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Lot Essay
Dr Douglas James Smyth Crozier was a prominent member of the Hong Kong educational community during the mid-20th century. His career culminated in ten years of service as Hong Kong’s Director of Education, with a seat on the Legislative Council, from 1951-1961, and on the Executive Council, 1956-1961. In 1961 Crozier was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Hong Kong, praised in the Chairman’s citation for his vision, energy and drive; and in 1969, an honorary Doctor of Laws from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, for the foundation of which he had made representations to London.
Crozier built up a small but significant collection of Chinese paintings and calligraphy through gifts received for his tireless work to improve Hong Kong’s education system. Highlights of the collection include one work by Qi Baishi (1863-1957) (lot 152) and another by Ding Yanyong (1902-1978) (lot 153). Qi’s Begonias are dated to the 86th year of his life, and exemplify his later oeuvre's combination of spontaneous and fluid brushwork with a mastery of tonal variation. In Ding’s painting the arresting, wide-eyed bird alludes to eccentric Qing dynasty master Bada Shanren (1626-1705), updated with a modern twist in the graphic use of red for the flowering morning glory.
A similar painting of Begonias, Butterfly and Grasshopper by Qi Baishi, dated to the 87th year of his life, and dedicated to Edward Anderberg, US State Department Economic Analyst in China, can be found in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Accession number 2008.188.4.
Crozier built up a small but significant collection of Chinese paintings and calligraphy through gifts received for his tireless work to improve Hong Kong’s education system. Highlights of the collection include one work by Qi Baishi (1863-1957) (lot 152) and another by Ding Yanyong (1902-1978) (lot 153). Qi’s Begonias are dated to the 86th year of his life, and exemplify his later oeuvre's combination of spontaneous and fluid brushwork with a mastery of tonal variation. In Ding’s painting the arresting, wide-eyed bird alludes to eccentric Qing dynasty master Bada Shanren (1626-1705), updated with a modern twist in the graphic use of red for the flowering morning glory.
A similar painting of Begonias, Butterfly and Grasshopper by Qi Baishi, dated to the 87th year of his life, and dedicated to Edward Anderberg, US State Department Economic Analyst in China, can be found in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Accession number 2008.188.4.