Political advancement and religious transcendence: The Yongzheng emperor's (1678--1735) deployment of portraiture

Through an examination of the intertwined themes of political motivation and religious transcendence, this dissertation studies a group of mystifying portraits commissioned by Yinzhen (1678-1735) before and alter he became the Yongzheng emperor (r. 1723-1735) of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) in China. As it was a common practice for the term xingle tu to be used indiscriminately during the early Qing dynasty, I deliberately avoid this term and the confusion it may cause in this dissertation. By articulating the active role painted portraits played in influencing the Kangxi emperor's (r. 1661-1722) selection of his successor, this project advances contemporary understanding of a long-debated historical problem surrounding the legitimacy of Prince Yinzhen's enthronement. The reconstruction of the Yongzheng emperor's painting academy through records from the archives of the Office of Manufacture and Procurement fills a significant gap in the literature on Qing imperial art. The so-called "masquerade portraits" albums portray the Yongzheng emperor performing personages from different cultures, regions, and religions. The role that these portrait albums played in the Yongzheng emperor's religious pursuits was twofold. The first aspect was their ability to assist the emperor in imagining his transformation into other human beings. Secondly, these albums provide a visual experience that metaphorically enacted doubts about the nature of human existence. The perceptual experience mirrored important questions for Chan Buddhism; in the end, they must have finally enhanced the Yongzheng emperor's understanding of the notion of ultimate emptiness and offered hopes for enlightenment.