Accession Number
1982/2.51

Title
Presenting Lichee Fruit on a Carved Ice Platter, in the style of Tang Yin

Artist(s)
Gai Qi

Object Creation Date
circa 1900

Medium & Support
hanging scroll, ink and color on silk

Dimensions
5 ft. 5 1/8 in. x 15 9/16 in. (165.26 x 39.4 cm)

Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by the Margaret Watson Parker Art Collection Fund

Label copy
Gai Qi
China, 1774–1829
Lady in Her Study with Attendants (left)
Qing dynasty (1644–1912)
1821
Hanging scroll, ink and color on paper
Museum purchase made possible by the Margaret Watson Parker
Art Collection Fund, 1973/1.794
Attributed to Gai Qi
China, 1774–1829
Presenting Lichee Fruit on a Carved Ice Platter (center)
Qing dynasty (1644–1912)
ca. 1900
Hanging scroll, ink and color on silk
Museum purchase made possible by the Margaret Watson Parker
Art Collection Fund, 1982/2.51
Attributed to Yu Ji
China, 1738–1823
Presenting Lichee Fruit on a Carved Ice Platter (right)
Qing dynasty (1644–1912)
Early 20th century
Hanging scroll, ink and color on paper
Museum purchase made possible by the Margaret Watson Parker
Art Collection Fund, 1990/1.188

These three works are paintings of meiren (“beautiful
women”) a genre of painting that first appeared during the

late Ming dynasty (1368–1644) and was produced by low-
status professional painters, rather than by the scholarly

elite. Such paintings frequently depict elaborately dressed
women reading in studies, surrounded by books and scrolls.
It is likely that they are courtesans, who received extensive
training in the arts, literature, music, and calligraphy, and
were considered both icons of femininity and the intellectual
equals of high-ranking men. In Lady in Her Study with
Attendants the woman is brought books, scrolls, and a pipa,
or pear-shaped lute, evidence of her literary and musical
talents. The two other paintings, probably later copies of
Gai Qi’s, also emphasize the women’s intellect. The lichee
associates the women with historical beauties, specifically the
celebrated imperial consort Yang Guifei, who was famously
fond of this fruit.

Subject matter
The artist Gai Qi was from a family of Muslim origin that lived in southeastern China, near the port city of Shanghai. A professional painter living entirely on his art, he is best known for delicately rendered images of beautiful women. This garden scene of two young maids serving their mistress a platter of lichee fruit refers to the legendary incident in which when lichees were presented to Yang Guifei (719-756), the favorite consort of the Minghuang Emperor (r. 712–756) during the Tang dynasty. Lichees grow only in southern China, and the fruit was rushed north on horseback each summer to please the extravagant taste of Yang Guifei and her court ladies. One year when celebrating Yang’s birthday, the Emperor named his musical composition The Fragrance of Lichee. After Yang was killed in a riot, the annual arrival of the fruit reminded the emperor of his lost love and caused him great sorrow. This bittersweet motif is often found in Chinese literature and painting.

Physical Description
Vertically long image. Ink on silk. Multiple figures gathered near a table. Vegetation in the lower left.

Primary Object Classification
Painting

Primary Object Type
hanging scroll

Additional Object Classification(s)
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
costume (mode of fashion)
figures (representations)
fruit (plant components)
hanging scroll
painting
platters
women (female humans)