gems, jade, nephrite, Chinese jade carving

In Pursuit of Fine Jades" is a series of books dedicated to the study of beautiful objects made of jade in ancient China from the Michael S. Liu collection. This bilingual catalogue presents the jade collection of Michael S. L. Liu, concentrating on “pictorial jades”—objects whose natural colors, markings, textures, and mineral patterns evoke recognizable images or scenes. Xu and Chen examine the aesthetic appreciation of such material and the ways in which Chinese collectors and craftsmen have responded to naturally occurring features in jade, treating the stone itself as a form of pictorial art. The illustrated objects demonstrate how variations of color and texture can suggest landscapes, figures, animals, plants, clouds, and other imagery, sometimes requiring little or no intervention by the lapidary. Detailed photographs emphasize the relationship between the intrinsic qualities of the material and the visual associations perceived by the viewer. The volume combines connoisseurship, collecting, and close observation of jade, documenting an unusual aspect of Chinese jade appreciation in which naturally formed imagery is valued alongside workmanship and conventional criteria of material quality."