FOLLOWER OF GIUSEPPE CASTIGLIONE (LANG SHINING) (1688-1766)Portrait of a Court Beauty

Documented versions of this portrait include examples in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the collection of Madame Chiang Kai-Shek and the Sze Yuan Tang collection.  Long associated with the Jesuit artist Castiglione, the subject has often been labeled Xiang Fei, the Uighur Muslim ‘Fragrant Concubine’ of the Emperor Qianlong. Both attributions are likely fanciful, although the portrait certainly exemplifies the blend of Eastern and Western traditions found in China Trade painting at this relatively early period.