Flocked fiberglass sculpture Edition: 27/100

65.5 × 28 × 35 cm. 25 3/4 × 11 × 13 3/4 in.

Signed in Chinese, dated and numbered on bottom
PROVENANCE
Eslite Gallery, Taipei
Acquired directly by present important Asian collector from the above

This work is accompanied by a certification of authenticity signed by the artist issued by Eslite Gallery, Taipei

The World is Heavy, But Your Heart Can Be Light
Description of Benrei Huang's Nini

“In the past ten years of paintings and sculptures, Nini has appeared in hundreds of stories. In each artwork, Nini stares ahead with her big, bright eyes, as if completely unaffected by her surroundings. With this sense of detachment, she reminds us to relax, and that things are in fact not as bad as they seem. This little rabbit seems to have become the link between myself, the artwork, and the audience; over the years, Nini has traveled among us, and has brought comfort to the hearts of many, including my own. The world may be heavy, but your heart can be light.”
——Benrei Huang

After graduating from National Taiwan Normal University with a degree in Fine Arts, Benrei Huang moved to the United States, where she published dozens of children's books. In New York, she first handedly witnessed the September 11 attacks, and experienced the communal anxiety and confusion felt by a generation of people wandering in a foreign land. In 2012, Huang Benrei created her rabbit Nini, in hopes of empowering people with a sense of protection and comfort. The painting Om at the Breakfast Table (Lot 23) and the sculpture Nini (Lot 22) are two of her signature works.

A Moveable Feast

Om at the Breakfast Table is named after the artist's 2015 exhibition of the same name. The inspiration for this artwork comes from Benrei Huang's visit to a Japanese garden and the local food she experienced there. With the influence of Zen ideology, the Japanese Rock garden is an abstract reconstruction of the natural scenery of mountains and rivers through the depiction of stone, moss and sand. Om at the Breakfast Table preserves the beauty of the garden whilst connecting the painting to the warmth evoked by food. By transforming the Japanese Rock garden into a corner of the dining table, with sky-blue teacups that are half full, white porcelain teapots carved with flowers, colorful bowls, and a small flower blooming in a single potted plant, Benrei Huang humorously depicts another side of the beauty of Zen. The protagonist, Nini, faces the fresh lemons and oranges in front of her; on one hand, she falls down due to excitement, lively as a swimming fish; on the other hand, she lies calmly on the ground in recuperation, ready for action. The light flowing through the painting discreetly conveys the passage of time. Set against the background of a clear blue lake, the artwork mixes orange and gray colors in with the clear bottom, resembling traces of water flowing in the haze and injecting the painting with a touch of vitality.

The Tenderness of the Gaze

Different from the Nini sculptures presented in previous auctions, which used the glass lacquer medium, the three-dimensional Nini brought here is specially decorated with yellow short plush on the FRP to demonstrate the texture of the rabbit's furry skin, akin to a child's doll. The rabbit gazes at the audience with a calm demeanor, healing all of those she gazes upon.

Price estimate:
HKD: 30,000 - 50,000
USD: 3,900 - 6,400

Auction Result:
HKD: 72,000