RU SHAN (19TH CENTURY)
Flowers
Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper
181 x 48.6 cm. (71 ¹⁄₄ x 19 ¹⁄₈ in.)
Inscribed and signed, with one seal of the artist
Dated sixth month, jiaxu year (1874)
Dedicated to Rongxuan
Two collectors’ seals
Titleslip by Liu Tong, with one seal, dated spring, first month, yichou year

Wang Wenxin (1888-1974), sobriquest Baoshou, was born in Jingmen, Hubei, originally from Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. He studied abroad in France at the age of thirteen and returned to China when he was twenty years old. In 1928, Wang Wenxin settled in Shanghai to engage in business, and was once the chairman of Shanghai Watson's Mineral Water Co. Being a successful conoisseur and collector, Wang have had a profound knowledge of both Western and Eastern studies, and deep relationships with phenomenal figures including Kang Youwei, Ye Gongchuo, Wu Hufan, Zhang Daqian. Wang’s grandfather Wang Yangdu was a famous collector from Jingmen during the Emperor Daoguang Period (1821-1850), and his collection was later passed to Wang Wenxin with the studio name Mengquan.