18K Gold Foil on Japanese Paper

53.5 × 46 cm. 21 1/8 x 18 1/8 in.

Titled in Japanese, signed in English and dated on the reverse
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia

Existence is Eternal
The 'Phase Painting' of Nebuo Sekine

Nebuo Sekine, a key figure in the Mono-Ha (School of Things) art movement in Japan, graduated from the Department of Oil Painting at Tama Art University in 1968, having studied under artists Yoshishige Saito and Jiro Takamatsu. In the same year, he won an award at the Kobe Contemporary Sculpture Exhibition and became famous overnight. In 1970, Nobuo Sekine's Phase Of Nothingness was exhibited on the 35th Venice Biennale, which made him renowned in the international art field. This work mimics the stone garden floating in the air, showing the natural and supernatural tension. Sekine borrowed from the cylinders, triangles and flowing lines of nature which he placed in graphic or three dimensional spaces, in works without titles that explore the relationship between shape and materials, a unique creative philosophy that struck a chord with many.

Perprtual Object, Potential Energy

In Phase Conception: G15-5 Six Positions (Lot 103) produced in 1987, the artist “cuts holes” in smooth golden foil, with three long angular “gaps” on the left and right of the work in inadvertent symmetry. This creates a momentum that is downward flowing and conforms to nature. In addition, the surface of the gold foil presents a naturally scratched texture and scratches, which create a powerful contrast with the exquisitely crafted luxurious golden foil. By deliberately making holes in the surface of the work, Nebuo Sekine reveals the sumptuous but frail nature of gold foil as a material. Ultimately, it is the artist's search for an aesthetic able to transcend the superficial that ensures this work exudes enduring energy and forever shines bright.

Physical Meaning, Eternal Truth

Phase Conception: G10-123 Tower (Lot 102) he made next year has a more precise form and is more identifiable. The work is made of square, rectangle, and several triangles, like a tower, also like a container for alchemy used in the ancient time. This “gold making” idea contradicts with the core idea of “emphasize the natural form of material”. While Nobuo Sekine uses his signature gold foil to make this container for “gold making”, inventively and uniquely presenting an ironic pun. Nobuo Sekine unfolds the complex appearance of the world, and analyses the rules and truth of the things, making the eternality of gold shine.

Price estimate:
HKD: 60,000 – 80,000
USD: 7,700 – 10,300

Auction Result:
HKD: 70,800