Lasting Impressions

Macartney's goal to establish diplomatic and trade relations with China may have failed, but Alexander's artworks offered people in Britain and Europe a rare glimpse into China's landscapes and people's way of life. Alexander later became a keeper of prints and drawings at the British Museum.

Now, seven etchings and one watercolor from Alexander's body of works are being shown in Beijing for the first time. And they provide a visual observation of China from a Western perspective.

The display includes a portrait of a seated Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) emperor Qianlong who received the Macartney embassy and summarily rejected all of Britain's requests. There is also a landscape that depicts people sailing boats on lake inside Yuanmingyuan, or the Old Summer Palace, which was burned down by British and French troops in 1860.

This collection of artworks not only bears witness to the historic mission made by the Macartney embassy and 18th-century China. They also stand as testaments to a period during which British print culture flourished and elevated British art to new levels.