亞歐堂 meet asian art Wanli Blue-and-White

In keeping with the preferences of the Ming Emperor Wanli (萬曆 “Ten Thousand Years”), Chinese blue-and-white porcelain dating from his reign (1572–1620) makes use of a wide range of symbols and hidden allusions to refer to happiness, a long life, health, equanimity and other such blessings.

For China, the reign of the Wanli Emperor represented an age of globalization. For the first time, large quantities of Chinese porcelain and other merchandise now found their way to Europe, where they were highly prized as luxury items and copied in part from such products as Frankfurt faience of the Early Baroque.

The 24 objects on view in the 亞歐堂 meet asian art cabinet clearly convey the difference between “imperial” porcelain, which also encompasses ware produced for the upscale domestic Chinese market, and the objects manufactured rapidly – and somewhat carelessly – for export to the Middle East and Europe.
The oldest of the objects on display here have belonged to the museum’s collection for more than a hundred years. The largest proportion, however, go back to Carl Cords, whose extensive 1943 bequest forms the mainstay of our East Asian holdings.

The aim of this cabinet exhibition is to open a window on the outstanding collection of Chinese ceramics at the Museum Angewandte Kunst. Over the coming months, this will accordingly be the main focus of the programme of guided tours, workshops and lectures accompanying the exhibition 亞歐堂 meet asian art.

Curator: Dr Stephan von der Schulenburg

meet asian art is a new venue for seeing, understanding and discussion at the Museum Angewandte Kunst. It provides a setting for changing objects from the museum’s unique Asian art holdings. At the same time, meet asian art is more than just an exhibition space: as a forum for events and presentations, it also offers ever-new insights into Asia’s contribution to the art of the world.