Late Qing Court Art (1796-1850): Painting production and reception during the reigns of the Jiaqing (1796-1820) and Daoguang (1820-1850) emperors

This PhD project will closely examine court patronage and production during the period between 1790, the Qianlong-Jiaqing emperors' transition period until the Treaty of Nanjing (1842) under the Daoguang emperor. Through a close reading of visual and textual primary source material, it will look to not only shed light on a period hitherto underexplored, but further offer a description and assessment of what appears to be a distinctive style of court art during the first half of the nineteenth century.