Acrylic on paper

110×80 cm 43 1/4×31 1/2 in

PROVENANCE
Acquired directly by previous owner from the artist as a gift
Collection of Kawazoe Family
Private collection， JapanToshimitsu Imai moved to Paris in 1952 and became the first Japanese artist to engage in Art Informel ， which conquered Europe in the 1950s. In 1957， he invited Michel Tapié， advocate of the art movement， Sam Francis and Georges Mathieu to Japan， thus bringing together Gutai Art Association and its European counterpart. Extremely sensitive to colors and forgoing rigid forms and figures， Imai created art full of fluidity， transcending geometric effects.
The 60s witnessed Imai at his creative peak. His early works were marked by the influence of Art Informel ， full of improvisation and explosive vigor. The Fire of Victory is archetypical of the period with its unbridled brushstrokes and intense， conflicting colors. With forceful gestures， Imai made lengthy splashes with yellow-orange paint on a black background before dribbling it in red. The inverted triangle resembles an erupting volcano that breaks a silent night. The tension in the abstract and rhythmic lines fully embodies the spirit of the 60s： mentally aggressive and pining for spiritual emancipation. Atop the red and yellow lines， two green， concentric circles lend a hint of composition and focus. They seem to be a calming force amid the burning colors， pacifying the unrest in the cosmos. Reminiscent of those of Yoshihara Jiro， the circles are a spiritual combination of the Eastern Zen tradition and Western artistic expression.
The Witness of 30 Golden Years： An Old Collection of the Kawazoe Family
The work The Fire of Victory once belonged to the old collection of the renowned Kawazoe Family and had been placed in Chianti， Japan’s first Italian restaurant funded by the Kawazoe Family， for 20 years. In 1960， Hiroshi Kawazoe and his wife opened the restaurant Chianti and for the first time introduced European western culinary culture into Japan. Their second son Mitsuo Kawazoe was the first Japanese who studied western culinary at a Michelin three-star restaurant in France， the Maxim’s de Paris. In the 1970s， Mitsuo Kawazoe initially inherited his father’s business. While managing Chianti， he successfully introduced the advanced western culinary concepts of the Maxim Group into Japan. The Kawazoe family was closely associated with Japan， the European culture and the art world， and had an especially amicable personal friendship with Toshimitsu Imai. Benefited from these relationships， Chianti had been the gathering venue of the cultural circle since the 1960s， often visited by Isseymiyake， Mishima Yukio， Beat Takeshi， Akashi Murakami， etc. After the completion of The Fire of Victory， the work was given to the Kawazoe Family as a gift. It had been put at the restaurant ever since the beginning of the 1970s until it was presented to the current collector by Mitsuo Kawazoe in the 1990s. The Fire of Victory can be described as an extraordinary work that has witnessed the 30 golden years of Japanese culture and art development.

Price estimate:
HKD: 150,000 – 200,000
USD: 19,200 – 25,600

Auction Result:
HKD: 259,600