YANG CAOXIAN (CIRCA 1838-1944)
Calligraphy Collection
1. Five-character Calligraphic Couplet in Cursive Script
A pair of hanging scrolls, ink on paper
Each scroll measures 176 x 43.9 cm. (69 ¹⁄₄ x 17 ¹⁄₄ in.)
Inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist

2. Five-character Calligraphic Couplet in Cursive Script
A pair of hanging scrolls, ink on paper
Each scroll measures 174.5 x 43.9 cm. (68 ³⁄₄ x 17 ¹⁄₄ in.)
Inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist

NOTE:
Yang Caoxian, also known as Mengtai, Yongguang, and Caoxian, was born in Jianyang, Sichuan province. He is skilled in Cursive script calligraphy, poetry, and Chinese medicine. He began his career in calligraphy in around 1918. In 1922, he went to Japan to attend the Tokyo Calligraphy Conference, and met many well-known Chinese and Japanese calligraphers.

Acquired from Shanghai Cultural Relics Store by the present owner, with a softcopy of the receipt.

This collection is from the private collection of Italian reporters Renato Ferraro and his wife Dominique. Renato Ferraro is the chief reporter of the Italian daily newspaper Corriere della Sera. In the fall of 1982, he was sent to Beijing with his wife and son. Beijing was at the beginning of reform at the time and there were not many foreigners. Outside of work, the couple became acquainted with many local artists and intellectuals, including Ma Desheng (B. 1952), Cui Zifan (1915-2011), and Huang Yongyu (1924-2023). Huang Yongyu recalls that the Ferraros had a black cat, and lived in a traditional residence with a garden. Huang himself preferred a modern lifestyle. He lived in a big apartment and was the first person to purchase a Ferrari in China. He would often discuss politics with Ferraro, telling him stories from when he left his hometown. In this collection, a portion are gifts directly from the artists inscribed as dedicated to the couple. Another portion is acquired when the couple travelled around China and purchased paintings. The receipts are still preserved for most of these purchases. The Ferraros now live in Europe. They have taken care of these paintings for forty years. It is truly a valuable collection.