Chinese & Southeast Asian Works of Art

正：明黑漆螺鈿山水十二扇屏
反：清乾隆丙寅（1746）恭祝毛氏八十大壽賀壽文
each panel inlaid with mother-of-pearl depicting a landscape with scholars, officials accompanied by attendants with guests gathering at the riverbank, the top of each panel inlaid with mountain peaks and distant pavilions enshrouded in clouds and mist, the reverse decorated with a birthday congratulation article in gilt lacquer, dated year Bingyin of Emperor Qianlong (1746).

Alexandra Emery Moore, an adventurous creative with an unimpeachable eye, was the first-born daughter to John Josiah Emery and Lela Amelia, a prominent family with ties to New York and Cincinnati. Among her relatives include Audrey Emery, a socialite who married one of the last Russian Grand Dukes, and John J. Emery, a great patron of the Cincinnati Art Museum. In her youth, she debuted in both London and New York, and journeyed to China with a friend, which instilled within her a deep passion for travel. Indeed, her acceptance of a marriage proposal from Benjamin Moore was contingent upon receipt of a ring and promise of a honeymoon in China. 

Mr. Moore hailed from an old New York family—“A Visit from St. Nicholas” was penned by a forebear on their family farm, Chelsea, now the vibrant neighborhood in Manhattan by the same name—and trained as a lawyer at Harvard. Nevertheless, after his marriage, his new bride requested that he forgo working in favor of accompanying her on adventures across the world.

While on their honeymoon, the young couple was entranced by the views as they floated along their houseboat tour through the Yangtze River, and were particularly drawn to a stark white house under a black roof reflected in the water. Upon their return to the United States, they purchased 100 acres of land in Oyster Bay in Long Island, and founded the associated nearby village of Muttontown, of which Mr. Moore became the first mayor. Drawing inspiration from the architecture she saw during her travels in China, the young Mrs. Moore collaborated with renowned architect William Adams Delano (of Delano & Aldrich) to construct an estate on the land combining Chinese and French Renaissance styles. The house, fittingly named “Chelsea” included an undulating roof, internal court, moon gate, and a moat, and was furnished with her purchases from around the world. Her first trips to China, during which time she likely purchased the large Peonies and Quails and elaborate floor screen to adorn her home, were foundational in shaping her taste and aesthetic throughout her life. Moore granted the estate and mansion to Nassau county upon her passing, and the property from her collection has been gifted to various institutions or remained in the family to the present.

莫氏夫婦是辛辛那提美術館的主要捐贈人。這是一個來自紐約的老錢家族，僅在曼哈頓就擁有整片切爾西區的土地。男主人班傑明的曾祖父是美國聖公會的第二任主教（美國開國元勛之一漢密爾頓臨終時即由他受聖餐），祖父是著名詩人，著有《聖誕前夜》，是美國家喻戶曉、人人會背的名詩篇。1920年嫁入的女主人艾麗珊（1894-1983）同樣出身顯赫，而且酷愛旅行，尤其對遠東的風光山色難以忘懷。據説她接受求婚時唯一的條件是“帶我再去中國”。

不難理解爲什麽百年前的中國這樣吸引美國客——北平的古舊、廣州的繁華、上海的摩登。艾麗珊短暫一行，帶回一生夢縈——她在長島的黃金海岸上建起一座東方式行宮，小橋流水涼亭。此後的幾十年，源源不斷從遠東運來傢俬，點綴豪宅内外。晚年艾麗珊將這所官邸連帶周圍的百餘畝土地贈與長島政府，宅中藝術品大部分捐給辛辛那提美術館，小部分留給後人。本次上拍的北宋趙昌款《牡丹圖》軸以及晚明黑漆螺鈿屏風十二扇，即來自艾

麗珊的孫輩。