PU RU (1896-1963)

GAZING AT A WATERFALL

A Chinese painting, ink and colour on paper, inscribed and signed Xinyu with four artist's seals, framed and glazed, 100cm x 32.5cm.

Provenance: from an English private collection. Formerly in the collection of Tsui Tsuntong (1941-2010), also known as T T Tsui, who was a famous Chinese art collector, entrepreneur and the founder of the Tsui Art Foundation. Tsui purchased this painting at Sotheby's Hong Kong on 17th May 1990, lot 75. The current owner lived and worked in Hong Kong for over 20 years, the last two of which were spent working in T T Tsui's group of companies. During this time he acquired many Chinese artworks, and this particular painting was given to him directly from T T Tsui.

Pu Ru was a cousin of Pu Yi, the last Emperor of China. In this painting by him, the scholar stands in front of a waterfall, admiring its beauty and listening to its cascading waters, comparing the sound to music played on the qin, a traditional Chinese instrument.