Koller Chinesische Malerei – eine Berliner Privatsammlung AUKTION: Donnerstag, 3. Dezember 2020, 10 Uhr

Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst Berlin 1985 Exhibition at Berlin, lots 147, 150, 127, 144 1985年藏品展览于德国柏林东亚艺术馆 (147, 150, 127 及144号拍品) Selbstbeschriftete Steine Stones with calligraphies by the collector 藏家自己设计花园赏石 1979 in China 一九七九年在中国 Aus der Dokumentation der Sammlung A part of the paintings’documentation 藏家对藏品的翻译及注解 von den Künstlern selbst, aber auch in Deutschland und den USA. Seine Sammlung annotierte er aufwändig mit Transkriptionen der Aufschriften und Lesungen der Siegel, wobei er auch mit Experten in Taiwan imAustausch stand. Mehrere Werke waren eine Zeit lang imMuseum für Ostasiatische Kunst in Berlin zu sehen. Fünfzig Jahre lang benutzte er für seine Studien ein in die Jahre gekommenes abgegriffenes Russisch-Chinesisches Wörterbuch. A. K. starb nach einem erfüllten Leben im Jahre 2005. About the collector A. K. was born in Berlin in 1929 and completed his studies both at the Humboldt-Universität and the Freie Universität in Berlin. He received his PhD in Slavic studies with English and history as minor subjects. He later studied archaeology and ancient history. This interest eventually led him to the Berlin Archaeological Autho- rity, where he worked in a management position for many years, also organising exhibitions. In the 1950s he began to teach himself Chinese, fascinated by both the millennia-old culture of the country and the young Peo- ple‘s Republic, which was then making its individual mark on world history. In 1979 he travelled to China for the first time with a historical-ar- chaeological delegation from the Max Planck Institute. It was there that he purchased his first ink painting, whichmarked the beginning of his years of involvement with Chinese painting and calligraphy. With a gift for languages and a passion for learning, he deciphe- red inscriptions and delved into the complexities of seal script, and even had his own collector‘s seal made. China remained his prefer- red travel destination; he sometimes travelled there as a guide for culture tours, or accompanied by his wife Albertine. A. K. acquired many works of art locally, in part directly from the ar- tists, but also in Germany and the USA. He extensively annotated his collection with transcriptions of the inscriptions and readings of the seals, and he also exchanged information with experts in Taiwan. Several works from his collection were on display for a time in the Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst in Berlin. For fifty years, he used the same well-thumbed Russian-Chinese dictionary for his research. A. K. passed away, after a fulfilled life, in 2005. | 3