Acrylic on canvas

152 × 198 cm. 59 7/8 × 78 in.

Signed and titled in English, dated on the reverse
EXHIBITED
26 – 29 Aug 2011, Art Taipei, Asia Art Center, Taipei

PROVENANCE
Asia Art Center, Taipei
Acquired directly by present private Asian collector from the above
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Asia Art Center, Taipei

Running On the Stream of Consciousness in the Radiant Light
The Abstract Spectacle of Yang Chihung

As an important representative of Abstract Expressionism in the present Asian art scene, Yang Chihung has established himself as a leader in both China and abroad during his accumulated creative career that spans over more than 40 years. Since moving to New York in 1979, he has been highly recognized in the art world at an early date. In the 1980s, Yang's works have been featured in solo exhibitions at the Asian American Arts Center, the Michael Walls Gallery, the Costa Rica Museo de Arte Costarricense, and other places around the world. The first solo exhibition published a collection of paintings prefaced by the famous art critic John Yau and was reported with high praise by the US ‘Art Forum'. In 1984, Yang became the first Chinese artist to be awarded the “MoMA P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center Project”. In 1989, he was awarded the “Outstanding Asian Artist Award” by the Governor of New York.

At the same time, he published art critic articles in various media outlets in New York and Taiwan, where he introduced important Western contemporary artists to the domestic art world, such as Lucian Freud and Jean Dubuffet. These articles have inspired many contemporary artists, for example, Chen Danqing and Zhang Huan have both pointed out the influence of Yang's articles on the connection between Chinese and Western contemporary art.

In recent years, Yang Chihung moved from his early ‘plant aesthetics' to more abstract and ideological forms of expression. He has also continuously published solo exhibitions around the world, such as the Ueno Museum of Art in Tokyo in 2015 and the Guangdong Museum on Art in 2019. The scope of his public collection gradually expanded to the National Gallery of Singapore, the Aldridge Museum of Contemporary Art, the City University of New York, and the Taipei Municipal Art Museum. His work was also displayed in Central Plaza in Hong Kong. In 2013, the Discovery Channel selected Yang as a representative of Chinese art and painting. These accumulated rich experiences show Yang's diverse activities and achievements in today's art world.

Wild Grass Full of Vigor and Surging Consciousness

After 1999, abstraction has gradually become the main axis of Yang Chihung's creation. The symbolic aesthetics that originally relied on the growth of plants have gradually been replaced by the pure expressiveness of abstract styles. In his works, the free composition of the flow of consciousness becomes dominant, leading to the poetic presentation of the artistic conception. After 2011, he used ‘Oriental Poetics' as a theme to develop an ideological form that combines the strength of wild grass and the circulation of rhythm. Within the change of color palette, we are in a state of transformation. Created in 2011, Ambush (Lot 122) is a representative example of his stream of consciousness.

Similar to the concept of James Joyce's ‘Stream of Consciousness', Yang focuses on the expression of the spontaneous and continuous visual state of his work. He moves the brush with a cursive script and enters a trance between consciousness and subconsciousness. Like Huaisu's ‘State of Selflessness', Yang's strokes automatically become uneven dots and lines. The work's title is inspired by the famous guqin song Ambush on Ten Sides. The composition of the top and bottom envelops the center, gradually dissipating and merging the light and colors of that to the surroundings, which present a situation that is opposite to the lines. Unlike the ‘Stream of Consciousness' series, which mainly uses black in its palette, the upper part of this piece uses gold to spread the earth's surging. In the heavily encircled ground, white light and black lines form a vertical and horizontal realm of virtuality and reality, creating a large and rich spatial hierarchy.

The Evolution of Abstract Poetry Through Light and Color

Completed in 2010, Fluency (Lot 123) uses the composition of light and color to shape the core highlights of the image. It is a monumental piece that combines the lines of consciousness and the characteristics of light and color during the “organic abstraction” period (1998 -2010). The work was selected as the back cover of the book Yang Chihung by Hsiao Chong Ray, demonstrating its representation of the artist.

The work is spread out on a large area of green, full of vigorous vitality, in which luxuriant plants bloom enthusiastically in the midsummer sun, with light green grass intertwining with pale white reeds, and green rocks hide beneath in dark blue and orange shadows, creating rich kinetic energy. By aiding the colors and shapes, the lines converge to the orange aurora in the center. Everything is splendid and bursting with strong life energy, and the natural impression is derived from the artist's early plant aesthetics, which completely transforms the piece into an abstract melody of color, light, and shadow. Overall, the high-color picture presents an incomparable visual effect, reflecting the brilliance of life!

Price estimate:
HKD: 450,000 - 650,000
USD: 57,800 - 83,500

Auction Result:
HKD: 816,000