Pencil on paper

45.1 × 28 cm. 17 3/4 x 11 in.

PROVENANCE
Previous collection of Mr. Chen Yen-Fon
Private Collection, Paris
26 Mar 2018, Aguttes Paris Spring Auction, Lot 20
Private Collection, Asia

Abundance in Minimalism
Sanyu’s Dedication to the Female Form
Sanyu was a member of the first generation of Chinese artists to travel to France and became known among his successors as the “Matisse of the Orient”. At the beginning of the 20th Century, he studied at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and rapidly found a niche in Paris’s libertine and accepting arts scene. In the 1920s, Liu Haisu created much controversy in the Chinese art world for his use of female nude models in his art classes. Meanwhile, in Paris, Sanyu was able to depict the female form without inhibition, producing a wealth of sketches. His female nudes are moving tributes to the subject that combine the elegance of traditional Chinese “literati paintings” with the romance of modern Western art. The two sketches up for auction have vastly disparate styles: Standing Nude(Lot 655) is restrained and timid, while Nude (Double-sided, Lot 656) is all-embracing and passionate. Using minimal brush strokes, the artist is able to create infinite meaning.
Layers of Meaning Encapsulated in A Single Glance
In Standing Nude, the artist demonstrates a startling degree of technical precision by representing the essential form and mood of his female subject with his pencil in just a few graceful and flowing lines. The work’s earliest collector, Chen Yanfeng (a Taiwanese scholar based in France), once marveled at how, in Sanyu’s sketches from the 1920s, minimal details convey an abundance of unique sentiments and poetic meaning. Sanyu himself once said, “I pursue simplicity in my forms to the point of their essence. … Only the power of this precision can create more to an infinite degree.” In this relatively simple drawing, the artist has devoted his attention to representing the expression of the woman as she turns around to face us. Her back is completely exposed, and she has a coy look in her eyes. When drawing the faces of his subjects, Sanyu most often only depicts one eye, but this eye alone gives a panoramic insight into the subject’s inner world. No matter how many times viewers may contemplate her face, the subject’s expression is still able to capture their attention and pull on their heartstrings.
Irrepressible Candor
In Nude (Double-sided), the other work up for auction, the front and back of the subject are depicted head-on and with great candor. The female subject has a sturdy form; her muscles are depicted in bold lines. Her posture is relaxed, while her expression is natural and uninhibited. On the right side, the subject is portrayed from behind, lying down. In this posture, she has the muscular and limber body of an athlete, which she displays without complex or artifice, demonstrating the artist’s unique perspective on beauty. In total, Sanyu has published 1,840 sketches, only eleven of which are double-sided. This work once belonged to the French art dealer Jean-Claude Riedel and is all the more precious due to both sides depicting the same model.

Price estimate:
HKD: 150,000 - 250,000
USD: 19,200 - 32,100

Auction Result:
HKD: --