Acrylic and ink on paper

65×50 cm 25 5/8×19 5/8 in

Signed in Chinese and English， dated on lower right
PROVENANCE
Private collection， Asia

With the western color relation to calligraphic abstract lines， I hope to invent a brand-new style of abstract paintings， which reveals an abstract conception that can only be sensed but inexplicable.
—— Chu Teh-Chun

Chu recalled his early years of art exploration in Paris， when nearly two thirds of the painters opted for concrete and realistic images， while the other thirds pursued the tide of abstract paintings. How to choose between the two as the future artistic pathway became the biggest hesitation requiring careful consideration by the artists. In the late 1950s， Chu gained abundant inspiration from the abstract landscape paintings by Nicolas de Staël. Afterwards， the artist “broke the boundary” by exploring his inherent oriental culture foundation， and paralleling the abstract and the concrete， to form a free artistic style which searches for the quality “bold and vigorous”， and “shapeless with joy”. With non-geometric color blocks and lines， the artist presents his most intuitive and direct understanding of the nature. Moreover， the fluent brush momentum reflects the ultimate tranquility of the artist’s inner world.
The Vibrant Space and Surging Time
Throughout Chu’s art creation in the 1960s， he emphasizes the simplicity of hues， and the innovation of composition and modeling language. Accordingly， most of his works feature monochrome background， large brush strokes to reveal the vivacious artistic conception， the speedy yet potent language of lines， which imply to transform “painting” the reality in the past to the metaphysic “writing”. This concept is particularly highlighted in the work Blue Dawn （lot 787）， featuring the artist’s favorite tone of blue dripping downward on the canvas. The smearing with the large brush displays the natural luminosity of the cloudless blue sky. The dark lines starting from the middle upward， whirl in a smoothly maneuver， to outline the modeling of natural objects such as mountain ridges， rocks and branches. These lines meet the blue across the middle of the painting， which shapes an image of dawn aura coming into view， when the world is unveiled and the outline becomes clearer though covered by the immersive blue. Besides， the hollow circle by relaxing strokes on the upper left resembles a hazy rising sun which is ready to break the horizon and shine the brightness after dawn. The white cold colors near the bottom of the paintings represent the ground or an atmosphere before dawn. The artist chooses white to balance the blue， on a single piece of flat canvas， to create a sense of space and time surging with tranquility.
In Blue Dawn， Chu illustrates a “relaxing” touch which is different from his creation in the 1950s. The heavy oil paints and powerful brush strokes continue to extend， to showcase Chu’s pursuit for freedom， and a flavor of boldness and vigor. He learns from the creation state of Chinese landscape masters， by reconstructing concrete images to relaxing ink lines， to compile invisible rhythmic patterns on the painting， which agrees with the philosophy on “aesthetics and lifelike lines” advocated by Chu’s tutor Lin Fengmian during his study at Hang Zhou Vocational Art School. The black ink lines contain the quality of Chinese calligraphy， contrasting with the texture made out of the azure and the Prussian blue oil paints， to reveal the in-depth power of the nature.
Harmonious Yet Varied Abstract Calligraphy
Chu Teh-Chun was born into a family of doctors and scholars. He practiced calligraphy since an early age and studied with Li Kuchan and Pan Tianshou during his years at the Hangzhou Vocational Art School， and continued this life-long practice. The calligraphic elements have been a crucial part of Chu’s paintings. From lines， brush strokes， the construction of colored blocks， to the artistic rhythm， it is inevitably a display of the Chu’s brush skills of “reversing， rising， pausing and falling”， which becomes his classy essence beyond the western abstract paintings. After his immigration to France 1955， Chu temporarily ceased his calligraphy practice since young， in 1966， Chu found the wrapping paper at the butcher’s shop was thin and water absorbing， which could replace the hard-to-get xuan paper. He resumed his calligraphy practice afterwards. The work Calligraphy （lot 788） features the natural and unrestrained brush strokes， free and flowing lines， of which the strokes of the characters of “隴 Long”， “河 He” and “幾 Ji” are prolonged intentionally and create a visual rhythm. Chu completes the smooth calligraphy lines in one breath to reflect the overall poetic tension， reflecting high subjectivity in the arrangement of composition. The symbolic lines of the characters reveal full sentiments that viewers are able to feel the emotional ups and downs， from the great poet Yu Shiji of the Sui Dynasty （581-618 AD）， with the change of sceneries on his homeward way.

Price estimate:
HKD: 700,000 – 900,000
USD: 89,700 – 114,100

Auction Result:
HKD: --