A FINELY CARVED 'ELEGANT GATHERING IN THE WESTERN GARDEN' BAMBOO BRUSHPOT, BITONG 18th centuryA FINELY CARVED 'ELEGANT GATHERING IN THE WESTERN GARDEN' BAMBOO BRUSHPOT, BITONG18th centuryOf cylindrical form, meticulously carved in relief with a continuous scene depicting sixteen statesmen, literati and artists gathering at a mountain retreat, one group seated in the pavilion with another three playing weiqi, two standing within a bamboo grove while several attendants and chariot waiting by a bridge, signed with an apocryphal tian zhang mark, applied with a hardwood mouth rim and base carved with three low feet. 17cm (6 5/8in) high.清十八世紀 竹鏤雕「西園雅集圖」筆筒The present lot is remarkable for the thickness and large surface of the bamboo, allowing the artist to skilfully bring the landscape and figural scene to life utilising the depth of the wood to create multi-layers, and building a three-dimensional effect.The deeply-carved scene depicting the literatus' idealised lifestyle represents a mature style of the Jiading school, which developed during the Kangxi period and further evolved during the 18th century.Compare with an early Qing dynasty carved bamboo brushpot, signed Yunjiao Shanren, carved with a similar landscape scene of scholars gathering, illustrated in zhu yuan jiang xin: ming qing jiading zhuke jingpin, Shanghai, 2018, pp.198-199.筆筒取天然巨一節，筒式，外壁一周深浮雕「西園雅集圖」，崇山峻嶺、遠山近水之中，共雕有二十二餘人，或栖於亭中，或鬆蔭下對弈，或竹林中漫步，小巧流水，馬夫及車夫待客於岸邊，雖人小如豆，而形神刻畫細膩皆備，筒身一邊刻「臣天章」寄託款及「施」橢圓印。整器刀法細緻，歎為觀止。清代初期，隨著國家政治局勢的穩定和江南經濟的復甦，嘉定竹刻重獲發展，其市場不再局限於文人學士書齋雅玩，其受眾急劇擴張，竹刻在此環境下獲得了廣泛的生存空間。這一時期的竹雕手法多樣，造型題材豐富，浮雕、鏤雕等技藝都發展到了歷史最高水平。參看上海市嘉定博物館藏一件清早期雲焦山人款竹雕蘭亭雅集圖詩文筆筒，其雕刻工藝及構圖佈局與本筆筒類似，見《竹緣匠心：明清嘉定竹刻精品》，上海，2018年，頁198-199。