Winter Mountain
ink and colour on paper 2005
126 x 73 cm

A Scoop ink and colour on paper 2006 138 x 36 cm	Seen in a Supermarket ink and colour on paper 2003 138 x 36 cm

(Photo courtesy of the University Museum and Art Gallery, HKU)

The University Museum and Art Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of paintings by the Chinese art historian and artist, Professor Wan Qingli. The exhibition features 28 of his recent works in brush and ink, including a 15-panel piece entitled In the Middle of the Song No One is in Sight (2003).

Born in Beijing in 1945, Wan graduated from the Department of Art History and the Department of Chinese painting of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1968 and 1981 respectively. He studied from some of the major artists of the past century including Li Keran (1907-1989) and Lu Yanshao (1909-1993). Wan completed his PhD degree in art history at The University of Kansas in the United States and since 1989 has taught at the Department of Fine Arts of The University of Hong Kong.

Wan's art historical research emphasizes the creative potential within the Chinese brush-and-ink painting tradition. He puts his belief into practice in his paintings as he explores the use of brush, ink and seals as a combined expression of his thoughts and feelings instead of following fashionable trends. Many of Wan's works depict landscapes remembered or imagined, offering temporary respite from the bustling real world. His paintings also record things from everyday life that he finds interesting or ironic. The amusing appearance and behaviour of animals becomes the subject of his concisely painted works, which, with the addition of humorous and satirical inscriptions, are transformed into poignant visual commentaries on contemporary life.

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Portrait of Emperor Qianlong, 1793.
(An illustration from Sir George Staunton, An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China, vol. 2, 1798)
(Photo courtesy of The University of Hong Kong Libraries)

View of the suburbs of a Chinese city, 1793.
(An illustration from Sir George Staunton, An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China, vol. 4, 1798)
(Photo courtesy of The University of Hong Kong Libraries)

Scene at a tea factory, 1793.
(An illustration from Sir George Staunton, An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China, vol. 4, 1798)
(Photo courtesy of The University of Hong Kong Libraries)

Scanned images of the first (left) and the last pages (right) of Gong shi ji, by Liu Chang (Song dynasty),
undated, Wenyuange edition. This copy is believed to have been dispersed from Wenyuange (Wen Yuan Pavilion) at Yuanmingyuan (Old Summer Palace), Beijing.

This exhibition is jointly presented by the Libraries and the University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong. It will feature a number of valuable books from the rare book collection of the Libraries, some of which belonged originally to historical and literary figures, including Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary to China; Lu Muzhen, Sun Yat-sen's first wife; and Hsu Ti-shan, a well-known essayist and novelist etc.

Founded in 1912, the University of Hong Kong Libraries is the oldest and largest academic library in Hong Kong. Over the past few years the Libraries have put special emphasis on collection development. Its printed collection has grown to over 2.4 million volumes, some of which are rare and unique. Equally remarkable is the growth of its e-book collection. It has taken only seven years for the Libraries to accumulate one million e-books, after it first began acquiring web-based e-books in the year 2000, making it the world's first library to do so.

This exhibition celebrates the launch of the University of Hong Kong Libraries' one millionth e-book. It will recount how the library has built up its wonderful rare book collections and describe the way in which the one millionth e-book has been created.

Among the highlights of the exhibition are a beautifully produced 1798 edition of George Staunton's An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain of China, published in 1798 in five volumes and a rare copy of the Si ku quan shu (a collection of reference works up to the eighteenth century), which is believed to have originated in the collection of the Wenyuange (Wen Yuan Pavilion) at the Yuanmingyuan (the Old Summer Palace). The former is a genuine and copious account of Lord George Macartney's mission to the court of the Qing emperor Qianlong from the King George III between 1792 and 1794, and is the only copy that exists in the world. The Libraries have chosen this to be digitized as its one millionth e-book.

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