A SUPERB FAMILLE ROSE ‘KINGFISHER AND LOTUS’ PLAQUE, CHINA, STUDIO OF CHENG YITING (1895-1948)Superbly and delicately enameled with two kingfishers perched on a rock below a large wilting lotus leaf amid further leaves, a bud, and two blossoms, a stream in the background. With a lengthy inscription as well as the artist’s signature and seal.Inscriptions: Upper left, signed ‘Zhushan Cheng Yiting, painted in Peigu-Zhai’ and inscribed ‘In the Spring in the style of Nansha Laoren [Jiang Tingxi, 1669-1732]’. Two seals of the artist, ‘Yiting’ and ‘Cheng yin’.Provenance: Knightsbridge, 3 November 2014, lot 478 (described as “After Cheng Yiting”, and together with another plaque), sold for GBP 3,125 or approx.EUR 4,400 (converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing). A Swedish private collector, acquired from the above, and thence by descent.Condition: Very good condition with minor wear and firing irregularities, few light scratches. The hardwood frame with expected age cracks, nicks and losses, and traces of use.Dimensions: Size 62 x 31 cm (excl. frame)With a fine hardwood frame and brass fitting from the period. (2)This masterfully painted plaque represents a new style pursued by porcelain artists upon the fall of the Qing dynasty. With imperial orders discontinued, craftsmen in the porcelain center of Jingdezhen were released from the constraints of the court and eagerly sought to develop new markets. In 1928, eight of the leading artists formed a group called Yueman hui (Full Moon Society), because they met to exchange ideas during the full moon. This group later became known as Zhushan Bayou (Eight friends of Zhushan),prised of Cheng Yiting, Wang Qi, Deng Bishan, Wang Dafan, Wang Yeting, He Xuren, Bi Botao, Xu Zhongnan, and Tian Hexian.Cheng Yiting (1895-1948), a native of Leping, Jiangxi province, began learning to paint on porcelain at the age of sixteen at the Jiangxi Ceramics School in Poyang. In 1925 he moved from Jiujiang to Jingdezhen and set up his own business before traveling to Shanghai in 1931 to study under the Zhe School artist, Cheng Zhang (1869-1938). It was during this period that his skills greatly improved and developed the exquisite bird and flower painting style for which he is most famous.Jiang Tingxi (1669–1732) was a noted Chinese painter, and an editor of the 5020-volume encyclopedia Gujin Tushu Jicheng plete Collection of Ancient and Modern Writings and Charts), which was published in 1726 and had beenpiled by Jiang and Chen Menglei during the reigns of the Kangxi and Yongzheng Emperors. As an official painter and grand secretary to the imperial court, Jiang used a wide variety of artistic styles and focused particularly on paintings of birds and flowers. He was also proficient in calligraphy and his works influenced several later painters. Apart from cultural activity, as a holder of the jinshi degree, Jiang perf