Oil on canvas

73×54 cm 28 3/4×21 1/4 in

Signed in Chinese withdrawing seal on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Wang Jingwei
Collection of Dr. Kurokawa Toshio
Acquired directly by present owner from aboveGreat achievement： an outstanding Chinese female painter
Born to a prominent family in Fuzhou， Fan Tchunpi went abroad to study in France at 14. At 22， she gained admission to the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris by examination as the first Chinese female student. When she graduated in 1924， she became the first Chinese female painter to be included in the Salon exhibition in Paris. Among the two works exhibited there， The Flute Player was chosen for the cover of the renowned art magazine Les Annales. Fan was referred to as “an exceptional female artist from the East”.
The rich traditional Chinese culture， along with training of Western painting techniques， has gradually made her be able to achieve a style that was reserved and elegant， a style displayed her mastery of the essentials of both Eastern and Western art and her thoroughgoing knowledge of painting. In 1984， the Musée Cernuschi in Paris held a retrospective， Fan Tchunpi， Contemporary Chinese Artist： 60 Years in Painting. Such a retrospective acknowledged her historical status in the art world， both in China and internationally. which can not be easily reached for a Chinese female artist in 1920s.
Fan’s passion for plum blossom and scripture scroll.
Fan’s two favorite subjects are plum blossom and scripture scroll， both representing Buddha nature. Fan Tchunpi was fond of plum blossom all her life. She appreciated its nature of nobility， self-restraint， and unsulliedness， pursuing the artistic status alike and often hanging her plum blossom paintings in the studio. Also being fond of Chinese classics， she frequently painted classical subjects.
In the work Zen and the Plum Blossom， the oblique blossom branch is placed in the vase on the right side. The vitality of life winds upward along the leaning branch， spreading a feeling of brightness and pureness. The smooth and sharp strokes accurately outline the shape of the vase. Her arrangement of the light and shadow highlights the mild glaze， showing her excellent mastery of the Western realistic technique. On the left of the painting， with pieces of the red blossom lying on the surface， an open scroll left to read is randomly placed on the table. The light green tone of the background further brings out the refined and elegant quality of the flowers in the foreground. Here， Fan’s two favorite subjects are brought together. She captures with ease the texture of each object in the painting， and at the same time， invests their physical existence with a special spiritual aura. Such a composition is a representative of the artist’s masterpieces.
A legendary story： the collection of Chen Bijun and Dr. Kurokawa.
In 1911， Zeng Zhongming went to France to study with Fan Tchunpi， accompanied by the newly-married couple Wang Jingwei and Chen Bijun. The Zengs， Fans， and Wangs shared a close friendship and lived together in Montargis. Studying together for a long time， Zeng and Fan gradually fell in love with each other and get married in France in 1922. When the Wangs went back to China in 1930， Zeng Zhongming was invited to be the secretary of the National Government and Wang Jingwei himself. As the early revolutionaries， the Zeng couple kept a profound friendship with the Wangs and gifted them some of their best works from time to time. Zen and the Plum Blossom， which will be presented in this auction， is one of the works from the Wangs’ long time collection.
In 1935， Wang Jingwei got deep gunshots in Central Party Headquarter of Nanjing， causing serious sequelae including spinal cord compression which affected his walking ability. In 1943， Wang called for several doctors for consultation， including Dr. Kurokawa， a renowned Japanese internist and a family friend of Wangs for years. Taking Kurowaka’s suggestion， Wang went to Japan to have tumor resection surgery. Although his condition improved shortly after the surgery， it soon went out of control. On November 10th， Wang Jingwei passed away. Dr. Kurpkawa， along with Chen Bijun， witnessed Wang’s last words. After Wang’s death， Chen Bijun took his remains back to China. Before setting off， she gifted Fan’s painting， Plum with zen Thought， to Kurokawa out of gratitude. Ever since this work is kept in Kurowaka’s residence in Japan. After half a century’s drifting， this masterpiece carrying a legendary friendship and witnessing a special period of history is going to make its debut in the auction. Such an opportunity can only come by chance for collectors.

Price estimate:
HKD: 500,000 – 700,000
USD: 64,100 – 89,700

Auction Result:
HKD: 1,770,000