Oil on canvas

96.5 × 96.5 cm. 38 x 38 in.

Signed in English and dated on bottom right; dated and titled in Chinese on the reverse

LITERATURE
1989, Yan Hsia, Cherng Piin Gallery, Taipei, cover page and p.24-25
2013, Hsia Yan’s Work, Eye Level Art, Shanghai, p.117
EXHIBITED
24 Dec 1989 – 25 Jan 1990, Yan Hsia, Eslite Gallery, Taipei

PROVENANCE
Eslite Gallery, Taipei
Private Collection, Asia

This work is accompanied by a certification of authenticity issued by Eslite Gallery, Taipei

Hearts Resounding with Time’s Metaphorical Changes
Hsia Yan’s most Influential Work of the 1960s: Living Room
Poverty was the number one factor motivating Hsia Yan to enlist in the army at the age of 18. This led him to Taiwan, where he studied painting under the guidance of Li Zhongsheng. In 1957, he was among the eight students who founded of the Ton-Fan Art Group, also including Hsia Chin, Wu Hao, Ho-Kan and Li Yuan-chia, and while the group set the trends for Taiwanese art at the time, its effects can still be felt today. In 1959, Hsia’s work was selected for the São Paulo Biennale in Brazil, where this ethnic Chinese modern artist became the first to be recognized by the West. In 1965, he came to Paris and continued his studies at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris, and it is here he gave birth to his iconic, oriental “fuzzy man” design by using lines to shape, more or less, the human form. After 1968, he moved to New York and remained active in the international art scene for a long time. His works reflect multiple contemporary art movements in the mid and late 20th century, and Hsia has become a leader among Chinese artists present on the international stage.
Living Room, featured during the spring auction, was completed during the second phase of Hsia’s artistic career — and simultaneously his last years in Europe — dated 1963 to 1968. It is one of the most famous works from his widely recognized Indoor series, which fully reflects the artist’s mature painting techniques and the oriental modernism to which he has always been faithful. Hsia once selected Living Room as the cover of the 1989 solo exhibition album, which clearly shows the importance of this work.
Monochrome Contrasts, Spaces and Objects
In the mid and late 1960s, influenced by minimalist hard-edge paintings, Hsia shifted from chaotic, swaying monochromes to concise, calm, and colorful paintings, the themes having changed from the outdoors to the indoors. In Living Room, the artist uses large areas of black and red for the upper and lower portions, forming a strong contrast and striking visual tension. The large, smooth black space intensifies the heaviness of the upper part of the room. When viewed from the top, it gives off a kind of visual pressure, restraining and constricting the mind of the viewer.
The brown patches on both sides of the lower section of the picture intersecting with each other at the middle-left depict a set of two sofas placed at a right angle. Between both sofas, there is a simple cabinet with a table lamp on the top. The lamp’s shape is a combination of triangles and squares. The pure white square that is the shade, set against the black background, becomes the main source of the image’s light. The artist utilizes the liu bai concept of traditional Chinese painting (indicating empty spaces untouched by ink), transforming the depicted objects into geometric figures that carry abstract meaning and bring a sense of spirituality to all objects in the picture. The white square lampshade, therefore, not only illuminates the dark space with bright light, but it also brings illumination to the viewer’s mind, “lightening” the burden of all dark emotions. This lamp seems to also be the connection between what is inside and those things that are outside.
Lines of tradition; spirit of the contemporary
From the 1950s to the early 60s, Hsia endeavored to transform the lines of abstract painting into traditional strokes from the art of calligraphy. At the same time, he experimented with abstract forms of objects, a popular trend of the time, and utilized improvised, cursive brushstrokes, forming his unique, original “fuzzy man” artistic style.
Three iconic “fuzzy men” are depicted in Living Room, sitting on the left and right sofas, and the spacing between them forms a certain proportion. All three sit in different postures, and not one has arms doing the same as another’s. One is sitting straight; one is talking with passion; and the third is leaning on the sofa, listening. Each reflects one of the three characteristics of being “neutral”, “radical”, and “conservative”. Hsia believes that compared with Western painting, which focuses on depicting the real existence of objects, Chinese painting emphasizes their vitality and life force. In the picture, white, black, yellow, pink, and purple are densely intertwined. The powerful lines outline the characters, and this reflects their strong vitality and injects a sense of flow into a relatively static picture.
Living Room was created in 1968, when the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1967−77) was just beginning. The “fuzzy men” in the picture, with the so-called red revolutionary land at their feet and their heads in what many call the “dark sky”, show Hsia’s resistance and dissatisfaction with the social reality of that time. The artist combines Eastern and Western expression techniques to explore modern people’s inner struggles and contradictions in the face of life’s hardships and social coldness. The arm stretching out to the white lamp seems to be the epitome of Hsia’s constant pursuit of art and freedom.
shifted from chaotic, swaying monochromes to concise, calm, and colorful paintings, the themes having changed from the outdoors to the indoors. In Living Room, the artist uses large areas of black and red for the upper and lower portions, forming a strong contrast and striking visual tension. The large, smooth black space intensifies the heaviness of the upper part of the room. When viewed from the top, it gives off a kind of visual pressure, restraining and constricting the mind of the viewer.
The brown patches on both sides of the lower section of the picture intersecting with each other at the middle-left depict a set of two sofas placed at a right angle. Between both sofas, there is a simple cabinet with a table lamp on the top. The lamp’s shape is a combination of triangles and squares. The pure white square that is the shade, set against the black background, becomes the main source of the image’s light. The artist utilizes the liu bai concept of traditional Chinese painting (indicating empty spaces untouched by ink), transforming the depicted objects into geometric figures that carry abstract meaning and bring a sense of spirituality to all objects in the picture. The white square lampshade, therefore, not only illuminates the dark space with bright light, but it also brings illumination to the viewer’s mind, “lightening” the burden of all dark emotions. This lamp seems to also be the connection between what is inside and those things that are outside.
Lines of Tradition; Spirit of the Contemporary
From the 1950s to the early 60s, Hsia endeavored to transform the lines of abstract painting into traditional strokes from the art of calligraphy. At the same time, he experimented with abstract forms of objects, a popular trend of the time, and utilized improvised, cursive brushstrokes, forming his unique, original “fuzzy man” artistic style.
Three iconic “fuzzy men” are depicted in Living Room, sitting on the left and right sofas, and the spacing between them forms a certain proportion. All three sit in different postures, and not one has arms doing the same as another’s. One is sitting straight; one is talking with passion; and the third is leaning on the sofa, listening. Each reflects one of the three characteristics of being “neutral”, “radical”, and “conservative”. Hsia believes that compared with Western painting, which focuses on depicting the real existence of objects, Chinese painting emphasizes their vitality and life force. In the picture, white, black, yellow, pink, and purple are densely intertwined. The powerful lines outline the characters, and this reflects their strong vitality and injects a sense of flow into a relatively static picture.
Living Room was created in 1968, when the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1967−77) was just beginning. The “fuzzy men” in the picture, with the so-called red revolutionary land at their feet and their heads in what many call the “dark sky”, show Hsia’s resistance and dissatisfaction with the social reality of that time. The artist combines Eastern and Western expression techniques to explore modern people’s inner struggles and contradictions in the face of life’s hardships and social coldness. The arm stretching out to the white lamp seems to be the epitome of Hsia’s constant pursuit of art and freedom.

Price estimate:
HKD: 400,000 - 600,000
USD: 51,300 - 76,900

Auction Result:
HKD: 495,600