Li Rihua Explained

Li Rihua (1565–1635) was a Chinese bureaucrat, artist and art critic from Jiaxing, during the late Ming Dynasty.^{[1] [2]} He wrote an extensive diary, the Weishuixuan riji (Water-Tasting Gallery Diary), from 1609 to 1616, which detailed his many acquisitions as an art collector.^[3] The diary is so named because Li had a reputation as a connoisseur of tea, and was particularly skilled at selecting the best water with which to brew it.^[4] He made inscriptions on several paintings of courtesan Xue Susu.^[5] In the autumn of 1612, Li Rihua's disciples brought him a statue of Guanyin hand-embroidered by Xue Susu and a volume of "Prajna Heart Sutra", which Li Rihua rated as "extremely exquisite".^[6]

Notes and References

1. Book: Kember, Pamela. Benezit Dictionary of Asian Artists. 2012. Oxford University Press. 9780199923014. 10.1093/acref/9780199923014.001.0001.
2. Book: Timothy Brook. Vermeer's Hat: The seventeenth century and the dawn of the global world. 6 June 2013. 9 July 2010. Profile Books. 978-1-84765-254-6. 80.
3. Book: N. Standaert. Yang Tingyun, Confucian and Christian in Late Ming China: His Life and Thought. 6 June 2013. 1988. BRILL. 978-90-04-08127-7. 28.
4. Book: Jamie Greenbaum. Chen Jiru (1558–1639). 6 June 2013. 2007. BRILL. 978-90-04-16358-4. 164.
5. Berg . D. . Cultural Discourse on Xue Susu, A Courtesan in Late Ming China . 10.1017/S1479591409000205 . International Journal of Asian Studies . 6 . 2 . 171–200 . 2009 .
6. Web site: Jiayou Beauty｜Xue Susu: "Riding a horse with a slingshot", a legendary life.