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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2024.105
People
Chen Haiyan 陳海燕 ( Fushun, Liaoning province, China born 1955)
Title
Chickens Turning Into Little Cars
Other Titles
Original Language Title: 鸡变小汽车
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
1986
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/383963

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Woodblock print; ink on pi zhi bast paper
Dimensions
image: H. 18.8 × W. 13 cm (7 3/8 × 5 1/8 in.)
paper: H. 33.2 × W. 23 cm (13 1/16 × 9 1/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • signature: in pencil: 10/30 梦1986年2月12日鸡变小汽车 陈海燕1986 [10/30 Dream: February 12, 1986, Chickens Turning into Little Cars; Chen Haiyan 1986]
  • inscription: printed: 在我家的园子里养了一群鸡，
    我把它们都赶进窝。
    突然都变成绿色的小汽车冲到大街上。

    梦 一九八六二十二


    DREAM: FEBRUARY 12, 1986
    I raise a flock of chickens in my
    yard. I am shooing them into
    their coop,
    when suddenly they turn into
    little green cars, charging
    down the street.

    [Translation: Britta Erickson]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Chen Haiyan, Hangzhou (1986-2024), sold [through Ink Studio, Beijing, China]; to Harvard Art Museums, 2024.

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

Edition
10/30

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Johanna and Leslie Garfield Fund in Honor of Professor Roderick MacFarquhar
Accession Year
2024
Object Number
2024.105
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
The coarsely cut woodblock print in black ink is enclosed within vertically oriented rectangle. The print depicts a figure chasing a few birds running into a fenced coop. Small vehicles are in front of them. Chinese characters occupy right half of the print.

Publication History

  • Britta Erickson, Abby Chen, and Amjad Majid, Chen Haiyan: Carving the Unconscious (Seattle, 2016), pl. 6

Related Works

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu