Clay and glaze sculpture

80 x 46 x 29 cm. 31 1/2 x 18 1/9 x 11 3/7 in.

Signed in English on internal head
EXHIBITED
14 Dec 2018 – 27 Jan 2019, A-Lei Solo Exhibition, Yingge Ceramic Museum, New Taipei City

PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia

A Wonderful Journey to the Earth
A-Lei's Clay Dream

Born in Kaohsiung in 1976, A-Lei (Yeh Hsin-hong), graduated from the National Taiwan University of Arts. During his studies, he mastered a variety of techniques and cultivated his rigorous creative attitude. After graduating, he stopped painting and began to experiment with sculpture. His works won the Designer Toy Competition Gold Award on two occasions (2005 and 2008). In 2007, he started to explore ceramics and found that clay has the perfect characteristics of “vitality and warmth” required to express his thoughts. In 2015, he was invited to hold the Re咧tionship (read “Re-lie-tionship”) solo exhibition by the Fubon Art Foundation, which recognized the high status of his creation. A-Lei's Observant on Earth, featured in this auction, is a classic ceramic sculpture of his Undersea Creatures series.

The work is a ceramic depiction of a squid-like humanoid that has just emerged from the bottom of the sea but has not forgotten to bring his undersea friends, such as starfish and mushrooms. Using the painting techniques he learned during his college years, A-Lei created a thin black film that seems to be dripping down the squid-man's body. His suit resembles a spacesuit, and he has a skull-like helmet that the viewer can physically put on or detach. He looks like an explorer that has come to Earth to observe the world. The order of the creatures that surround the squid-man's feet can also be changed, allowing the viewer to further interact with the work. A-Lei utilized clay to express the vitality of a hero, and while he indirectly criticizes the modern social phenomenon of paying excessive attention to appearance, he also encourages all to show their true and natural appearances to others.

Price estimate:
HKD: 45,000 – 65,000
USD: 5,700 – 8,300

Auction Result:
HKD: 56,640