秦孝儀   Chin, Shiau-Yi   1921~2007

Born in Heng-Shan County, Hunan Province, China in 1921, Shiauyi Chin was deeply influenced by his family’s educational legacy. Being proficient in Confucianism, Chinese classics and history, he also developed interests in poetry and calligraphy. Earning his Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, Chin was put in an important position by Chiang Kai-Shek at 24 and widely regarded as Chiang’s wordsmith for his personal accomplishment in literature. Apart from teaching at National Taiwan University, he had served as the National Palace Museum’s director since 1983. No sooner did he retire from the museum in 2000, than he accepted the position of honorary chairperson of the Quanta Culture and Education Foundation, continuing to devote himself to the society. Chin excelled in calligraphy, particularly small and great seal script. His calligraphic style can be traced back to seal script used throughout the per-Chin period, and meanwhile it integrated the attributes of Han clerical script. In other words, he drew merits from ancient scripts to profit the development of his sui generis “Chin style.” He was also a collector of the Four Treasures of the Study and artworks made of jade, bamboo and ivory, being so enthusiastic that he praising them with poems. Chin’s deeds not only showed his appreciation of these objects, but also added extra vitality to these antiques. Chin actively promoted exchange of artifacts when he was the National Palace Museum’s director. He instructed the renovation of the museum, compiled an inventory of its collection items, and toured “One Hundred Pieces of Artifact” in middle and southern Taiwan. In addition to inviting touring exhibitions on Western arts, Chin also exhibited the museum’s collection in the United States and France among other countries, sparing no effort to promote the development of art and culture.