Wu Dacheng

Wu Dacheng was a Chinese collector, politician, governor, author, and artist during the Qing dynasty. He was born in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, in 1835. He came from a wealthy and influential family. His grandfather, Wu Jianguang, was the president of the Supreme Court at the beginning of the Republic of China. His maternal grandfather, Zhang Lu'an, was a famous seal carver, collector, and connoisseur in China. Wu Dacheng passed the imperial examination and became a scholar-official. He held various positions in the Qing government, such as the governor of Hunan, the minister of justice, and the minister of education. He was also involved in the reform movement of the late Qing dynasty. He advocated constitutional monarchy, modern education, and westernization. He was a close friend of Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao, the leaders of the Hundred Days' Reform. He was also a supporter of the Guangxu Emperor, who was deposed by the Empress Dowager Cixi in 1898. Wu Dacheng was a refined calligrapher and painter who created many important artworks. He also assembled a massive collection of art and antiquities. His collecting activities had enormous influence on the practices of modern collecting. He collected coins, seals, porcelains, paintings, scrolls, and hand fans. He wrote many books and essays on art history, aesthetics, and connoisseurship. He also carved seals and wrote poems to accompany his collections. He donated many of his collections to the state and public institutions. He was one of the most prominent and respected figures of Chinese literati culture in the late Qing dynasty. He died of a stroke in Suzhou in 1902. He left behind many traces of his art and wisdom, as well as numerous descendants who continued his legacy. His grandson, Wu Hufan, was one of the most influential collectors and painters of the twentieth-century China.