Oil on paperboard

27.5×20.3 cm 10 7/8×8 in

Dated on bottom left
Signed in Chinese and English on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Important private collection， AsiaIn 2007， the National Art Museum of China held the “Three Hundred Years of American Art： Adaptation and Innovation” exhibition， which brought together works from dozens of important art institutions across Europe and the US. The artworks of 120 important American artists were put on display， including pieces from Jackson Pollock， Mark Rothko， and Andy Warhol. Also on display was Yun Gee’s masterpiece Wheels： Industrial New York. At the opening of the exhibition， American art critic Anthony W. Lee specially pointed out， “Yun Gee was a modern painter， a Chinese American， a cultural radical， and also an inventor.” He then went on to shed light on the significant role Yun Gee played in the history of art. Yun’s work is displayed as part of the collections in some major international art museums， including the Centre Georges-Pompidou in Paris， Whitney Museum of American Art in New York， and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Innovator of the Avant-garde
Yun Gee is considered a groundbreaking and important artist in the modern art histories of both China and the US. Amidst the study abroad trend of the early 20th century， in contrast to Xu Beihong and Sanya who went to France， Yun Gee arrived in San Francisco in 1921 to live with his father who was working there. The free and open atmosphere of California piqued Yun Gee’s interest in art. In 1924， he enrolled at the California School of Fine Arts （present day San Francisco Art Institute）. Studying under the tutelage of Otis Oldfield， Yun Gee developed his thinking on how to portray the connotation of an object through color and structure. He combined the essence of cubism and expressionism to create a new movement， which was coined as “Diamondism.” The creative process of this style involves melding aspects of the physical， the psychological， and the spiritual into one. The use of color， shape， and light triggers a mood within the viewer whilst conveying the artist’s inner thoughts. Yun Gee’s creative approach is mainly composed of blocks of color expanding outward from the center of the canvas， likened to the natural structure of a diamond.
In 1926， Yun Gee founded the Chinese Revolutionary Artists’ Club， where he promoted the spirit and style of Diamondism through practical education， an artistic approach that can be seen in his works during his time in San Francisco from 1924 through 1927. Yun Gee’s work gained great recognition in art circles around the globe； one of the many examples is his first solo exhibition in San Francisco in 1926， the Modern Gallery， where almost all of the 72 works on display were sold. During this exhibition， Yun Gee attracted the attention of Prince and Princess Achille Murat of Paris， who encouraged him to move to Paris. The works of art created during his residency in San Francisco are his most sought after in the art market. In this auction we have Yun Gee’s Street View of San Francisco， his most representative creation of his San Francisco period.
Bright Colors and Sentimentality
Yun Gee once said， “Every true creative painter should strive to fully express the times， including people’s views and observations of things happening around them.” In Street View of San Francisco， Yun Gee portrays the city landscape and all its beauty through the tip of his brush.
In this work， he applies bright and saturated primary colors in a thick coating to bring out the structure of the house； his short， firm， and fast strokes radiate natural aesthetics. His brilliant use of colors， both in contrast and in harmony， presents a scene that is bathed in light. The house in the foreground gradually melts itself into the background， where a snail slowly moves along towards a windmill in the distance， imparting a pure sense of humor upon the piece.
On May 31， 1926， Yun Gee wrote a famous poem titled， “Where is my mother？” The poem goes like this： “That mother of mine， how it tore my heart. To leave her across the sea， I was part of her… I dreamed that I could bring her close. Created the painter’s art on the canvas. Mother looking out of the door. By the mountain road a cart， birds in the air… Could I find my mother again？” The poem expresses his deep desire to reunite with his mother who was far away in China but unable to immigrate to the US due to the Chinese Exclusion Act of the time. Street View of San Francisco was completed on June 23rd of that same year， into which he also imparts thoughts of his mother. He personifies himself as that snail in the painting， with a long road ahead， unsure when he will have the chance to return to China and reunite with his mother. This backdrop of meaning is what makes the work so unique.

Price estimate:
HKD: 580,000 – 780,000
USD: 74,400 – 100,000

Auction Result:
HKD: 967,600