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Chinese
Polychrome Wood Buddha Bust
Quan Yin
Tang
Style Bodhisattva
Circa: 18th-19h
century
H
28 in.(71cm), W 20 in.(50cm), D 10 in.(25cm)
Condition: Traces
of gilt gold, paint losses, minor age crack
A deeply
modeled monumental bust, once set atop a figure of considerable size, this Quan
Yin, goddess of mercy, is accomplished in the grand poetic style of the Tang Dynasty
and bears the Tang influence in its elegant conception and the rhythmic simplicity
of its design. The massive head of Quan Yin, surviving time with stillness and
contained power, looks down upon the viewer with immeasurable compassion, her
face somber and celestial at the same time. The scale and darkness of the work
gives a sense of profound gravity and deep meditational equipoise. Remains of
gilding appear as ethereal sparks emanating from an immovable force. |
