Following the death in September of the noted sinologist Professor Michael Sullivan, the Sullivan Collection of Chinese art has been donated to the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England. The collection, which comprises more than four hundred works of modern and contemporary Chinese art, was amassed by Professor Sullivan and his wife, Khoan, beginning in the 1940s. It is believed to be the most important private collection of this kind in the West, and in large part has not been seen by the public. Among the artists represented are Qi Baishi, Zhang Daqian, Huang Binhong, Fu Baoshi, as well as the contemporary artist Xu Bing.

While some of the works in the collection have been shown over the years at the Ashmolean Museum in the Khoan and Michael Sullivan Gallery which opened in 2000, March 2014 will see a new selection displayed in a small commemorative exhibition entitled “Michael Sullivan: a Life of Art and Friendship.”

For Professor Christopher Brown CBE, the director of the Ashmolean, “Michael Sullivan was a longstanding friend and supporter of the Ashmolean, and it is through his forethought and generosity that we have received this outstanding collection. His paintings will be displayed, on rotation, in the Khoan and Michael Sullivan Gallery where they will be enjoyed by thousands of visitors; and scholars from around the world will have the opportunity to use the works in their study, teaching and research. We hope this is a fitting testament to a great art historian and collector.”

Source: Ashmolean Museum