Landscape of Longqiu by Wen Zhengming (1470-1559)
From the Collection of Mark S. Pratt, Washington D.C.
美國華盛頓班立德總領事珍藏 文徵明〈龍湫圖〉
LOT 913

Bonhams Hong Kong is pleased to offer Landscape of Longqiu by Wen Zhengming, one of the great "Four Masters of Ming" from the collection of Mark S. Pratt. With deep family roots in Salem, Massachusetts, and as a relative of Frederick Townsend Ward (1831-1862), Mark Pratt developed an interest in Chinese culture from an early age. A lifelong art collector, Mr. Pratt's distinguished United States State Department career afforded continuous opportunities for building an important collection over the course of sixty years.

Mr. Pratt made his first Chinese art purchase in 1947 while stationed in Qingdao with the United States Navy. Following his two-year service with the Pacific Fleet, and with academic training at Harvard University, Brown University, The Sorbonne, and Georgetown University, Mark Pratt joined the United States Foreign Service in 1956, his initial posting at the United States Embassy in Tokyo from 1957 to 1959. Moving to Taichung, Taiwan to continue Chinese language study in the years 1959-1960, his next station was Hong Kong, serving as the Mainland Economic Officer at the United States Embassy until 1963. With later posts in Laos and Paris, Mark Pratt was head of the Taiwan desk prior to finishing his career as Consul General at the Guangdong Consulate in 1989, his retirement ending three years of service in that position.

Witnessing the momentous geo-political transformation in Asia during the second half of the twentieth century, Mr. Pratt's keen collector's eye was also perpetually on the lookout for a treasure. Patronizing many of the most hallowed names in the Chinese art market, he discovered outstanding paintings and Song dynasty porcelain at Tokyo's Confucian Temple (Yushima Seido) and purchased works of art from Kusaka Shogado in the 1950's. In the decades that followed, the antique shops and art galleries in Taipei and Hong Kong were frequent haunted, making key purchases of Ming and Qing paintings from Chang Ding-chen and fine huanghuali furniture from Y.K. Ma. Mark Pratt's diplomatic role afforded him in contact with numerous living painters and calligraphers; he met Zhang Daqian on several occasions and formed a lasting bond with Tang Hong (1926-2018), a student of Yu Fei'an who relocated to Taichung after 1949 and later to Hong Kong, concurrent with Mr. Pratt's diplomatic postings.

Bonhams had the honour of offering some magnificent pieces from the Pratt collection in May 2015 in this saleroom, including an outstanding album by the renowned Orthodox School master Wang Hui (1632-1717) that fetched nearly HKD36 million.

班立德總領事出身於馬薩諸賽州塞勒姆望族， 早年即對中國文化產生了濃厚的興趣。作為矢志一生的收藏家，班立德成功的外交官生涯六十年來為他提供許多機遇，其部分珍藏數年前於邦瀚斯香港書畫專場中釋出，得到熱烈迴響。其中清宮舊藏的王翬水墨〈山水冊〉，以近四千萬港元高價成交。邦瀚斯書畫部今季特推出文徵明細筆山水〈龍湫圖〉。

一九四七年，班立德供職美國海軍，駐艦山東青島，購入平生第一件中國藝術品。結束太平洋艦隊兩年的服役後，因其在哈佛大學、布朗大學、索邦大學和喬治城大學接受的中國和日本語言、文化、歷史方面的學術訓練，班立德一九五六年加入美國外交部。旋即於五七至五九年派駐東京美國大使館。繼而轉派香港，擔任美國大使館大陸經濟官，再調任美國在台協會處長。一九八九年遷廣州總領事，三年後於此任上榮休。

目睹二十世紀下半葉亞洲地區地緣政治巨大變革的同時，班立德總領事始終孜孜於蒐集中國藝術精品。二十世紀五十年代，他光顧了諸多中國藝術品領域備受推崇的商家，在東京孔廟（湯島聖堂）購入書畫精品和宋瓷，在 Kusaka Shogado 處買到文玩工藝品。其後數十年間，他頻頻穿梭於台北和香港的古董店以及畫廊，從資深畫商張鼎臣處購入重要的明清字畫，Y. K. Ma處購入精美的黃花梨傢俱。外交官的身份也讓班立德總領事結識了眾多同時代藝術家。他數次和張大千會面，並且和于非闇的學生唐鴻（1926-2018）建立了長期的友誼。後者1949年徙居台中，又移居香港，和班立德總領事的幾次轉任恰恰偶合。