Oil on canvas

45×37.7 cm. 17 3/4×14 7/8 in

Signed in Chinese with artist’s seals on bottom right and middle left
PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the artist by original owner
Important Private Collection, Asia

Waging Artistic Battles in a Kingdom of Colors
King by Huang Ming-Che
“The studio is my battlefield. This is a kingdom with no citizenry and no army. All that exists are my paintbrushes, my painting knives, and my palette. The canvas is my territory； it is also my battlefield. Every day, I work here quietly. Every day, I wage an inner battle against myself, in which I am constantly switching between offensive and defensive modes. Sometimes I find myself defeated, and sometimes I reign victorious. Whether I adopt an emotional or a rational approach is a decision that is made on the spur of the moment.”
——Huang Ming-Che
Born in Yilan County, Taiwan, in 1948, Huang Ming-Che showed exceptional artistic talent from a young age. In 1968, he enrolled in Taipei Chinese Art Court, where he studied under the tutelage of renowned artists Shiy De-Jinn and Reed Lee. Through the guidance of these two masters, who both possessed a distinct artistic style, Huang Ming-Che became aware of the vastness and freedom of modern art for the first time. From 1976 to 1980, he lived in the United Kingdom as well as the United States, and he received agency representation from the US-based Semions Gallery. From 1992 to the early 2000s, he frequently held solo exhibitions at major art galleries both domestically and abroad, including at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, and the National Art Museum of China. During this period, after being publicized by Lung Men Art Gallery, Unique Art Gallery, and the Fine Art Center, his paintings became a favorite among art buyers. His works have been collected by the Shanghai Art Museum, the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, and the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Art. Huang created King at his artistic peak in the early 1990s. On a gray background, the artist uses strong black lines for a rapid outline of the subject’s face. The figure depicted on the canvas is ostentatious and wild, underscoring the king’s arrogant demeanor and personality. The bright orange, indigo, and green colors endow the character with a three-dimensional quality and provide a dramatic contrast with the gray background to create a most memorable impact.

Price estimate:
HKD: 35, 000 - 55, 000
USD: 4, 500 - 7, 100

Auction Result:
HKD: --