The Forums Photo Hosting Option Is Now Available

[George]

If you are already familiar with Photobucket or FlickR then better if you continue using these to post images.

But... I have added some space so you can also now use the forums photo hosting option.

Just click on the "options" tab beneath the box you enter text in for posting. When the new box opens up, just click on "browse". Then navigate to where ever your images are stored in your computer.

When you find the image you want, "right click" with your mouse on the image. Then scroll to "select". It will be added, although you will not be able to see them until you actually "post" your topic, or reply.

If you need help, just ask ! 

We do love to see your pictures ! 

[George]

For members not using PhotoBucket or FlickR, the forums photo hosting option is now working again.

Follow the instructions above 

[Peter Bentley 彭达理]

Hello  George

I'm not  sure  how to  announce  my data  base   on your  forum, although  I mentioned  it  in my personal  introduction

But I do want  it  to be  available to   to  every other  collector  free  of  charge  ( just   send   me   a  8 +   GB   memory stick)     and  later  on  I  will  find  a  way  to provide  updates.

Especially welcome  collectors  who will send  me  pics  of their own collections   so I  can incorporate  into the  DB

My objective  in creating the  DB is      3- fold :

1.  Help new  collectors  to   find their  way  though  the  modern   artist "jungle"  , which  is  made  even more  confusing  by  the  mistakes  in    pinyin spelling  ( Will the  real  " Liu Hui"   please  stand  up ? In  fact there  are    two   real   Liu Hui's :  one  from  Hengshui and  one  from Shandong)  ...  and  the fact that some  artists  use  several  pen names

2. Help  new collectors    to understand   who  are    Masters and  who are  students  and  see   examples  of their  works

3.  Help the   artists  themselves, who  I  think are  the  most  un-appreciated   and  under-valued  people in this   whole  inside-painted   snuff  bottle    field.    They  often  have  no way to sell   except via  "runner - buyers"  who  buy  up  their  best works   wholesale and then   re- sell   via   numerous channels 

My  objective  is therefore  to  create and manage  a  master   data  base , which is   available  for  any  and  every  collector  .  I hope that  eventually  the  DB  can  be put  in line   via   Bill's  website,  but  I already have    6 GB of   data  so that's  far to much to  download . Therefore  I offer  copies  on memory  sticks   for  free to  any serious  collector.

So...   QUESTION  :    how can  I  raise  this  as a  special  topic  on your   forum ? 


 

[Pat - 查尚杰]

This is a great and very honorable idea.  I have often wondered about the 'modern' artists and how they make a living.  You now hint toward what many of us have been thinking or suspecting, and will make us familiar with their work.  Question remains though... how to cut out (or not..) the middle-persons you are referring to?  I am sure some of hem are legit and bonafide while others are not and 'use' the artists in one way or another.  There is a real need for this, if you see for example that on a given day about 500 snuff bottles listings are added to ebay, of which probably 15-20 pct in the inside painted field, so about 75-100 bottles.  And I will go on a limb and say that probably less than 10 pct of those are real collector-quality whether new or old, lets say 10 daily (dont shoot me folks, just my observation and opinion).  I have probably about 100-150 bottles in my collection I would have never bought given this information made available.  We all need to live and learn but we can sure speed up the process by learning from each other and sharing.  So a very special thanks to Bill for his website (snuffbottlecollector.com) and Peter's generous offer for his database!! Thoughts/reactions?  Please, dont be shy... I dont bite, promise ... 

[Pat - 查尚杰]

And a very warm thanks to the person who made this online community happen and connected us all--- GEORGE! 

[richy88]

Hi Peter

I salute you for your noble cause to create a database for all to share. Much appreciated.

I do have some inside-painted bottles (although not many) from the Beijing and Ji school. I can send them to you to add them into your database.

However, instead of memory stick, do you accept other media such as SD card or thumb drive?

Please advise.

Thanks.


Richard

[Peter Bentley 彭达理]

Hi All

I  have never  looked on ebay for  snuff bottles, but  I  would  hazard a  guess that  anything  there  is  pure  junk. No  real collector   would  advertise  his bottles  there. And no  real artist  would  have the  internet skills and  payment  channels   to sell  on ebay

There  are  whole   factories in Hengshui   turning out    thousands    per  day of   tourist  class  bottles  for   USD 5  each,  which  are  marked  up to  USD100  in the   tourist  shops  in China  and  finally sold  at  about  USD50   after  negotiation .  No    criticism  there .  Just  business  as usual ( same applies to  anything  made  in China  and   sold  to the   west, whether  it's   sports  shoes  or   whatever) . And  many  of these "tourist" class  bottles  are  incredibly  beautiful.

Just  yesterday  I  saw   a  truly  beautiful  bottle  in  HK's  premier   Arts and    Crafts  shop  (  China  Arts and  Crafts:  CAC)   at list price  HK$ 1,260 =  USD   160  that  I could  buy at   30%  discount  =  USD   110 .  ( In fact  I think  I will  buy  it    next time  I'm there !  So  beautiful /  Perfect  for a  gift )  

But  really     good  artist/  student  artist bottles  never  leave   the  painter's  hands  at  less than   RMB1,000  =  USD   150 ,   considering  that   it may  take a   week to  paint  a   good bottle, and that  RMB4,000 / month  is a  minumum  income  for  an artist with  2  kids.     (  Having said that  : I have  seen  some  incredible  bottles  at RMB  500  or even less  in   Wang  Xisan's  museum /  shop  in Hengshui , painted  by  his  very  junior  students) .

That   does  not  mean  that   a bottle  priced   above  USD100   MUST  be   by a  real  artist : it could  easily  be junk  marked  up.  But it  does mean  that anything  under   USD100  MUST  be  junk  

Hope  this  is  helpful

Cheers

Peter  @  Hong Kong  <peterbentleyhk@hotmail.com>

[Pat - 查尚杰]

Peter

You just keep on confirming earlier suspicions, working in China and knowing base wage rates, etc...Also, this reflects my general opinion on ebay, outside of just pure luck of the draw and the instant for the trained eye, which is great ofcourse when it happens to us, but not often and not very likely, I suppose...  Am I correct to assume that there are pre-sold lists for the better artist's materials if they dont have easy access to online or other means of marketing?  Never having been to Hengshui or other inside-painting Meccas, it is great to get this info from you.  I am told there are nearly 40,000 people employed in the inside painting industry, hence the mass of product available.  Is this anywhere near the real fact?

I also hear of students copying the students of the modern masters, etc (just like this happened since the beginning of the art), so this makes it even harder to discern reality from fiction.

So, how DO these people market, if at all?  It is word of mouth? And who are the respectable middle-persons?   Too many questions.  Very happy this forum exists.  Have been looking for like-minded folks to communicate with about this hobby for a long time!

Thx!

[George]

Hello  George

I'm not  sure  how to  announce  my data  base   on your  forum, although  I mentioned  it  in my personal  introduction

 

Is there an actual URL/Link to access the database Peter ? If so, would very much liike to place a link/description to the forums sidebar included with some of the other links, like Bill's site.

[richy88]

Hi George

Just a quick check on the storage space available on the Gallery. As most of the pictures can take up quite a bit of space, I wonder how many pictures can we post?

Although there is not many upload to the Gallery as yet (sorry, its seems that I am the only one now), I do not wish to hog the space and deprive others of a chance to share their photos if space is limited.

Please advise.

Thanks.


Richard

[George]

I purchase photo hosting attachement space for the forum postings and forum gallery.

Posting outside hosted images ( Photobucket, FlickR, etc ) to our posts is most desirable. Although members are certainly welcome to use the forums photo hosting option.

As for the gallery. Post away. I will add more storage as needed.  Maybe keep it to a mild roar though.. On the average, additional space needs to be added for about every 50 to 100 gallery images. Depending on the sizes ..

Pictures are extremely desirable here ! We can not see enough pictures of these beautiful bottles !





 

 

[Peter Bentley 彭达理]

Hi Pat,

You raised the   question  of  copying .  Certianly this  happens   ... and  very often

I  have recently  been collectting the   work  of  Sun Honglin  who has a   unique  style  :     REAL   waves  and   strange   grey  cloud   effects.  His  bottles  are  expensive  ( minimum  USD1,500  +++)  I have  been  to his  home in  Hengshui and  seen him painting  and  he   told  me  that  NO-ONE  can   paint  using the    new  effects  he  has   developed. 

But  then , the same  day  I   went to  Wang  Xisan's  Museum /  Shop  in Hengshui  and  saw a  bottle  that  was  95%   identical to  a   Sun Honglin    wave  scene bottle  I  had  bought before   direct  from  Mr  Song.   It  was a  beautiful  bottle.   And the price  was  RMB  300  =  USD40 !  It  was  signed  by the  student  whon painted  it so it  did not  purport to  be  a    fake.   

 I   actually bought  it  because

a) it  was  so  cheap

b)  it  was  a  perfect  example  of a   copy  by a   student  of a  Master's  work


I can send  you   jpgs  of the  original  and the  copy  if  you wish

Cheers

Peter  @ <peterbentleyhk@hotmail.com>

[richy88]

Hi George

I seems to encounter some problem in display the images attached in the message.

The image does not appear, only an graphic icon shows. Any advise?

I do not have this issue earlier when I post some of the images.

Peter, what you can do is to go to the Gallery Section and create a Category and upload the picture there. Once it is posted, you can click on the image and save it or get the filename, something like this: 16_06_04_11_6_21_19.jpeg.

In your post, select the Insert Image icon (2nd icon from the 2nd row) and you will get a pair of image tags (img) (/img).

These are the HTML image tags. Now insert the image file name between these 2 tags:

(img)16_06_04_11_6_21_19.jpeg(/img)

The first HTML tag (img) is to turn on the image or mark the beginning. The second HTML tag starting with a '/' indicates the end of turn off the image tag(/img).

Under "normal" circumstances, you should see your image after you have post or preview it. 

Hope this helps!

[George]

Here is a thread that shows how to post outside hosted images like Photbucket, and also how to use the forums photo hosting option. Both for adding pics to your posts.