Tsinghua University Art Museum is located in the campus of Tsinghua University. The museum is jointly designed by the China Academy of Building Research and the well-known Swiss architect Mario Botta. The total construction area is 30,000 square meters with four floors above ground and one underground.
Tsinghua University Art Museum has a collection of more than 1400 components of painting and calligraphy, more than 2700 components of ceramic, more than 4600 components of weaving embroidery, and more than 140 components of furniture. Painting and calligraphy collection include all representative works of various schools since Yuan Dynasty.
Here are some famous collections in the museum.
Handy Cup of Kangxi, Qing Dynasty
This handy cup is with thin wall, white inner side, rouge lotion glaze on the outer side, bright color and exquisite patterns. On the outer base there are two lines with four characters written in blue and white italics "Made in Kangxi years", and the outer side is in the same color with two columns.
Seven-Character Poems by Wen Zhengming, Ming Dynasty
Wen Zhengming (1470-1559) was a leading painter, calligrapher, poet, and scholar in Ming Dynasty. He was regarded as one of ‘the Four Masters of Ming painting’.
Southern Official’s Hat Chair, Ming Dynasty
Both the arms and the back splats of the chairs are carved with deep curves. The front panels underneath the seats are uniquely carved into "arch" shape. The chair is handcrafted and structured with wooden pegs and tenon structure, which is the very traditional craftsmanship for furniture making in ancient China. Made from elm wood with beautiful wood grain, the chair is very solid and has been kept in excellent condition.
Painting: Chickens live in the shadow of flowers, Qing Dynasty
Gao Fenghan (1683 ~ 1749) was one of the Eight Eccentric Artists in Yangzhou. He was an uninhibited painter, calligrapher, and engraving expert in Qing Dynasty. He was good at literature and engraving, especially good at painting flowers and birds. On the top of this piece of work, there’s a red crown rooster, red and white peony in clusters, rugged Taihu stone and budding trees and switchgrass. The layout was compact while the scenes were in order.