A Study Of Chinese Painting And Calligraphy Market In The Early Period Of The Republic Of China (1912-1937)

The development of the Chinese painting and calligraphy market has a long history. It was formed during the Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties; the scale of professional fees charged by a painter, writer or calligrapher was established in Qianlong reign period in the Qing Dynasty; and it was in the early period of the Republic of China that a relatively perfected market of painting and calligraphy finally came into being.In the early period of the Republic of China, the market of painting and calligraphy encountered new developmental opportunities with the emergence of new commercial cities like Shanghai, as a result of which some new changes took place. The traditional economic mode of production was still predominant while the modern urbanization process was being continuously promoted. Under the background of the continuous changes of the sociocultural environment, the market of painting and calligraphy was absorbing new elements while inheriting the tradition. There emerged in that period not only traditional business institutions of painting and calligraphy such as antique stores, Nanping paper shops, etc., but also exhibitions and auctions, which had never appeared before. Painters and calligraphers also changed from entertaining themselves by painting and calligraphy and being ashamed of mentioning the profits to publicizing the scale of professional fees they charged and promoting the sale of their works.In the early period of the Republic of China, the commodity of works of painting and calligraphy became even more obvious and prominent. The economic purpose of painting and calligraphy exerted influences not only on consumers’financing concepts but also on the intermediaries running the business of painting and calligraphy, and on the painters and calligraphers in all aspects. The contrastive analysis of the painting and calligraphy markets in Beijing and Shanghai shows that the development of the painting and calligraphy market was very likely to be influenced by such factors as spirit of the time, regional culture and social economy due to the unbalanced developments of economy and culture in the early period of the Republic of China.In addition, due to too much emphasis on the physical attributes of the works of painting and calligraphy in that period, and to the short supply of works of famous painters and calligraphers in the market, the painters and calligraphers paid less attention to the artistic quality of their works, and there appeared such practices as hyping, imitating, ghostwriting, faking, etc., which brought most serious negative effects-the effects which have lasted until today-on the development of the painting and calligraphy market.The market of painting and calligraphy from1912-1937continued and integrated the summits of the Chinese painting and calligraphy market during the past dynasties, and promoted to a higher level the painting and calligraphy trading which took as the main form the scale of professional fees charged by a painter, writer or calligrapher. In the competitive game between the modernized power propulsion and the resistance of the historical and cultural tradition, the painting and calligraphy market became the social, economical, and cultural reforms in miniature at a time of the conflict between tradition and reform, and reflected profoundly the transitions and changes of the modern society. The problems revealed in the painting and calligraphy market in the early period of the Republic of China constitute an important part of the history of cultural industry in the modern society and are of great research value and academic significance.