In 1982, the China Institute presented “The Communion of Scholars: Chinese Art at Yale,” a selection of masterworks of Chinese art from the Yale University Art Gallery. Twenty-two years later, a second exhibition, “The Scholar as Collector: Chinese Art at Yale,” reexamined the collection from the perspective of Chinese scholar-collectors and offered an opportunity to present some rarely displayed treasures. Scholars as collectors played a significant role in shaping the past by writing about what they collected. Featuring sixty items, including bronze, ceramics, paintings, and furniture, this exhibition explored the two worlds of Chinese culture: the realm of ritual and the tomb and the precinct of the scholar-connoisseur.

The Scholar as Collector: Chinese Art at Yale
过眼云烟:耶鲁大学藏中国艺术珍品
September 23 – December 11, 2004
Curated by David Ake Sensabaugh
Exhibition organized by the Yale University Art Gallery.
Media Coverage
- Asian Art
Related Programs
- Curator’s Lecture: David Ake Sensabaugh, “The Scholar as Collector” (September 23, 2004).
- Short Course: Ben Wang, “Scholars, Collectors, and Poets” (October 14, 2004).
- Handling Session: Rose Kerr, “Scholar’s Art for Connoisseurs: Selections from the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing” (October 6, 2004).
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