DEHUA PORCELAINS FROM THE GALSTER-IRELAND COLLECTION (LOTS 3140 TO 3147) This selection of Dehua porcelains from the Galster-Ireland Collection features an impressive group of Dehua figures and wares dating from the 17th through the 20th centuries. Formed over a 60-year period, primarily in New York, The Galster-Ireland collection reveals the keen, self-trained eye of a dedicated collector, with every piece exhibiting a different and endearing quality. Every object that was added to the collection was chosen for pure pleasure to the eye. Buying pieces that appealed to his aesthetic sense, Mr. Ireland perused New York shops and antique markets, as well as the shops of premier New York dealers such as Ralph M. Chait Galleries, E & J Frankel and Rare Art, as well as local auctions. Veterans of World War II, Gilbert Ireland and his partner Robert Galster both hailed from Ohio and came to New York to study at the Parsons School of Design after the war ended. Ireland went on to become the display director at Bergdorf Goodman for over 40 years, sometimes working with Mrs. Goodman in her apartment, strategically placing her own paintings artfully within the interior. His keen artistic and design sense is evident throughout the Galster-Ireland Collection, and is truly timeless.

A DEHUA FIGURE OF LAOZI

17TH CENTURY

Details

A DEHUA FIGURE OF LAOZI
17TH CENTURY
The figure is shown seated with his crossed arms resting on an armrest, holding a scroll in his left hand, and dressed in long robes that gather in pleats and folds about the body. The face is finely modeled with arched brows, bulbous nose, and long incised beard and mustache. An inscription, Shanren Chen Wei (Mountain man Chen Wei) is carved on the back.
4 ½ in. (11.4 cm.) high

Provenance

Acquired in New York prior to 1990.

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Lot Essay

A similar Dehua figure of comparable size, dated mid-17th century, and described as a figure of a bearded sage, is illustrated by R. Kerr and J. Ayers, Blanc de Chine; Porcelain from Dehua, Chicago, 2002, no. 22.

Another similar figure was sold at Christie's New York, 13-14 September 2014, lot 1447. This figure is similarly modeled but does not hold a scroll.

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