Bamboo and Rocks
Artist
Ye Gongchao
Chinese, 1904 - 1981
Date1966
MaterialsInk and paper
DimensionsH. 92 1/4 in x W. 36 1/4 in, H. 234.3 cm x W. 92.1 cm (overall); H. 54 in x W. 26 3/4 in, H. 137.2 cm x W. 67.9 cm (image)
Credit LineThe Yeh Family Collection
Object number2003.48
DepartmentChinese Art
ClassificationsPainting
On View
Not on viewSignedSeal：“番禺葉氏”朱文方印；“公超長年”白文方印。“有味讀齋”朱文方印(壓角)。
Inscribed恭祝（挖去上款一行）。民國五十五年十月，葉公超。
Text EntriesYe Gongchao dedicated this painting to Chiang Kai-shek (Jiang Jieshi, 1887–1975), the former military commander China's Nationalist government and chairman of the Nationalist Party, to congratulate him on his seventy-ninth birthday. Ye chose the subject of bamboo and rock, symbolizing China's national virtue, to honor the highly formal and political celebration, employing dramatic ink tones and traditional techniques to compose this formal painting of bamboo and rocks. Although created for Chiang Kai-shek, the painting was never presented to him. Instead, it was kept by the Ye family in Taiwan. After Ye Gongchao's funeral in 1981, his daughter, Yeh Tung, decided to bring this important family legacy and other works in the family collection to her home in California. While packing the items, she was warned that an artwork with Chiang Kai-shek's name on it would not be allowed to be taken out of Taiwan, thus she removed the name with a razor, leaving a hole in the painting.
