Ancestor Paintins
Origin : China
Material : Cotton, oil paint
period : late 1800 - early1900's
measurments from 70-100cm up to 2m.50
The Chinese have long had a profound connection to their ancestors. They believe, and
continue to believe, that death does not sever a person’s relationship with the living and
that, if properly worshipped and honored in private family rituals, the spirits of their
ancestors can bring them health, long life, prosperity and children, who will someday
similarly honor their parents. In Imperial China, filial sons of all classes, as part of their sacred
family duty to care for the spirits of their deceased ancestors, paid homage to their
ancestors in ritual ceremonies in which they placed food offerings before the portrait scrolls
of their forebears. Chinese commemorative portraits, commonly referred to as "ancestor
paintings," were painted specifically for use in ancestor worship; the power of the living
person was believed to reside in their portrait after death. Most of the ancestor portraits
that have survived depict members of the Qing (pronounced “Ch’ing”) imperial families and
military and civil elite who ruled China from 1644 until the revolution of 1911.
The ancestors were almost always depicted nearly live-size in a frontal pose, usually seated
in an elaborately carved chair draped in brocade or fur, with a lavish carpet at their feet. All
of the ancestors wore semiformal winter gowns or fur-trimmed robes with elaborate insignia
that proclaimed their rank or princely status. The only differences are gender-related: the
women’s feet, considered the most erotic part of her body, were always hidden; most
women’s hands were also hidden as well. Both men and women are often shown wearing
long jade bead necklaces and elaborate headdresses with gold and pearl ornaments.
While the highly styled costumes are encoded with symbols of the wearer’s court status and
social position, the most important part of the portrait is the face, which individualizes and
identifies the ancestor and lifts him to the realm of icon. All ancestors were painted with
virtually the same expression- a symbolically somber and detached look- to suggest
otherworldly status. Yet great care is taken in the portraits to record the deceased’s face
realistically; capturing the likeness was crucial for the portrait to be able to function as a
ritual object. It was said that if even one hair in the depiction was "wrong," all future prayers
would go to someone else’s ancestor, somewhat like a mis-directed email, resulting in family
tragedy.