Comprising 60 hand-painted scrolls, hanging scrolls, fans, screens and albums, Lyrical Traditions was drawn from the collection of Phoenix residents Marilyn and Roy Papp. Organized by the Phoenix Museum of Art, the exhibition also featured magnificent paintings produced in the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. Works in the exhibition show how artists followed stylistic conventions and perpetuated ancient social values related to Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, while exploring the wide range of expressive approaches possible within that framework.
Lyrical Traditions and the concurrent exhibition Whispering Wind: Recent Chinese Photography were the first exhibitions of Chinese art shown at the Frist Art Museum.
Lyrical Traditions: Four Centuries of Chinese Painting from the Papp Collection was organized by the Phoenix Art Museum.
