PuRu (Chinese, 1896-1963), Pair of Chinese ink grisaille painting and calligraphy on silk, hanging scroll. Hand painting with fine brush strokes and natural color, depicting cranes and pine tree. Themed calligraphy inscription on upper left, signed by artist, Pu Ru, followed by two red signature seals. On top panel, calligraphy lettering inscription, signed by artist, Pu Ru, with two iron-red signature seals. Both mounted on a pale-creme silk border.

Dimension: 80-1/4" L x 14-3/4" W
inner painting: 30-1/4" L x 8-1/4" W

PROVENANCE:
From the collection of General Chen Qi (陳淇), who styled himself as “Cangquan” (滄泉）and “Yuquanshanren”（玉泉山人), an artist, calligrapher, a prominent businessman and private antiques collector.
EDEN Fine Antiques Galleries is honored and proud to offer General Chen Qi's heirloom collections including unpublished Qi BaiShi paintings, Fu BaoShi, Zhang DaQian as well as his own calligraphy and paintings.
General Chen Qi's collections can be found on Lot 17, 18, 19, 20, and Lot-88 through Lot-142, continuing at Lot 265 through Lot-298.
For more information about General Chen Qi's Biography, please refer to provenance information at Lot 288.

LOT NOTES:

Puru (August 30, 1896 - November 18, 1963), also known as Pu Xinyu with Xinyu as his courtesy name, was a traditional Chinese painter and calligrapher. He was a member of the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan, the ruling house of the Qing dynasty. He was a cousin to Puyi, the final ruler of the Qing dynasty and the last Emperor of China. It was speculated that Puru would have succeeded to the Chinese throne if Puyi and the Qing government were not overthrown after the 1911 Xinhai Revolution. Puru was reputed to be as talented as the famous southern artist Chang Dai-chien. Together, they became known as "P'u of the North and Chang of the South."
Puru was born in the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan as the second son of Zaiying, a son of Yixin (Prince Gong). His mother was Lady Xiang, a secondary spouse of Zaiying. PuRu was once selected as a potential candidate to succeed the Guangxu Emperor, but his cousin Puyi was the chosen one. He was a student at the University of Berlin. After he returned from Europe, he retreated into the Western Mountains, where he spent many years in Jietai Monastery to concentrate on his studies. After the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911, he changed his family name to "Pu". In 1947, Puru was appointed by Chiang Kai-shek as a Manchu representative at the Constitutional National Assembly. He was strongly against Puyi's cooperation with the Empire of Japan, foresaw the unrest in China and fled to Taiwan in the same year as Chang Kai-shek did. In Taiwan, Puru made a living by selling paintings and calligraphy works during the first months of his arrival in Taipei. He lived in a Japanese-style house on Linyi Street in Taipei that the government provided for him. He was appointed in October 1949 as a professor of fine arts at the National Taiwan Normal University. In 1959, he held a two-week-long art exhibition at the National Museum of History with 318 works on display.
Puru died in 1963 and was buried in the Yangmingshan No. 1 Public Cemetery in Taipei.

Over all in EXCELLENT Condition. Natural imperfection on the medium (paper or silk), regardless from any major damages; includes light blooms, discoloration and minor fading. Consider normal due to the ages.
The bidder assumes responsibility for ensuring that the condition of the item(s) meets with their satisfaction prior to bidding. Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, and is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. EDEN Galleries shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging.