Lacquer on wood panel

93 × 65.5 cm. 36 5/8 × 25 3/4 in.

Dated, signed in Chinese with an artist's stamp on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia

The Brilliance of Lacquer, the Rhyme of Color
Yuan Yunfu, the Leader of Craft Art, and the Artistic Beauty He Pursues

As the pioneer of Chinese craft art, Yuan Yunfu has promoted and implemented the idea of “Great Art” throughout his life, valuing both creation and education and reconciling Chinese and Western aesthetics. He has also made great achievements in the field of public art. For example, the mural “Bashan Shushui” at Beijing Capital International Airport finished, 1979 and the “Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains” hung in the Great Hall of the People, 2013 are both created by him, showing his well-recognized artistic achievement and outstanding contribution.

Since the 1980s, he has been actively introducing Chinese art to the West. For example, in 1981, he was sponsored by former President Bush to hold an exhibition at Wally Findlay Galleries in New York. In 1986 he exhibited large-scale tapestries in Hong Kong. Exhibitions were frequently held overseas, including United States, Switzerland, Italy, France, and many other places, exhibiting rich Chinese art forms such as ink painting, lacquer painting, embroidery, and silk carpets. In 1989, he was appointed by the Ministry of Culture and Artists Association of China as the director of the Mural and Lacquer Painting Group in the Seventh National Art Exhibition. He specially wrote On Lacquer Painting to promote the art of lacquer painting. At the same time, he responded to Qiao Shiguang's call to go further and specially selected a few of his most proud creations as blueprints to make lacquer paintings. In the Forest (Lot 134) and Tonglu in Xin'anjiang (Lot 133) presented this time are the representatives of that series.

Incorporate the Traditional Style and Modern Idea, Reminisce the Jiangnan Rivertown

Tonglu in Xin'anjiang fully demonstrates Yuan's inheritance of the exquisite craftsmanship and materials of traditional lacquer painting. It also shows the weight of the modern idea-“beauty in the form” in his aesthetic system. The work retains the fine lines in the original gouache paintings and adopts the focus composition in a high-to-remote perspective. Layer by layer, he spreads the residential buildings of the river town. The geometric shape houses form a strong sense of rhythm and order. At the same time, the houses and the river are arranged at two sides, forming a poetic spatial effect in the contrast of reality against virtual and full against empty.

This lacquer painting has a typical eggshell inlay. The white wall is shaped with a texture that is naturally formed after the eggshell is crushed. It shows the hierarchical relationship of distance with the density of the inlay. At the same time, black lacquer and white color present the color contrast of the Jiangnan area. The background is fully sprinkled with gold foil powder, making the painting seem to be enveloped by a thick yet gentle brilliance. With the change of light and shadow, it presents a magnificent visual effect and shows the romance and elegance of oriental lacquer art.

With the Vigorous Ancient Trees, Honor the Wonders of Changbai Mountain

In the summer of 1982, Yuan was invited to create a ceramic mural The Soul of Mountain and Water for the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He went to the Changbai Mountain area to sketch. The lacquer painting In the Forest presented this time is based on the sketch of that time in the Changbai Mountain, which highly restores the straight and towering pine forest of the mountain in the form of lacquer.

In the painting, the spatial awareness is maximized with the use of points, lines, and planes. The trees are staggered between the front and back scenes, with straight lines full of vigorous power. The roots and branches below are intertwined and rooted in the ground. Green leaves fighting in the wind, showing vitality. The black of ink and brown of lacquer are the main colors used to present the original scenery. The work is also sprinkled with red and green glitter from the bushes at the bottom to create a sense of vividness in the ancient woods. Gold powder is also superimposed on the trunk of the towering giant tree, presenting a gleaming and surprisingly winning three-dimensional effect. The great tree seems to be alive because of this, breathtakingly interpreting the eternally standing belief and the endless spiritual pursuit.

Price estimate:
HKD: 70,000 - 150,000
USD: 9,000 - 19,300

Auction Result:
HKD: 84,000