Message #51852

[Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司]

Dear Inn Bok,

     Please be sure that your contributions and those of other native Chinese members of the Forum, is equally important and supplies those of us not born into Chinese culture with a lot of context we'd not otherwise have realised.

    It is like the difference between my understanding of the minutiae of Jewish Ritual Laws dealing with food since I can remember [back to 2 1/2 years of age] and that of a well educated convert to Orthodox Judaism. The convert can learn the facts and details, but will never have the automatic understanding and response I have.

   In the same way, things that seem obvious to you might not even occur to me.
   Like my discussion about a bottle with a tree-rat subject with one of the collectors I visited on my East Asian tour a few weeks ago. A certain 'guru', whom we'll call 'Hugo Boss', had stated categorically that a bottle with a Tree-rat could not be 'right'.

   But the only reason we call a certain subject 'squirrels and grape vines' is because he and other Western 'gurus' were disgusted by 'rats'.  But there is the Year of the Rat, in East Asian culture. Rats are NOT a priori, a negative in East Asian Culture.

    So thank you to all Native Chinese members; you've helped me get a better grasp on Chinese art and the context in which these beautiful treasures were made and enjoyed.
Best,
Joey