Wang’s exquisite examples are highlights of commemorative seals exhibition
Print Edition
AN exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of Jiading native collector Wang Tong’s birth was held in Shanghai this month. It featured 160 seals from Wang’s private collection, including some exquisite examples from artists such as Chen Mansheng, He Zhen, Wu Changshuo, Qi Baishi and Deng Sanmu.
Wang collected more than 200 seals as well as many valuable stones, including tianhuang stones and jixue (chicken blood) stones, a collection that is renowned for its quality as well as its quantity. As an accountant and calligrapher, Wang used name seals for many occasions and his hobby of collecting such seals also enabled him to make friends with many seal cutting artists.
A book featuring prints of 120 private seals from 51 seal-cutting artists was published along with the launch of the exhibition. Tong Yanfang, a close friend who is also a renowned seal cutting artist and deputy director of Xiling Seal Engraver’s Society Publishing House, wrote the preface. Renowned calligrapher Zhou Huijun has given it his recommendation.
IF it felt good and was a nice color it became part of the collection ...About the Collector
WANG Tong (1916-2011), a Jiading native, is famous for his collection of seals. He signs himself Teweng (忒翁) with a nickname of Qian Long (潜龙) as he was born in the year of dragon. Chunhui Hall in Jiading is his family’s former residence.
Wang knew little about seals when he started collecting. If the seal was a nice color or felt good when he held it, he bought it. He kept some seals for their good carvings or content. He also invited artists to re-carve some less favorite ones he had bought. Thus, his collection is very varied and covers a long span of time, a qingtian stone from the early Ming Dynasty being one of the oldest.
Unlike other collectors, Wang collected seals to stamp his calligraphy and painting works. Different sizes of works needed different sizes of seals. Such a hobby allowed him to make friends with many seal cutting artists during the late 1940s to mid-1960s.
Famous artist Zhu Fukan cut more than 100 seals for Wang.
Wang made acquaintance with Zhu through a classmate. He suggested Zhu, a friend of his father, could write on the back of a fan painted by Qi Baishi that Wang bought in late 1940s. When the fan was returned, Wang was so delighted with the work that he invited Zhu to carve seals for him.
Within a year, Zhu had carved more than 100 seals for Wang, most private name seals such as literary and courtesy names as well as Wang’s favorite lines of poetry. Later, some of these seals were printed and published as a book, which became the original reference for a book recently published by the Xiling Seal Engraver’s Society Publishing House.
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