Oil on canvas

130 × 110 cm. 51 1/8 × 43 1/4 in.

Signed in Chinese and dated on bottom right
PROVENANCE
26 May 2013, Christie's Hong Kong Spring Auction, Lot 129 (cover lot)
Acquired directly by present important private Asian collector from the above

Our Journey Is the Sea of Stars
Young Doctor, a Rare Full-body Portrait of Zhang Xiaogang in His Post Big Family Period

“Zhang Xiaogang has been emphasising the existence of history and memory in the present through his art. In his art, history equates to the present and cannot be erased. He is an artist who has always expressed human experiences, stories and emotions. In his paintings, the historical dimension, the sensible temperature and the inner mood are always revealed in the flickering spots and lines. This primitive expression and adherence to it bring us back to the belief and worship of the narrative of the painting. This is a kind of reinvention of "man", rebuilding the power of "man" in the era of "super flat" and "cool.”

-- Leng Lin, art critic and founder of Beijing Commune

Very few works of art define an era, and Zhang Xiaogang's works are exactly this kind of work. Since 1993, he has created his famous Big Family Series based on family photos taken in China in the 1950s and 1960s. Using standardised neutral images in this series, he spoke keenly and sharply about individuals' mutual restriction and interdependence under the collective relations of history, culture, nation, society, blood relationship, ethics, and more. He pointed out the situation of a generation, which raised a huge shock in the art world. In 1995, his Big Family Series was presented at the Venice Biennale, which refreshed the world's understanding of Chinese contemporary art and officially established Zhang Xiaogang as a leading figure in Chinese contemporary art. In 2013, Lu Peng chose one of Zhang Xiaogang's works as the cover of his book A History of Art in Twentieth-century China, which shows the significance and symbolic status of Zhang Xiaogang and his works. Unlike some contemporary artists who try to be eye-catching by using strong colours or politically sensitive topics, Zhang Xiaogang conveys the joys and sorrows of a generation of Chinese people in smooth, restrained, calm, and rational visual images. With the expression of Chinese "implicit" and "obscure", he directly touches the deep emotional core of culture. As one of the top contemporary artists in China, his works are widely collected by Eastern and Western museums, such as Guggenheim Museum in New York, Tate Gallery in London and M+ Museum in Hong Kong. His works are also collected by famous Hollywood director Oliver Stone, British heavyweight collector Charles Saatchi and Indonesian giant Budi Tek, sufficient to prove the charm.

For this auction, we are honoured to present Young Doctor, which is Zhang Xiaogang's representative work at the peak of his art career in 2004. It was also the cover work of Christie's Hong Kong spring auction in 2013, demonstrating its importance and special status.

One Thousand the Same Face, No Fear for Truth

Since 2000, Zhang Xiaogang has held solo exhibitions at MaxProtetch gallery in New York and Galerie de France in Paris, contemporary Chinese art exhibitions at Galeri Nasional Indonesia and the National Art Museum of China in Beijing. In 2001, he was interviewed by CNN. In 2004, The first solo exhibition Umbilical Cord of History: Paintings by Zhang Xiaogang was held at the Hong Kong Art Center by Chang Tsongzung of Hanart TZ Gallery, which received a wide response and Zhang's international reputation reached its peak. Young Doctor was created in that year. Inherits the mature painting vocabulary of the Big Family Series, the boy in the painting appears in the centre of the canvas with typical Oriental single eyelids and thin lips, revealing the image of Chinese people under the collective ideology and the oppression and standard of "one thousand the same face". However, unlike the Big Family Series, which only shows the face and a small amount of upper body, The Young Doctor rarely adopts a nearly "whole body" composition. The audience can see the details of the protagonist and can reveal more personal characteristics. The boy sits on a wooden chair, wearing a mortarboard and gown, but naked from the waist down. Showing a raw, unpolished image that cuts Generation Z out of the context of collective consciousness. After China's reform and opening up in early 2000, people began to move out of groups and pursue individuality.

A Dialogue through Time and Space, a Collision between Individuals and the Times

In Young Doctor, the main character's nakedness contrasts with his upper body dressing, symbolising civilisation and higher education. He sits as stiff as if he is in a graduation photo, with his face revealing a little ignorant and uneasy. This reminds us of two crucial personal experiences of the artist. One is "Zhang Xiaogang in his youth": In 1978, when the college entrance examination was resumed in China, Zhang Xiaogang, who had just finished the period of being sent to the countryside to work for two years, took the exam with the mood of giving it a try and was admitted to Sichuan Fine Arts Institute at one stroke. Like the "young doctor" in the painting, he is crowned with a mortarboard, but he is still a little boy who has no idea about what it meant to him at that time. However, the door of fate has quietly opened. The second experience is the "mature Zhang Xiaogang" in 2004. As mentioned above, this year, Zhang Xiaogang achieved great success in both the academic and the market. He won international recognition, fame and praise, but he said: "I'm just a guy who likes to draw, simple as that." Just as he purposely portrayed a child who is not wearing pants, making art is a simple religion for him. The child's young face and naked body are just like a mirror image of his inner heart. This work is his depiction of himself pursuing art like a child who always keeps hungry and curious despite his fame.

Red Lines and the Birthmarks of the Years

Zhang Xiaogang shows the extreme pursuit of details in his creation. He strictly implements the painting steps: First, he paints a large area flat with thin grey paint and repeats it dozens of times to create characters. Finally, he paints light spots to create a sense of age in old black-and-white photos. In a grey and black colour, the artist applied lemon yellow colour to the face and legs of the characters, making them jump out. The legs are covered with red lines, which symbolise the fragile and delicate bonds in human relations and remind us of the red lines of love and pain in the paintings of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. The red birthmarks on the cheeks and neck of the characters continue the classic vocabulary of the Big Family Series, which is the testimony of culture and ethnic blood. Under the baptism of time, these "blood seals" became the proof of existence and turned into the wings of life in the future. And the white clouds in the background are gradually hazy like historical mysteries, touching the viewers' hearts with an immersive visual expression.

Price estimate:
HKD: 2,200,000 - 4,000,000
USD: 280,300 - 509,600

Auction Result:
HKD: 2,640,000