Chinese Bamboo Carving (Part I and II)

English and Chinese text.; Hardcover (2 VOLUMES with dust jackets).; 22 x 26 cm.; 3.4 Kg.; Part I: 563 pages with black and white and a few colour illustrations, 1978, ISBN 9622150128. Catalogue from an exhibition in The 3rd Festival of Asian Art presented by The Urban Council Hong Kong, 1978.; Part II 351 pages with black and white illustrations, 1982, ISBN 9622150411.; Used books with signs of wear on the exterior and dust jackets, that have signs of wear, are faded on spine and show edge wear. Tear on top of the back cover of volume I and at the bottom of the spine. Three scratches on spine of volume 2 that passed to the other side. Interior with signs of wear. Volume 1 as a few pages slightly bent on the top right side. Remaining interior in good condition.; "Although bamboo is a common plant found in many parts of the world, few peoples have taken such a keen interest in its use as a medium for artistic expression as the Chinese. Their fondness for bamboo has frequently been expressed in poetry, painting, calligraphy, carving and many other art forms. Since the Sung dynasty (960-1279), the Chinese have written of bamboo as the symbol of the "true gentleman", or scholar possessing the virtues of endurance, righteousness, humility and integrity. Chinese scholars always enjoy the presence of bamboo, whether it be the growing plant, or bamboo in painting, or an object made from part of the plant. It is not difficult, therefore, to preceive why bamboo carving has its own special significance in the Chinese art scene and why this art form was so closely associated with Chinese scholars. In fact, most of the carvings in the exhibition as illustrated in this volume were once the companions of Chinese scholars in their elegant studios. This first exhibition of bamboo carving, has been made possible only through the untiring efforts and support of our Museum Adviser, Dr. Ip Yee. We are deeply in debt to him not only for the generous loan of his fine collection of bamboo carvings, but also for the expert advice to the preparation of the exhibition and compilation of this handbook." excerpt from the acknowledgments, Part I, by Laurence C.S. Tam, September, 1978.; "In this volume the attempt is made to provide some basic facts, in English and in Chinese, on Chinese bamboo carvers and their carvings gleaned from Chinese literary records, and to do so in a manner that will facilitate reference. A list of 300 bamboo carvers has been compiled, and the sources for each are indicated after each biography for the use of those who may wish to research further. In order to facilitate positive identification of artists among the spectrum of their names, and pseudonyms, and other assumed names, a special index has been compiled with direct reference to the biographical notes of each artist. Part I of this book attempted a brief summary of the history of bamboo carving, and there, it was noted that the subject has so far been little studied. Here, in order to facilitate further study and research, a compilation of available material has been made, and the resulting three lists show the known items of bamboo carving of different periods, with the source of each recorded item indicated. These lists have been made up to enable easy access to the basic information on the earliest known items of bamboo carving, together with the recorded examples by known carvers and also those so far anonymous. In the exhibition 'Chinese Bamboo Carving', there were two hundred and eleven items on display. These were all fine works selected from collections from many parts of the world. All are illustrated in Part I of this book. Many other examples of fine bamboo carving exist in local Hong Kong collections, and these are now collected in this present volume in order to provide further visual examples of forms, techniques, pictorial motifs, composition, and even dating criteria." excerpt from Preface, Part II, by Laurence C.S. Tam, Curator, Hong Kong Museum of Art.…