Oil on canvas

100 × 80 cm. 39 3/8 × 31 1/2 in.

Signed in English and dated on bottom right

LITERATURE
2017, The Camellia Series of Dong Shaw-hwei, National Museum of History, Taipei, p.45
EXHIBITED
18 Nov 2017 – 14 Jan 2018, In Courtyard, Recollecting Precious Moments of Life-Dong Shaw-hwei 2017 Solo Exhibition, National Museum of History, Taipei

PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia

A Table for Heart between Heaven and Earth
Dong Shaw-hwei’s Still Life Landscapes

Since 2005, Dong Shaw-hwei has been creating the Still Life of Black Table series, inspired by her preference for old wooden tables with a quiet and straightforward feel and her love of watching the beauty and richness of flowers growing in everyday life. For the auction, we present two representative works from the artist’s Still Life of Black Table series, showcasing her poetry through a table and her flowers.

The Birth of Flowers

In Pink Camellia in the Morning (Lot 93), painted in 2014, the blooming pink camellia spreads its smiling face in the centre of a round wooden table. Its overlapping petals blossom into a rounded flower shape. At the same time, the delicate pink colour sets it off more peacefully and elegantly. On the green leafy branches, tiny stamens are waiting to bloom and exhale their fragrance. In this painting, Dong depicted the sprouting of leaves and the blooming of flowers to illustrate the oriental philosophy of the cycle of life. The tea bowl and cup beneath the flower are glazed, with the water half-filled and clear. Their delicate lines for decoration and simple shape reveal a sense of pure beauty and the contentment of a quietly tasting life.

Conversation with the Graceful

In Dialogue in the Morning-Orchid (Lot 94), completed in the same year, the artist has taken the rare step of placing two plants on the same plane: The purple orchid on the right is tilted in a transparent glass bottle, its branches swaying as if they are dancing in the wind, while the Schlumbergera on the left, also known as “the flower on top of flowers”, has plump green leaves spreading out from the centre and long purple stamens in the centre. The two beautiful flowers face each other, with one flowerpot opaque and the other transparent. On the black wooden table, each flower reflects the lingering rays of the sun, silently blooming and speaking in the ticking light of time, revealing the diversity of life. Here the artist focuses on “dialogue and contrast”: In addition to the different characteristics of the two orchids, the freshness and movement of the flowers and leaves, as well as the texture of the wooden table, are intensely realistic in visual imagery. On the other hand, the structure of the table and chairs and the spatial treatment of the background objects tend to be flat, modern, and minimalist. The aesthetic is a blend of East and West, flat and three-dimensional, classical and contemporary, and is unforgettable.

Price estimate:
HKD: 240,000 - 360,000
USD: 30,600 - 45,900

Auction Result:
HKD: 540,000