Republican-China Fan with Landscape Painting by Zhang Shiyuan and Calligraphy by Ma Xulun Picture 1

This is a paper folding fan with bamboo ribs. The panel of this fan features a landscape painting in color by Zhang Shiyuan (1898-1959 AD) with an inscription “For Mr. Diezhuang: deep in the misty mountains, it seems that the morning glows have been dispersed by the bell chimes. By Zhang Kehe, on the Double Ninth Festival of 1923”, and a piece of running script calligraphy by Ma Xulun (1884-1970 AD) with an inscription “For Mr. Diezhuang, by Ma Xulun”.
Zhang Shiyuan, alias Ruxuan, Airu, Kehe and nicknamed Mashiweng, was a native of Wujin, Jiangsu province and a renowned painter, calligrapher and connoisseur who served as lecturer of Shanghai Chinese Painting Academy, and member of Shanghai Institute of Literature and History. Known for elegant but powerful brushwork in the landscape painting he excelled in, Zhang was also an exceptional calligrapher and a high-achieving scholar in ancient bronzeware and stele carvings.
Born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, Ma Xulun, alias Yichu and nicknamed Shiweng, Shiwu Laoren and Tianma Shanfang, was an educator and a scholar of ancient characters. He served many positions including professor of the predecessor of today’s Shanghai University, Tsinghua University and Peking University, chairman of China Association for Promoting Democracy and vice chairman of the central committee of China Democratic League.