Mixed media on paper

74×45.5 cm. 29 1/8×17 7/8 in

Signed in Chinese on bottom right
Titled, signed and dated on reverse

LITERATURE
1994, The Paintings of Ai Zhongxin, Beijing Fine Art Photography Publishing House, Beijing, p.72
2007, Complete Collection of Ai Zhongxin Paintings, Encyclopedia of China Publishing House, Beijing, p.204
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Australia

Unrestrained and Free of Fetters

The Artistic Creativity of Liu Wei
Many Western critics believe that two art trends, “cynical realism” and “political pop”, together constitute the Chinese avant-garde art movement of the 1990s. As an artist at the forefront of cynical realism, Liu Wei has always used iconically decadent brushstrokes and visually tense compositions to upend viewers’ habitual aesthetic judgments when observing works of art, and Liu also became one of the first Chinese contemporary artists to emerge from China and be understood and approved in and by the West. The two works being offered at this auction were created by Liu on different mediums （one on paper, the other being a woodcut print）, with both demonstrating a great diversity in his range of artistic ability.
The painting Flower, completed in 1999, is part of Liu Wei’s No Smoking series of paintings. Several black and white faces are scattered on the paper and flesh-colored objects bearing a resemblance to the stamens of a flower are positioned in the center, while some unidentifiable plants, monuments, and English slogans are placed in label-like rectangular boxes. Graffiti consisting of black and white lines is also faintly discernible atop the background of light faded ink, as if outlining the common life trajectory of humans and flowers. With his adept skill in oil paint and ink, Liu Wei injects a kind of sensual personal symbolism into the unique, gentle elegance of Eastern literati formed through the compositional style of traditional Chinese bird-and-flower and ink wash paintings, and the result is a bold reflection of his rich and delicate inner world.
One of Liu’s rare woodcut prints, Landscape is composed of smooth lines that make it look as if the artist were using a solid knife to express himself with unrestrained strokes on a canvas while still demonstrating his precise understanding of the relationship between texture and darkness. In the center of the painting, the mirror-image reflection of the word “Landscape” （along with the corresponding Chinese word風 [Pinyin： fēngjǐng], for which the series is named） hides within the texture of the rocks, and the mirror image of the English “The Trees” is also integrated into the branches, showing the artist’s extraordinary creative talent. Unlike the ordinary printmaking process, to create this work, the artist intentionally rendered the image first by using light ink on white rice paper to form a layer of background color before printing the picture on the rice paper, creating a unique and memorable visual effect.

Price estimate:
HKD: 260, 000 - 360, 000
USD: 33, 300 - 46, 200

Auction Result:
HKD: 413,000