Ink and colour on paper

61.5 x 94.5 cm. 24 1/4 x 37 1/4 in.

Signed in Chinese and dated “2000” with artist’s seal in the centre left
Literature：Chung Hua University Arts Center,Hsinchu,Taiwan,21st Century：Latest Works of Liu Kuo-Sung,March 2006,p. 27.
Exhibited：Chung Hua University Arts Center,Hsinchu,Taiwan,21st Century：Latest Works of Liu Kuo-Sung,11 January - 12 February 2006

Liu Kuo-Sung
In late 1980s,Liu Kuo-Sung travelled extensively in China He was inspired to invent a new technique of working with the paper fibres to create the scene of snowy mountain of Tibet. In 2000,Liu travelled to Tibet again and trekked to Mt Everest. He was touched by the stunning landscape though,after the trip,his left ear lost the hearing ability. Upon return,he poured his passion onto the canvas and created the subsequent Tibetan series. Of the series,Purang In Ngari：Tibetan Series No. 7,this masterpiece offered this season is among the first batch of creation.
Liu deployed the technique he invented from the 1960s in Tibetan series. On the special rough paper he made,he skillfully arranges the outer shape of the landscapes then wielded horizontally with a broad brush. Dripping the ink on the wet surface of the paper,he removes the thick paper fibres,thus the blank and white lines reveal,composing the pattern of the mountain range. Tension on the tableau arises,with the white lines featuring the contour of the magnificent mountain. The arrangement is echoing the concept in calligraphy “ counting white as black ”.
Two mountains are situated at the upper part and bottom part of the work respectively,in duality,the artist employs different rendering approaches on the work,displaying a less orderly manner. Fibres are retained at the bottom part,and the ink composed most of the foreground,creating a visual effect that the mountain is striking closely to the viewer. On the upper part of the work,the artist removes a large portion of the fibres and applies bold swath of ink,creating the feeling that mountain was seemingly afar. He applies green and yellow dots between two mountains to emphasis the distance. He masters the usage of colour contrast and the texture of the paper to manifest the landscape. One could sense the south and north facing slopes are covered with snow and green respectively,which enriches the content extensively. The lake he depicts at the left bottom corner is an amazing touch that suggests the natural beauty of the interlocking spur between the valley and mountains. Not only does the lake bring the viewer to the hidden valley,but it also softens the composition of the work,presenting us a spectacular view of Tibet. Liu merges the Western technique and Eastern aesthetics,modernizing the traditional ink paintings and bringing it to a brand new level.

Price estimate:
HKD：350,000 - 550,000
USD：45,200 - 71,000

Auction Result:
HKD:448,400