Ink and colour on paper

77.3 x 43.5 cm. 30 1/2 x 17 1/8 in.

Signed and dated in Chinese with one artist’s seal on upper right； signed in English with one artist’s seal on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia
25 May 2008, Christie's Hong Kong Spring Auction, Lot 298
Acquired directly by present Asian owner from above sale

Flowing Dreams
Under the Brush
Luis Chan's Fantasy World
Do I dream of ten? Not really. My paintings are my dreams.
—Luis Chan
Luis Chan was a unique figure on the 20th-century Hong Kong art scene. Born in Panama in 1905, he returned to Hong Kong for his studies at an early age. He later took a correspondence course from the Press Art School in London, from which he accumulated solid creative skills. He specialized mainly in sculpture, watercolor, oil painting, and ink painting, and in 1935, he held a solo exhibition at Hong Kong's Gloucester Tower, setting a precedent for a personal exhibition in Hong Kong. His work was loved by Governor Andrew Cadlecott, who had eight of Chan's paintings in the lobby of the governor's office. In 1953, he set up a teaching studio and cultivated many artistic talents. His personal style was influenced by British landscape paintings during the Republic of China period, modernist experiments, and also urban fantasy paintings during the 1960s, and he never stopped developing upon these. Chen created landscape paintings to express the scenes he had observed during the changing times. The two works featured in this auction are Plum Blossom from 1971 and Moon River from 1974, which both show the artist's bold attempts in terms of color and composition and are very good depictions of all the traits of his personal style.
In Silence, Everything Grows
Created in 1971, Plum Blossom is a wonderful work belonging to Chen's fantasy landscape series. The artist uses poetic brushstrokes to show a bare mountain in the middle of the sea. The beautiful flowers blooming on the mountain create a magical atmosphere. There are turtles, dragons, cranes, and even flying fish, reminiscent of the strange creatures described in Classic of Mountains and Seas, a compilation of Chinese myths from as early as the 4th century BCE. All these fantastical animals live freely in this fairytale, unworldly Plum Blossom land.
An Oriental Poetic Scene: Exploring the Moon and the Sea
Moon River, created three years later, features a vertical composition. The artist divided the picture into three sections, namely the sky, the yellow mountains, and the water. Low hills emerge from the shallow, calm water, and there is a maple tree on the green hill in the foreground, its red leaves indicating the alternating seasons. The small human figure under the tree is looking up at the shining moon, which is reflecting the joy of the world. The whole picture allows the viewer to see Oriental poetry as seen in the artist's heart.

Price estimate:
HKD: 120,000 - 180,000
USD: 15,300 - 22,900

Auction Result:
HKD : 141,600