous spots in and around the town of Hangzhou.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
