Oil on canvas

136 × 105.5 cm. 53 1/2 × 41 1/2 in.

Signed in Chinese and Pinyin, dated on bottom right
PROVENANCE
6 Nov 2007, China Guardian Autumn Auctions, Lot 245
Acquired directly by present important private Asian collector from the above

Alone at Dusk
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As one of the top Chinese realist painters, Zeng Chuanxing has worked assiduously to excavate classical stylistic language and thinking. In 1999, he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts at Minzu University of China and since 2004 has become renowned for his Paper Bride series of works, in which the “paper” clothes worn by brides serve as an allusion to the frailty and impermanence of marriage in modern society. One of the best pieces from this series is Paper Bride – Sunset completed in 2004.

In the picture, a pretty young woman is seen sitting down wearing a red skirt which symbolizes happiness and joy, like a bride who has just removed her red veil. The clothes the woman is wearing are all made from paper and the irregular folds together with the fragile easily broken nature of the material highlight her uncertainty and doubts. The woman's bright clear skin and the purity in her eyes as she stares back at the viewer represent a glimpse of youthful beauty, while the flowers tied with paper she holds in her hands speak to the fleeting nature of youth, the paper imbued with the vital energy of her soul.

In Chinese culture, the character for “Dusk” (mu) that appears in the title of the work Paper Bride – Sunset also signifies lateness or something nearing the end, and in this piece the artist deliberately uses the darkness before the dawn as a background to emphasize the woman's yearning for daytime. If women are suspicious and cautious of the institution of marriage, then the artist's refined brushwork gives voice to the inner emotional world of the modern woman.

Price estimate:
HKD: 150,000 – 250,000
USD: 19,300 – 32,200

Auction Result:
HKD: 330,400