Oil and acrylic on canvas

50 x 60.5 cm. 19 5/8 x 23 7/8 in.

Signed in Chinese character and dated on reverse


Chiyu Uemae

The widely-acclaimed exhibition Gutai：Splendid Playground at New York’s Guggenheim Museum in 2013 testified to the prominence of the Gutai group in both Asian modern art and the global scene. And from the group，Chiyu Uemae stood out with his careful choice of materials and composition.

Uemae lays much store by material presence，using paints of varying textures to create unique weaves and relief-like forms. His extraordinary techniques shine through his employment of impasto，colour shading and splashing. In this work，Untitled，he once again explores the primitive beauty of materials. From afar，it resembles the Milky Way，with tiny galaxies embedded in the dark and boundless universe；while close inspection reveals the weaves in and the natural shine of oil paint. The sprinkle of red adds warmth and depth.

Japan’s Gutai group provides the best testament to the saying “classics transcend time”. Uemae created Untitled in 2000. As one of the few Gutai artists still alive，he has enabled Gutai’s philosophy and spirit to transcend the temporal dimension and live on in a certain sense.

Price estimate:
HKD：160,000 - 220,000
USD：20,600 - 28,400