Oil on canvas

130 × 195 cm. 51 1/8 × 76 3/4 in.

Signed in Chinese and English, and dated on bottom right; titled in Chinese and French, dated, signed in Chinese and English on the reverse

LITERATURE
1989, Chu Teh-Chun, King Ling Art Centre, Taipei, p. 130-131
2005, Impressions Classics IX: Chu Teh-Chun, Impressions Art Gallery, Taipei, p. 37
EXHIBITED
1988-1989, Chu Teh-Chun: Exhibition Tour 1988-89, Taichung County Cultural Centre, Changhua County Cultural Centre, Yunlin County Cultural Centre, Taoyuan County Cultural Centre, Hsinchu Municipal Cultural Centre, Kaohsiung County Cultural Centre, Ilan County Cultural Centre, Taipei County Cultural Centre, Tainan County Cultural Centre, Miaoli County Cultural Centre, Taitung County Cultural Centre, Tainan Municipal Cultural Centre, Nantou County Cultural Centre, Keelung Municipal Cultural Centre, and Taiwan Museum of Art
Jun 2005, Chu Teh-Chun: Painting World, Impressions Art Gallery, Taipei

PROVENANCE
Impressions Art Gallery, Taipei
Acquired directly by present important private Asian collector from the above

This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity signed by the artist issued by Impressions Art Gallery, Taipei

In the Limitless Horizon, We Fulfill our Ambitions!
The Debut of a Chu Teh-Chun's 1980s Masterpiece of the Motherland

“His work serves as a proclamation of myriad manifestations.”
——Pierre Cabanne, French Art Critic

Majestic Journey of the Nourished Homeland

Roaming within the realms of memory, observing the artistic career of Chu Teh-Chun. The essence of his motherland's landscapes and the cultivation of Chinese painting have always accompanied him. From the geographical features near Huangshan in his hometown of Xiaoxian, Anhui, to the early influence of his grandfather, where he immersed himself in poetry and practiced calligraphy; from studying at the Hangzhou Art School in the 1930s, witnessing the local customs upon immigrating to Taiwan in 1949, to residing in France in 1955 and expanding his career in Europe. Throughout this process, Chu Teh-Chun experienced a rich tapestry of global landscapes and artistic expressions, yet he always pondered how to recapture the essence of Eastern landscapes with Western brushstrokes. It was not until the 1980s when he returned to China, personally experiencing the awe-inspiring beauty of his homeland's landscapes, that he once again ignited his passion. With heartfelt lyricism and reverent strokes, he merged the ethereal Eastern landscapes with the luminosity and forms of the Western tradition, blossoming into an exceptionally rich artistic tableau.

Ascending to a Prosperous Realm: The Magnum Opus of a Lifetime's Grand Tour Exhibition

Presenting Amplitude, completed in 1986, is a masterpiece that embodies the artist's pinnacle of creativity, spiritual outlook, and artistic career during the flourishing 1980s. It bears witness to the artist's soaring reputation and confident ascent to the esteemed position of an abstract master. Since his inaugural museum-level solo exhibition at the Musée des Beaux-arts in France in 1982, the artist has received invitations from numerous art institutions worldwide. Between 1984 and 1988, he held solo exhibitions at prestigious venues such as the Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, The Hong Kong Institute for Promotion of Chinese Culture, the Taipei National Museum of History, and the Museum of Modern Art in Liège, Belgium. Amplitude was selected to be part of the Chu Teh-Chun: Exhibition Tour 1988-89, spanning two years from 1988 to 1989, showcasing at fifteen art and cultural institutions throughout Taiwan. This exhibition marked the artist's largest-scale touring exhibition in his lifetime. The artwork, meticulously preserved by a private collector in Asia for over three decades, now emerges for the first time, esteemed and precious, to capture the exuberance of Chu Teh-Chun's triumphant moments and his fervent creative spirit as he expresses the grand aspirations within his soul.

The Vast Tapestry: Weaving through the Cosmos, Unleashing the Radiant Spectrum

With the rapid leap of his artistic career, Chu Teh-Chun embarked on a grand journey of creation in the 1980s, giving birth to monumental works such as Les éléments confédérés and Harmonie hivernale. As his mastery over large-scale painting grew increasingly mature, he deliberately chose a 1:1.5 expansive dimension when creating Amplitude in 1986. Within the vast canvas spanning an impressive 195 centimetres in width, he unleashed his boundless passion. True to its name, the artwork presents a majestic horizontal vista, employing intricate arrangements of contrast, density, and looseness. Through these delicate compositions, he distilled an abstract landscape of unparalleled grandeur, embracing the essence of all realms.

At the centre of the left side of the composition, Chu Teh-Chun employs a vital element he explored in his artistic journey during the 1970s: the “source of light.” It serves as the radiant core from which vitality emanates, akin to opening a treasure chest between heaven and earth, pouring forth a cascade of precious radiance. It bathes the world with the hope of spring and the power of dawn, like a gentle rain showering upon humanity. The landscape surges and all things come alive, giving rise to an extended band of light: emerald moss, earthy ochre, shimmering orange, deep crimson, vibrant yellow, and ethereal blue hues. These luminous dots sparkle and leap, mimicking the transparent air, refreshing water, shifting winds, swift currents, and elusive clouds of nature, exuding an immensely rich visual perception. Beneath this resplendent display, the artist wields a broad brush with measured strokes, evoking the spirit of cursive script, freely opening and closing. Through the interplay of ink in five colours, the brush constructs a multidimensional interweaving of blocks and surfaces, creating a tapestry of abundant layers reminiscent of countless peaks and valleys.

On the right side, a powerful and vigorous stroke of dense ink emerges from the right edge, forcefully piercing through with a bold and unrestrained motion. The delicate threads of flying white texture are distinct and clear, creating a stirring tension that resonates with the soaring momentum of a rushing rainbow. At this moment, the artist fully showcases his confidence in creating a large-scale artwork. Above the vast expanse of the heavens and earth, the introduction of this sweeping brushstroke skilfully balances the tension between the left and right spaces. It also forms a harmonious interplay with the vertical brushstrokes descending from above, resembling the radiant scattering of light, and evoking a sense of freshness and fluidity as if cleansed by a heavy rainstorm.

Era of Abundance and Harmony: an Auspicious Wish for Prosperity in the Flourishing Homeland of the 1980s

“Chu Teh-Chun paints a country whose existence is found only in his paintings, a country both imaginary and real at the same time, formed from sensations many times experienced in the course of his life, bound to his memories of China which in time has become the space in his memory, the territory of the mind where the vestiges of the heart and the impulses of the spirit meet and sometimes unite.”
——Pierre Cabanne, French Art Critic

The exhilarating and grand scheme showcased by Amplitude is closely intertwined with Chu Teh-Chun's first-hand observations during his extensive travels across China in the 1980s. Looking back to 1983, he was invited by both the Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Beijing Artists Association to return to his ancestral homeland after an absence of nearly thirty years. Seizing this opportunity, he embarked on a three-week journey with his close friend, the French abstract artist Ladislas Kijno, and his wife. They visited Beijing, the Yungang Grottoes in Datong, Shanxi, Xi'an, Nanjing, Huangshan, and his alma mater, the Hangzhou National College of Art. The joy of revisiting his motherland made him linger with a sense of nostalgia, while the awe-inspiring beauty of natural wonders infused him with abundant creative passion and inspiration. Simultaneously, China in the early 1980s was undergoing the process of reform and opening up, displaying a flourishing state in all aspects of life. The majestic vastness of mountains and rivers resonated with the reality of a “prosperous and peaceful era.” Under the dual influence of these factors, upon returning to France, Chu Teh-Chun poured his surging artistic enthusiasm onto the canvas, capturing the continuous flow of spiritual brilliance in this remarkable artwork.

Chu Teh-Chun's use of abstract calligraphy to write “peace”(平安) in the lower right corner of the artwork directly echoing the scene of flourishing development across China during that time. Amplitude captures Chu Teh-Chun's longing for his homeland's breathtaking vistas and peaceful periods as an artist returning to both sides of the Strait to mark a new chapter in his artistic career. It embodies his spiritual insights gained from the prosperity of his homeland and his explorations across the vast expanse of the country. He masterfully recreates the vibrant colours reminiscent of the “blue-green” hue used by the Northern Song Dynasty painter Wang Ximeng in his monumental landscape painting One Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, and weaves a magnificent tapestry that reflects the diverse facets of his beloved homeland.

Blue and Green Landscapes: Where Nature Bloom Anew

“Blue and Green Landscape”, one of the most important colour forms in traditional Chinese painting, once dominated a significant portion of Chinese art. Using materials such as malachite, azurite, and turquoise, artists created various shades of blue-green to depict the landscapes. This style originated in the Tang Dynasty and reached its peak during the Northern Song Dynasty with Wang Ximeng, who elevated it to the level of long handscrolls, showcasing the vast and magnificent beauty of the land.

Inheriting the significance of centuries past, Chu Teh-Chun imbues Amplitude with a rich layering of tones, using the grey shade of Yue kiln's colour of blue-green. This creates an atmosphere filled with elegance and refined aesthetics. The flowing and vibrant shades of mineral green and azurite resemble the poetic sentiment of light breeze and clear moon, akin to the exquisite beauty of Ru kiln porcelain. The scattered points of orange light at the centre intersect with the varying shades of green, piercing through and gracefully depicting the radiant moment of dawn. Benefiting from Chu Teh-Chun's addition of turpentine in his creative process during the 1980s, the originally heavy Western oil paints take on a light and transparent quality akin to ink wash painting. As the artist Wu Guanzhong described it, it is like “unfolding jade or delicate silk,” opening up a realm of abundance within the human world. Chu Teh-Chun brilliantly blends abstract brushstrokes of oil paints with ink wash to create a distinct style that transcends tones and ink, creating a new artistic style that spans ancient and modern, East and West.

“The green mountains remain unchanged, and the green waters continue to flow. With a vast sky and broad earth, there is great potential!” This is the artistic intent encapsulated in Chu Teh-Chun's Amplitude. In his admiration and awe for a prosperous and peaceful era, we witness the declaration of the universe within the painting's realm.

Price estimate:
HKD 7,000,000 – 12,000,000
USD 897,400 – 1,538,500