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Lot Essay
Liu Shouben was an early student of Ye Bengqi and his brother, Ye Xiaofeng, who founded the modern Beijing School in the 1950's. Liu continues to this day as the doyen of the Beijing School after Wang Xisan left for the province of Hebei to set up his own school.
For a similar bottle by the same artist, see Snuff Bottles: Little Gems of Delight, Singapore Chinatown Snuff Bottle Society, 2004, p. 23. The dating of this bottle is not certain as it reads yiyou (1945 or 2005). The first option is impossible as the artist was born in 1943. It is possible that the first character yi was miswritten. In that case the bottle could be from 1993, 1981 or 1969.
The subject matter of the Hundred Boys is taken from the novel Shuihuzhuan. To paint literally one hundred boys is an extraodinary achievement on such a limited surface. 'The 100 Boys' symbolise an abundance of male heirs. See also C.A.S. Williams, Outlines of Chinese Symbolism & Art Motives, New York, 1976 for a further discussion on this subjectmatter.
For a similar bottle by the same artist, see Snuff Bottles: Little Gems of Delight, Singapore Chinatown Snuff Bottle Society, 2004, p. 23. The dating of this bottle is not certain as it reads yiyou (1945 or 2005). The first option is impossible as the artist was born in 1943. It is possible that the first character yi was miswritten. In that case the bottle could be from 1993, 1981 or 1969.
The subject matter of the Hundred Boys is taken from the novel Shuihuzhuan. To paint literally one hundred boys is an extraodinary achievement on such a limited surface. 'The 100 Boys' symbolise an abundance of male heirs. See also C.A.S. Williams, Outlines of Chinese Symbolism & Art Motives, New York, 1976 for a further discussion on this subjectmatter.