A set of 9 leporello albums of calligraphy on black background, China and Japan, 19th-20th century, including 8 in rubbed paper with wooden cover and back and 1 of prints, various sizes (restorations), comprising:

- 1 in rubbed paper entitled 趙子昌三体千字文 (‘The Thousand Character Classic in three styles by Zhao Zichang’)

- 1 of prints entitled 蘇學士大字法書 (‘The great calligraphy of Su Xueshi’)

- 1 in rubbed paper entitled 真書千字文 (‘The Thousand Character Classic’), subtitle 文徵明 書 (‘Calligraphy by Wen Zhenming’), seals at the end of the book

- 2 in rubbed paper entitled 東坡先生詩 (‘Mr Dongpo's poems’), subtitle 柴 秋邨 先生 書 (‘Calligraphy by Shiba Shunson’)

- 1 in rubbed paper titled 草書 前赤壁賦 (‘Written from the red cliff’), subtitle 文徵明書 (‘Calligraphied by Wen Zhengming’), two seals at the end of the work

- 3 in rubbed paper without titles inscribed on the wooden covers, including 1 dated the 12th year of the Meiji period (1879), and 2 with red seals

Provenance: Li Ai Vee collection (1932-2021), Yu-Lan chalet

九冊書法冊，中國和日本，十九世紀到二十世紀 八冊拓片冊，一冊版畫冊 已經過修復 來自李愛維收藏 (1932-2021), 玉蘭木屋

COLLECTION LI AI VEE

Piguet auction house is honoured to present the third part of the collection of Li Ai Vee (李爱维, born Eva Anita Li, 1932-2021), a Chinese-German painter living in Switzerland and a fervent collector of Asian art, mainly Chinese and Japanese.

Born in Shanghai, Li Ai Vee was introduced to painting as a child by her mother, herself an artist, and went on to become a pupil of prestigious painters such as Lin Fengmian (1900-1991) and Lu Yifei (1908-1997) in the 1950s. She then spent several years in Japan, where she was a disciple of the Zen master Rinzai Yamada Mumon Rôshi (1900-1988). There, in 1954, she was selected to paint several bamboos on the sliding doors of the Hiroshima Memorial.

In 1958, Li Ai Vee left China and settled in Zurich, Switzerland. In 1965, she met Zhang Daqian (Chang Dai-Chien, 1899-1983), and became a pupil of this internationally renowned painter. That same year, she was awarded the Medal of the City of Paris in recognition of her art.

In 1973, Li Ai Vee moved to Blonay to the chalet ‘Yu-Lan’ ( 玉蘭 , ‘Magnolia’), surrounded by a vast bamboo forest and guarded by carved Foo lions. It was there that she painted, surrounded by her extensive collection of Asian art, which she has enriched over the years. Li Ai Vee has put together a rich and varied collection of objects, combining monochrome vases, paintings and albums, scholarly objects, carved jades and divinities from the Asian pantheon, all of which she has combined with her passion for art.

The entire collection can be found by entering the keyword ‘Li Ai Vee’ in the search bar on our website.

The third and fourth parts of Li Ai Vee's collection will be presented in our future sale in June 2025.