Watercolour on paper

40×50 cm. 15 3/4×19 5/8 in

Signed in Chinese and English on middle right, signed in English and dated on reverse

LITERATURE
Nov 2014, Sanyu Catalogue Raisonné Drawings and Watercolors, Rita Wong, The Li Ching Cultural and Educational Foundation, Taipei, Plate D1418
PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the artist by original owner
Private Collection, Paris
Private Collection, Asia

The Charms of Life as Revealed in the Misty Rain
Ran In-Ting was born in Yilan County, Taiwan, in 1903. Having developed a passion for art in his childhood, he later studied abroad in Japan and became a talented student of the notable art educator Kinichiro Ishikawa during the period of Japanese rule. Under the influence of Ishikawa, Ran Inting mastered the techniques and essence of watercolor painting, and his artistic practice drew heavily from Taiwan’s cultural heritage and geographic landscape, with the artist later becoming committed to introducing the rustic beauty of the region to the rest of the world. As early as 1929, during his time studying in Japan, Ran Inting successfully exhibited his painting On the Street at the 10th Imperial Art Exhibition, also known in Japanese as the Teiten, and after returning to Taiwan, he participated more actively in art education and public cultural affairs. He has served as director of the Société Française de l’Aquarelle （French Watercolor Society） and was an Examination Committee member of the Taiwanese Provincial Art Exhibition. In 1962, he was selected as one of the most outstanding contemporary artists by the Geneva International Yearbook, and in 1966, his painting A Duck Pond was acquired by the University of Cambridge Art Gallery. He was named one of the world’s top ten watercolor painters in 1971 due to his contributions to the promotion of watercolor painting, which enabled him to gain significant international recognition, and in 1960, when the artist was at the peak of his creative career, he created Raining Lane. The work exquisitely demonstrates the hazy beauty of the streets during the rainy season, and this fully reveals Ran In-Ting’s superb artistic ability to depict landscapes and express emotion.
In the works he made during this period, Ran In-Ting used a Chinese writing brush to create his watercolor paintings, introducing the brushwork and misty techniques of traditional Chinese ink paintings and calligraphy into Western watercolors, enrichening the work’s visual expressiveness. In Raining Lane, he uses gray ink to express the dark clouds, green to soften the mountains and forest in the distance, and small blank areas to create a feeling of mist. In the foreground, he vividly portrays a scene of pedestrians holding umbrellas in the rain, walking hurriedly on their way home. The blue clothing and background echo each other, evoking a certain deftness and elegance, and the puddles on the ground reflects the blurry images of bluish-green sky and woods. When observed, the work gives viewers the sense that the pitter-pattering drizzle not only washes away the ancient town, but also sweeps away the viewer’s myriad of worries and stresses of secular life, allowing people to relax and appreciate the endless beauty of nature.

Price estimate:
HKD: 80, 000 - 150, 000
USD: 10, 400 - 19, 200

Auction Result:
HKD: 112,100