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Inspired by history, the hunt for orphan objets d’ art
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THE history of the Tushanwan Orphanage effectively ended around 1960, but its legacy lives on.
“When I was doing research for the book ‘Zikawei in History,’ I was amazed to see the walls of a reading room in Xujiahui Library graced by two sculptures created in the 1850s,” says Song Haojie, former deputy director of the Xuhui District Cultural Bureau.
“A wood sculpture on the northern wall and a clay sculpture on the southern wall, both with Catholic themes, were intact, lifelike and exquisite,” he explains. “The signs on the bottoms of the works indicated they were done by Jean Ferrere, one of the founders of the orphanage, who came to Shanghai in 1847.”
In 2008, Song was told that a kindergarten in Xujiahui still had an original stained glass made by the Tushanwan orphans.
“On the staircase between the ground and first floors, there was a large stained-glass artwork, with marks indicating that it was produced by the orphanage,” he says.
Zhang Jie, an officer in Song’s bureau, also discovered Tushanwan stained glass in the Yongnian Building at 93 Guangdong Road. There, the artworks graced the top and both sides of the main entrance, the east and north sides of the hall, the entry to the staircase and an upper staircase.
“Sunshine flooding through the windows projected gorgeous icons on the marble floor,” Song says. “The entire building was soaked in a quiet, solemn, hazy and mysterious atmosphere. At that moment, my thoughts were centered on Tushanwan, where the glass was made. The orphanage is considered the first producer of Chinese stained glass.”
A year after discovering the 1850s sculptures, Song learned that a church in Pudong still had a clock made by the orphanage.
“I went there the next day and saw an iron clock hanging on top of the church called the Rose Chapel,” he says. “The clock was carved with the Chinese characters for ‘Xujiahui Tushanwan,’ some French words and the year 1921. Father Li Hu handed me a paper enclosed in plastic. I was amazed to find it contained the words and music of a song sung at the orphanage.
“These serendipitous findings delighted me,” Song says. “Sometimes I was so excited that I couldn’t sleep. Then I came up with the idea of hosting a forum, editing a book and collecting more material for a Tushanwan museum.”
He says he hopes future generations who visit the museum will come away with a deeper understanding of this important piece of Shanghai’s history. “Where Chinese and Western cultures mingled,” he says.
Song’s wishes seem destined to be granted. The museum today attracts 50,000 visitors a year, many of whom are children and young adults.
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