Oil on canvas

88.5 × 68 cm. 34 7/8 × 26 3/4 in.

Dated, and signed in Chinese and English abbreviation on bottom left; titled, signed in Chinese and dated on the reverse
PROVENANCE
Acquired directly by present private important Asian collector from the artist

Filled with Lingering Charm, the Artistic Style of Freehand
The Elegance and Magnificence of Chen Junde's Oil Painting

Chen Junde was born in Shanghai in 1937. He had been learning from masters, including Yan Wenliang, Min Xiwen, Lin Fengmian, Liu Haisu, etc., and shown his outstanding creative talents on his art journey. In addition to inheriting the artistic ideas of the predecessors in the twentieth century, he was also deeply influenced by the expression styles of Impressionism and Fauvism, forming a strong and unique lyrical expression style.

After experiencing the turbulent 1970s, Chen ushered in the take-off of his personal art career. In 1980, he co-organized the “Liu Haisu, Guan Liang, Yan Wenliang, and Chen Junde Painting Exhibition” with three teachers of him, which made him well-recognized in the art world. In the following year, he was invited to hold a solo exhibition in Guilin, and then successively held exhibitions in Shanghai Art Museum, New York, Japan, Hong Kong, and other places, marking a milestone in the development of Chinese modernist art. This time, we present three wonderful pieces, including early oil painting on landscape Scenic Guilin (1980), still life Crabs Feast (1980), and View at the Mountain Top finished in 2003. All three works were purchased directly from the artist by an important Asian private collector in the early years, and have been collected till now. They are now released for the first time and are extremely valuable.

Autumn Water Reflecting the Dusk Sun, Fat Crab Heralding the Good Year

“Chen Junde's art has the permanent reality of Cézanne and the shocking enthusiasm of Van Gogh.”
—— Liu Haisu

In the early 1980s, Chen created several works on the landscape of Guilin, because of his exhibition experience in the place. He also visited Guilin in 1980 and created Scenic Guilin in Yangshuo. During this period, he has added his own unique understanding of color expression based on impressionism style. Guilin is full of life in his painting, reminding people of Paul Cézanne's Mont Sainte-Victoire. In this work, he boldly uses the contrasting blue-yellow combination developed in the 1980s, with the purple color outlining the shape of the mountain. The gorgeous brown-yellow, orange-yellow, and romantic blue-violet blend in the color spectrum. Chen plays with the relationship between light and shadow, and shows the glorious scenery of the afterglow of the wonderful peaks under the setting sun. The addition of grass green makes the reflection of countless green hills in the water, which gives a rise to the rhythmic gesture of rippling water. In the bright and wonderful colors, the painting confirms the common saying, “Scenery at Yangshuo is the best of Guilin.”

Crabs Feast is a rare still life painting by the artist. It also uses blue-yellow contrast to show the layer transition. For example, there are five plump crabs on the central plate. The bright orange-red gives people a mental sense of fullness and beauty. The yellow light around disperses from the wall calendar and gradually blends into the cups and plates on the table. Together with the blue-green color, it exaggerates the warmth and leisure at home, and tells the happiness of the crab feast. Chen also has his unique composition. The painting has crabs as the core so that the viewers' vision is firmly locked in the center. Following the visual guidance of the scattered crabs, vision transitions to the details of the tableware, dipping material, green onion, ginger, and the arrangement of the wine bottles, implying the unique taste of the house owner. Based on the visual experience of authenticity, true affection, and true taste, the work brings the beautiful feeling of “Fat Crab Good Year” to the viewers, showing the wonderful season of the crab feast.

Bright and Gorgeous, the Vitality of Magnificent Mountains

After years of sketching and recreating western art forms, Chen's landscape paintings reached the creative pinnacle in his last years. View at the Mountain Top completed in 2003 is his masterful and majestic work.

The work fully combines the eastern freehand brushwork and the western modern colorful presentation which embodies natural objects. The composition uses a strange bird's-eye perspective. Viewers' sight would follow the splashes of water falling from the middle of the stream, from far to near, and from top to bottom, showing the wonderful depth. Through the color fusion and the construction of line tension, Chen creates a strong vitality of life. For example, when portraying the shape of trees, the artist adapts the traditional ink painting brushwork. Through the free and easy brushwork, as well as the sense of dying penetration, he masters the balance of the heaviness of body and the lightness of water, and the rhythm of virtual and reality.

The work is even more extraordinary in the scheduling and performance of the hue. The leaf canopy of the foreground is full of orange-yellow clusters, showing vigorous tension. In contrast, the forests of the background are more magnificent and imaginative. A great amount of indigo, magenta, burgundy, grass green, and dark green are blended to show the exquisite charm of color. The seemingly random combination and changes indicate inner vitality. The pink-blue glow in the sky echoes the powdery white, pinkish purple, and pink water currents between the hillsides below. The static-moving and horizontal-vertical balance form the special connection in the contrast of colors, highlighting the freehand spirit of the artist that transcends the objects.

Price estimate:
HKD: 280,000 – 350,000
USD: 36,100 – 45,100

Auction Result:
HKD: 448,400