Oil on canvas

66.5×82.5 cm 26 1/8×32 1/2 in

Signed in Chinese and English， dated on bottom right

LITERATURE
1999, CAAC Inflight Magazine, Civil Aviation Administration of China, Beijing, p.101 – 102
PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the artist’s relative by original owner

No colors and lines appear on my painting by accident. They all reach to the same goal of harmony： starting the light， evoking the image and rhythm.
—— Chu Teh-Chun

Formerly the property from Ms. Huai-Kuei Song CollectionI n the 1990’s， Chu Teh-Chun’s brush no longer expressed purely abstract structures， but instead revealed touches of heart in response to the nature. Chu Teh-Chun’s paintings are by then precisely defined as “abstract landscape”， which is the “landscape” in a general sense. It is not to reproduce a specific scene， but rather to represent the flow of life in the nature.
The Everlasting Moment： Spiritual Light and Eternal Blue
In the 1990s， Chu Teh-Chun initiated an in-depth exploration of the “light source”. Filled with the effect of “light”， the work Morning Melody on sale could be claimed as wonderful representative of his works during this period. The light-and-dark contrast in the upper and lower part of the painting， the medley of high-saturation colors in the middle， the bright light rendered by a white block-paint on the upper left， are various depictions of the light-source shifting on the canvas. The small pieces of red， yellow and cyan are cross stacked in the middle， saturated and shiny， sitting like glistering gem stones. They glitter sparsely， as the “light source”， in the gentle diffusion of the early morning light.
Chu Teh-Chun has similar understanding with British nationally-treasured masters William Turner and John Constableon regarding the acclamation for nature and the representation of sky and clouds. This piece Morning Melody is like the finally catch of twilight after a fierce fight against the storm while sailing. Sunlight pierces out of the clouds， while billows of clouds join waves of the sea， merging into layers of the dim blue intertwined with the radiance of light. The light refracted between the sky and the sea glows gloriously， guiding people into the wonderland.
Morning Melody is a typical blue-series masterpiece among his works. Blue is regarded as the color of the universe. The earliest life on the earth is originated in blue. Chu Teh-Chun possesses a special love for this color. It is related to his affection towards the mysteriousness of the ocean， and to his disposition of being imaginative and fanciful， inclusive and poetic. In the works by the contemporary artist Yves Klein， the blue is bright and simple， and thus it has even become the internationally iconic “Klein Blue”. Compared to the Klein’s monochromic blue， Chu Teh-Chun’s blue is not based on a single hue， but instead contains diverse variations. In Morning Melody， the blue experiences subtle transitions from dark blue to light blue. The graduation of different shades of blue resembles the light traversing in the atmosphere. The elegant hue and the gorgeous rhyme also show the noble taste of the collector.
The Legendary Collection by Marin Varbanov： Witnessing the Friendship between Two Art Masters
Marin Varbanov was born in Bulgaria. He visited China to study painting in his early years， and later fell in love with his classmate Ms. Song Huaigui. Their bonding relationship turned out to be the first case of foreign marriage in New China， under Prime Minister Zhou Enlai’s exclusive approval. In 1975， his whole family relocated in Paris， France. Later he was offered a position at the China Academy of Art after returning to China. With the academic recognition that art is of no national borders， he took actions to awaken the dormant Chinese art. During the New Art Movement in 1985， that the establishment of the Institute of Art Tapestry Varbanov and its visionary interdisciplinary system， and especially the significant achievements and international influences he has gained in Lausanne， Switzerland has been an important inspiration for Chinese art and art education. Ms. Song Huaigui is a legendary woman. Being wise， elegant， and fashionable， she has several titles： a tapestry artist， the pioneer of fashion in China， a social activist and entrepreneur.
The friendship between the MarinVarbanov-Song Huaigui couple and the Chu Teh-Chun-Dong Ching chao couple began in the late 1970s when they all were active in Paris. The resonance in contemporary art and the common emotion for China brought the two couples and ZaoWou-ki， Xiong Bingming and Szeto Lap ， who were also active in Paris， together as friends. During that time， everytime Chu Teh-Chun had an exhibition opening in France， the Marin Varbanov-Song Huaigui couple would go and congratulate him， leaving behind the profound friendship. The work Morning Melody on sale is the gift to Ms. Song Huaigui when Chu Teh-Chun visited her back in China in the early 90s， in commemoration of their common friend Mr. Marin Varbanov who just passed away in 1989. After that， it has been cherished by Ms. Song Huaigui， the friend and artist， for many years. It has been published in the artist column of the “China Civil Aviation” magazine in 1999 Issue 6， which gives a very detailed introduction of the sources and stories. The work witnesses the friendship among great art masters， and its monumental iinsignificance in art history.

Price estimate:
HKD: 1,500,000 – 2,500,000
USD: 193,100 – 321,800

Auction Result:
HKD: 2,360,000