Beijing Tranthy International Auction Co., Ltd. will auction about 550 pieces of traditional paintings and calligraphies created by famous Chinese people on June 18. A preview exhibition will be held June 16 and 17.

Li Keran's Landscape of Lijiang River?[China.org.cn]

The collection is composed of two parts. About 280 pieces are traditional paintings by renowned modern painters, such as Qi Baishi, Zhang Daqian, Wu Changshuo and Li Keran. The themes include landscapes, animals and portraits of Buddhist gods. The other group consists of calligraphies from the collection of the "master of Jiahe Room," a private collector with more than 10,000 works. He is contributing about 260 pieces of calligraphy written by famous artists, writers and political leaders active during China's republic period (1912-1949), a chaotic time in Chinese history.

The works contain high artistic and social values. The Jiahe Room collection differentiates this auction from others, said He Xinnian, president of Tranthy.

"We haven't seen such good calligraphies in recent 10 years," He said. "They are in good form and complete system. You can find handwritings of most famous people during that time. Though calligraphy is not as expensive as paintings in the art market, they will definitely cause a sensation in both the art world and society."

It took Tranthy about half a year to persuade the "master of Jiahe Room," who prefers to remain anonymous, to put part of his collection up for auction. The master spent 20 years in collecting, and many of the works record social issues and contacts between leaders of the period.

"Though the society was unstable and dark then, you can still feel the passion radiating from those elite Chinese," He said. "We hope to give the public an opportunity to better know the history."

Their market values are high, as well. Tranthy expects to bring in 70 million to 80 million yuan. As traditional Chinese paintings and calligraphies have been sought after recently, their values have soared rapidly. A relatively unknown painting by Qi Baishi can fetch millions of yuan. According to He, more people will turn to contemporary art as high prices keep common collectors out.

The auction and preview exhibition will be at Grand Millennium Beijing before moving to Shanghai and Qingdao.