Curator's Circle
2001 Past Programs

2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004
2005 | 2006 | 2007

Kimiko Powers | Shaykha Hussah al-Sabah | John and Julia Curtis
Dr. and Mrs. George Fan | Dr. Yan-ming Ip | Dr. and Mrs. Henry Wong

Kimiko Powers Sponsored by an anonymous donor Stable with Fine Horses (detail) Japan, early 1600s

Conversation: "Collecting Japanese Art with John Powers"
Kimiko Powers and her husband John (1916-99) assembled one of the finest collections of Japanese art outside of Japan. Furthermore, they had fun doing it. Internationally renowned, the Kimiko and John Powers Collection includes extraordinary examples of Japanese art that attest to their unique tastes and wide-ranging interests. Although they worked as a team, their individual preferences converged to find works that were adventuresome yet grounded in classical tradition. In the process, they shared their enthusiasm for Japanese art with university professors, museum curators, and fellow collectors. They also conducted art tours in Japan for American business executives, many of whom became Japanese art collectors themselves. Kimiko will describe the memorable encounters that she and John had in their quest for Japanese art and will relate the joy of collecting that permeated her experiences with John.
January 30, 2001

Workshop: "Collecting Japanese Paintings with John Powers"
Kimiko Powers is lending selected works from the Kimiko and John Powers Collection to the Denver Art Museum. She will offer firsthand observations on specific paintings and explain why she and John were attracted to them. In her workshop, she will share the reasons why she and John selected certain paintings for their collection. Workshop participants will have an opportunity to see these objects with a fresh eye and learn what to look for in Japanese painted scrolls and screens.
January 31, 2001

Shaykha Hussah al-Sabah Sponsored by Bj Averitt Shaykha Hussah al-Sabah Photo by Celeste Fleming

Conversation: "Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah—An Islamic Art Museum Without Walls"
Shaykha Hussah al-Sabah and her husband, Shaykh Nasser al-Sabah, formed one of the world's most comprehensive collections of Islamic art. They exhibited it in the Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah (DAI), or House of Islamic Antiquities, a building within the Kuwait National Museum complex. Like most private collectors, Shaykh Nasser began collecting as an attempt to adorn the world around him. His passion stemmed from a desire to bring Islamic objects back home, near to where they were made; he did not set out to build a museum collection. When the DAI opened in 1983, it exhibited 1,200 objects. Today, the collection includes over 20,000 works, and covers all media, geographic regions, and historic periods from the eighth to eighteenth century. Shaykha Hussah will describe the creation of the al-Sabah collection and recount the perils that befell it when the Kuwait National Museum buildings were burned in February 1991. She will discuss how the collection was held as a "prisoner of war" in Baghdad, Iraq, and later returned by the United Nations and UNESCO. In observance of the tenth anniversary of the liberation of Kuwait, Shaykha Hussah will focus on a decade of cultural programs, traveling exhibitions, publications, and membership offerings that continue to keep DAI a vital, dynamic organization as it works to rebuild its walls and put a roof over its head so that the al-Sabah collection can be returned to public view.
February 27, 2001

Workshop: "Why Collect Islamic Art?"
Shaykha Hussah will begin with general remarks about collecting Islamic art and then focus on specific objects in the Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah collection. She will illustrate her discussion with slides of her pieces and explain why she selected them for her museum. Workshop participants will have an opportunity to view objects from the Denver Art Museum's collection and hear the Shaykha's reaction to them. There will be ample time for participants to discuss Islamic art with Shaykha Hussah. The workshop is a unique opportunity to discover the wonders of Islamic art by observing individual objects through the eyes of a practiced collector.
February 28, 2001

Articles

John and Julia Curtis Fund at the Denver Art Museum Foundation Album Leaf by Gui Zhuang China, winter 1647

Conversation: "A Voyage of Discovery—Collecting Chinese Books, Paintings, Calligraphy, Ceramics, and Figural Arts"
John and Julia Curtis know the current trends in the Chinese art market: the price of tomb figures has dropped, a gigantic new market has opened in the People's Republic of China, and the Japanese have reduced their activity as buyers. John will explain how the move of the Chinese painting market to Hong Kong has affected collecting and Julia will describe the problems presented by potters at Jingdezhen who are faking seventeenth-century porcelain.

Mr. and Mrs. Curtis will also discuss their fascination with Chinese books. John's business is antiquarian books, and he has a personal interest in collecting Chinese woodblock printed books of the sixteenth and seventeenth century. Both John and Julia are avid collectors of Chinese art history books. They consider their library an invaluable asset for developing their Chinese art collection. Their books provided knowledge that has saved them from making countless errors.
March 28, 2001

Workshop: "Advice for Collectors of Chinese Art"
John and Julia Curtis will describe their adventures as collectors of Chinese art and recount their experiences as they share firsthand information about the present art market. As they have the benefit of hindsight, they will discuss their seasoned approach to collecting and offer lessons for present and future collectors. They will illustrate specific works in their collection and explain how they created collections within a collection.
March 29, 2001

Dr. and Mrs. George Fan Sponsored by an anonymous foundation Bronze Ding Vessel China, 1200s BC

Conversation: "Collecting Ancient Chinese Bronzes"
Dr. and Mrs. George Fan are collectors who are interested in ideas. In their conversation, George Fan will trace the development of taotie masks and inscriptions on ancient Chinese bronzes, and Katherine Hu Fan will describe how she uses words and images to express social viewpoints in her paintings. Dr. Fan will explain what attracted him to the bronzes in his collection. Dating from about 1500 to 771 BC, these bronzes are in Early Chinese Bronzes from Shang to Western Zhou Dynasties, an exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum, New York, opening in March 2001 and running for approximately a year. They are also featured in an article in the March 2001 issue of Orientations magazine. Mrs. Fan, a self-admitted "accumulator of things and thoughts," will show slides of her paintings of the human body.
April 25, 2001

Workshop: "Criteria for Collecting Chinese Art"
Dr. George Fan will discuss his criteria for collecting Chinese bronzes, ceramics and paintings. Concentrating on bronzes, he will address such topics as "How and what to collect" and "How to deal with fakes in today's market," and will refer to objects from his collection to illustrate his points.
April 26, 2001

Dr. Yan-ming Ip Sponsored by an anonymous foundation Cup and Stand China,900s-1200s

Conversation: "Simplicity Is Beauty—Chinese Ceramics of the Song Dynasty"
The Song Dynasty (960-1279) has long been regarded as the classic period of Chinese ceramics. Song potters made great advancements in the use of clay, glazes, and firing techniques. In general, Song patrons preferred monochrome-glazed wares. The more aristocratic of the Song wares (those made at the Guan, Ge, Ru, Ding, and Jun kilns) have elegant shapes, subtly colored glazes, and discreetly incised decorations. Humbler wares, on the other hand, typically have exuberant designs and boldly conceived decorations.

The appeal of Song ceramics has withstood the test of time. Renowned for their elegance, subtlety, equilibrium, and refinement, Song ceramics still resonate in the hearts of collectors. Drawing from his personal experience, Dr. Ip will describe why and how to collect these aesthetic beauties.
May 30, 2001

Workshop: "The Tea Ceremony and Chinese Ceramics of the Song Dynasty"
During the Song dynasty, tea drinking was not only a general pastime, but also a highly regarded art. It evolved into tea-tasting competitions (dou cha) and ceramics made specifically for tea. In those days, tea leaves were white in color and there was a demand for contrasting black wares. This trend spread to Japan and influenced the Japanese tea ceremony. Dr. Ip will discuss the various types of tea bowls and tea wares and their link with the evolution of the tea ceremony.
May 31, 2001

Dr. and Mrs. Henry Wong Sponsored by Tong and Kanika Heng Jade Ornament China, 1200s-1500s

Conversation: "To Have and to Hold—Collecting Chinese Jades"
Dr. and Mrs. Henry Wong live in Hong Kong, a paradise for collectors of Chinese jades. In a conversation with Ronald Otsuka, curator of Asian art, they will discuss the changes and trends in Hong Kong's antique jade market. On Hollywood Road, a street famous for antique shops and art galleries, jades are now scarce in comparison to ceramics from the Han (206 BC-AD 220) and Tang (618-907) dynasty. Maisie and Henry will describe how they adjusted to the current situation and explain how personal preferences influenced the development of their collection. Dr. and Mrs. Wong favor white jades over those of other colors because they like to focus on the workmanship of their pieces, which is best seen when an object is white. Many objects from their collection have been featured in publications and exhibitions, including Chinese Jades from Han to Ch'ing at New York's Asia Society Gallery in 1980 and White on White: Chinese Jades and Ceramics from the Tang through Qing Dynasty at the Denver Art Museum in 1998-99.
June 27, 2001

Workshop: "The Beauty of Chinese Jades"
Using slides to illustrate their points, Dr. and Mrs. Henry Wong will discuss the laborious methods of carving and polishing jades. Understanding how jade objects were created is essential to assessing their age and quality. Maisie and Henry will point out critical factors in appreciating beautifully executed jades. Their comments will be especially helpful for collectors interested in starting a jade collection.
June 28, 2001