Mixed media on paper

56.5 × 74.5 cm. 22 1/4 × 29 3/8in.Painted in 1976

Signed in English and dated on bottom left with an artist's stamp on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Hanart TZ Gallery, Hong Kong
Acquired directly by present Asian private collector from the above

Magic landscape, Wild imagination
The Fantasy World of Luis Chan

In the history of modern art, Luis Chan is a unique painter with post-modern consciousness. He joined the Hong Kong Art Club in 1934 and was the winner of their annual exhibition the same year. Henceforth, he was dubbed the “King of Watercolor”. In the following year, he held the first modern art solo exhibition in Hong Kong. Eight of the paintings being exhibited were favored and collected by the wife of the Governor of Hong Kong, Mrs. Caldecottand and Lady Southorn, which earned him a great reputation in the art world. Meanwhile, the multicultural environment in Hong Kong prompted him to learn from different art genres and styles. His art changed from watercolor realism to more daring adventures in the sub-consciousness, themes of which were closely related to the local customs of the period. In the 1970s, Chan created his own fantasy Shanshui world in exquisite colors and shapes; some master pieces include Household in Plum Blossom (Lot 120), Mountain Trails (Lot 119) and Sai Kung (Lot 118).

Fairy Shanshui, Colourful Spirit

Luis Chan's fantasy landscape painting in the 1970s was his signature style. Based on traditional painting and calligraphy patterns, he opened up space in expressing feelings of the mind through exquisite colors and shapes. In Household in Plum Blossom, he created a Shanshui wonderland with strange rocks, houses, fishing canoes, exotic flowers and trees, imps and beasts, demonstrating a carefree atmosphere. Abundant ink color permeated with a large number of pink spray, he created the marvelous view of falling petals in the peach blossom scene. Chan painted the rocks with broad strokes and dripping effects, cultivating a multidimensional sensory experience for the viewers, a sense of wonder and transcendence through visual imagination.

The Scenery of Hong Kong: Splendid Colors

In addition to fantasy landscape, Luis Chan also gained knowledge from reading western art magazines. He reused the abstract techniques in the 60s that stressed the visual effects of color blocks and painted collage landscape paintings based on Hong Kong's scenery. In Mountain Trails (1976), Luis Chan integrated cultural scenery with natural wonders and exposed the colonial architectures in the mountain in vivid colors through the trail perspective. On the left side, Chan has painted the mirage of a foreign lady on the trees, full of spirit, demonstrating a new way of interpreting the city in the ethos of stream of consciousness. Sai Kung, created in the same year, was steeped in local sentiment. Chan painted various species of water animals, houses shared by residents in the city of Saigon, creating a water wonderland in his own imagination, vibrant and romantic.

Price estimate:
HKD: 60,000 - 100,000
USD: 7,700 – 12,900

Auction Result:
HKD: 153,400