Spirit Stones: The Ancient Art of the Scholar's Rock

Spirit Stones: The Ancient Art of the Scholar's Rock

Brilliant photographs of scholars' rocks, or Chinese ornamental stones, from a leading collection Shaped by nature and selected by man, scholars' rocks, or gongshi , have been prized by Chinese intellectuals since the Tang dynasty, and are now sought after by Western collectors as well. They are a natural subject for the photographer Jonathan Singer, most recently acclaimed for his images of those other remarkable hybrids of art and nature, Japanese bonsai. Here Singer turns his lens on some 150 fine gongshi , ancient and modern, from the world-class collection of Kemin Hu, a recognized authority on this art form. In his photographs, Singer captures the spiritual qualities of these stones as never thought possible in two dimensions; he shows us that scholars' rocks truly are, in Hu's words, "condensations of the vital essence and energy of heaven and earth." Hu contributes an introductory essay on the history and aesthetics of scholars' rocks, explaining the traditional terms of stone appreciation, such as shou (thin), zhou (wrinkled), lou (channels), and tou (holes). She also provides a narrative caption for each stone, describing its history and characteristics. ""Spirit Stones: The Ancient Art of the Scholar’s Rock" is an example of the kind of coherence and excellence that derives from an absolutely prepossessing interaction. The synergies here are unrivaled as is the final product... This book is consummately evocative and it bespeaks a unique strength that arises from a singular synergy. Jonathan Singer's photography, Kemin Hu's passion, and Thomas Elias' erudition combine in ways that not only strengthen one another but illuminate one another." —Michael Collins-MacIntyre, BCI Bonsai and Stone Appreciation Magazine Praise for Jonathan M. Singer: "One of the world's most gifted photographers" —Milton Esterow, Publisher, ARTnews "One of the most brilliant nature photographers of our generation" —David Seideman, Editor-in-Chief, Audubon magazine Jonathan Singer’s double-elephant folio of  Botanica Magnifica  is kept in the Cullman Rare Book Room at the Smithsonian Institution Libraries. Dr. Singer was named a Hasselblad Laureate Award winner based on his contribution to fine art photography and to “our perception and appreciation of the botanical world.” Thomas S. Elias, Ph.D ., is chairman of the Viewing Stone Association of North America and a former director of the U.S. National Arboretum. He is the author or editor of seven books including  Chrysanthemum Stones , The Story of Stone Flowers . Kemin Hu , one of the foremost experts on scholars’ stones, has authored several books on the subject, including  Modern Chinese Scholars’ Rocks, Scholars’ Rocks in Ancient China: The Suyuan Stone Catalogue , and  The Spirit of Gongshi. A Brief History of Chinese Stone Appreciation By Thomas S. Alias China is currently experiencing its Third "Golden Age" of stone appreciation. This time, however, the appreciation is at a scale never before seen in the thousand-plus years that people have been collecting stones solely for their beauty and interest. Today several million Chinese collect stones, hundreds of thousands of others are engaged in some capacity related to the commercialization of these stones. Major commercial centers exist in Liuzhou in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Kunming in Yunnan Province, and Alashan in inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, while dozens of smaller centers can be found in major cities throughout China. In fact, it is difficult to find a majority city that does not have at least one significant stone gallery. More than one hundred major international and national stone exhibitions are held each year, and new books on various aspects of stone appreciation are published regularly. However, the world of modern stone appreciation in China is quite different from that of the first golden age, which occurred from the eighth to the thirteenth century during the late Tang and early Song dynasties, when unusual or fantastic stones were largely the domain of poets, calligraphers, bureaucrats and other literati. Today modern business people and investors have largely replaced the poets, painters and writers of past days as purchasers and connoisseurs of the extraordinary stones. Modern museums devoted to stone appreciation have largely replaced the private gardens and homes of the educated in dynasties as holders of major collections. In order to understand why so many people in China are embracing viewing stones today, we must look to the past. Stones have been collected and valued for their beauty for perhaps five thousand years or more in China. Agates, calcite, jade, nephrite and opals have been found in caves that served as homes to people of the Stone Age. Small colorful agates and opals were recovered from burial sites four thousand to five thousand years old near Nanjing in Jiangsu Province. These stones, known as rain flower pebbles (yu hushi), were