Marble sculpture

84 × 26 × 26 cm. 33 1/8 × 10 1/4 × 10 1/4 in.

Inscribed in Chinese and dated on bottom right
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Asia

Infinite Horizons within Bounds

The Endless Realms in Kum Chi-Keung's Abstract Landscapes
" The birdcage serves as the fundamental element of my creation, wherein the inherent qualities of the materials used reflect a convergence of imagined traditional natural sceneries with the tangible milieu of contemporary life, crafting an image where the ethereal and the actual interlace. "
——Kum Chi-Keung

The sculptor Kum Chi-Keung, born in 1965 in Hong Kong, is an alumnus of the First Institute of Art & Design, class of 1991. He ascended to the international art stage in 1998 as a representative for Hong Kong at the Venice Biennale and has exhibited his works in cities such as New York, Seattle, and San Francisco. His artworks are often integrated into public art installations, gracing sites like K11, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong International Airport.

Echoes of Tranquillity: Where Memories Dwell

Kum's creations focus on Hong Kong's distinctive culture, and the most iconic among these is the Birdcage series that he began crafting in 1993. Utilizing materials such as wood, bamboo, stone, and glass, he has fashioned an array of "Birdcages," evoking memories of the 1950s custom of enjoying tea whilst walking with caged birds.

Impressionist Mountain Scene (2) employs marble as its medium, its apex adorned with an eagle-hook pendant, collectively resembling a colossal cubic birdcage. The marble's green base exudes a commanding and majestic presence, with a landscape painting unfurling across all four sides. The artist, wielding an engraving pen as his brush, delicately carves the distant mountains and nearby trees with meticulous details. Upon closer inspection, one can discern his use of the "scattered composition" from Song dynasty paintings, echoing Fan Kuan's "raindrop textured stroke" technique. Kum Chi-Keung leverages the natural veining of the marble for coloration, folding the grandeur of mountainous terrain into each facet of the tetrahedron, making every side uniquely splendid. Invoking antiquity to reflect on the present, the work prompts viewers to ponder and associate, finding new significance at the intersection where the past overlaps the present, and where the dichotomy of freedom/infinity contrasts with confinement/limitation.

Price estimate:
HKD: 30,000 - 50,000
USD: 3,800 - 6,400

Auction Result:
HKD: 72,000