Oil on canvas

120 × 120 cm. 47 1/4 × 47 1/4 in.

EXHIBITED
13 – 17 Mar 2015, Art Basel Hong Kong, Platform China, Hong Kong

PROVENANCE
Platform China Contemporary Art Institute, Beijing
Acquired directly by present private important Asian collector from the above

The Image Context of a Master's Trick
The Important Work of Qin Qi, Cooks and Geese No.1

As a pioneer of Chinese contemporary artists born in the 1970s, Qin Qi's creation is both innovative and theoretical. He not only inherits the expression style of his alma mater, Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts, but also makes unremitting explorations in the changing theme visuals and image vocabulary. The form covering the history and individual cultural experience advances into an outstanding style boldly created in the introverted thinking of the universe.

Qin has been trained in still-life painting for a long time since he was a student. Rabbits and poultries are the commonly used images of his classical still-life paintings. He also captured white geese in the suburbs for paintings, permeating his paintings with the vividness of life. It is these classical image memories and flexible use of traditions that make sure that Qin's subsequent creations have never been limited to specific styles and tastes. Mobilizing various resources in the history of Chinese and Western art, Qin develops his own unique image logic.

The Linkage of Art History, the Wonder of Unexpected Context

Since 2010, his creation has entered a whole new stage. By arranging the common images in western still-life paintings, such as chefs, white geese, and octopi, in a seemingly absurd painting context, he shows the inner momentum of them through the twisting and stacking of brushstrokes, injecting an extraordinary spiritual strength into the painting with the close connection of the form, color, and meaning of each element.

The relevant expressions in Cooks and Geese No.1 reflect Qin's latest thinking on image. He twisted his brushstrokes forcefully to depict the busy scene in the kitchen in a super-realistic floating composition. The chefs in white coats and white hats are holding the kettle and the white geese in the center of the painting, like a Dutch genre painting, showing a scene of abundant life. However, in the dense painting, the actions and appearances of the characters are extremely similar. The character on the right seems to be the next moment of the left, reminding us of the classic painting of Jan Van Eyck, Madonna of Chancellor Rolin. Qin uses the “One Painting, Multiple Scenes” narrative logic of Eyck, granting us an opportunity to experience a universe that transcends daily experience. Different from the later creations of the same series, Qin here cleverly integrates the different color blocks into a touch of warm light pink, so that the many elements are presented in a harmonious visual rhythm.

In terms of detail depiction, the artist bid farewell to the thick brushstrokes commonly used before and changed to delicately smearing a smooth and round surface, giving the object on the plane a sense of relief, and solidifying the ordinary moments of daily life. The surrealistic tone and composition reveal the alienated emotional connection between personal life and the external world. The dramatic painting freezes ordinary life fragments into a carefully arranged accident designed by the artist, creating an unintended visual experience, as well as the endless aftertaste of the master's tricks on the canvas!

Price estimate:
HKD: 360,000 - 560,000
USD: 46,200 - 71,900

Auction Result:
HKD: 1,056,000