Ravenel Taipei 2015 Autumn Auction “Modern and Contemporary Asian Art” will be launched on December 6, 2015 at the Taipei Fubon International Conference Center, at which iconic pieces of contemporary art from China, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea will be unveiled. Chinese master painter Zao Wou-Ki’s “24.09.99,” a work of golden magnificence that exemplifies the opulence and splendor of imperial rulers. It is stylistically majestic, mysterious yet resplendent. One of Chu Teh-Chun’s very first forays into abstract art in the 1960s, “Abstract No. 82,” and the even more expansive “Composition No. 535” from the 1970s, each represent Chu’s immense talent and artistic achievement at different phases of his creative career. Taiwanese maestro Liao Chi-chun’s “Morning Scenery in Gueishan Island” is vivid, colorful, and epitomizes the artist’s transition from traditional techniques to an all-new era. It is a highly emblematic work. These four iconic works of art offer invaluable insight into the intersection between figurative and abstract art.

French Chinese artists Sanyu and T’ang Haywen are adept at employing ink and wash painting techniques in their artistic creations. While Sanyu portrays exquisite human figures in watercolor, T’ang Haywen’s abstract ink and wash diptych paintings are imbued with profound philosophical contemplation. Shiy De-jinn and Yu Cheng-yao are both artists with erudite, scholarly temperaments, yet each has developed watercolor and ink wash painting styles with distinctly different contexts. Shiy’s depiction of Taiwan’s rustic countryside evokes memories of the past and nostalgia for a bygone era. Walasse Ting, who has spent time in the United States, produced paintings such as the gloriously passionate “Kiss Me under Moonlight,” in which vibrant blues reminiscent of the Fauvists fully exemplify the artist’s uninhibited, unconventional personality. Liu Kuo-sung, one of the pioneering figures of Taiwanese modern art and co-founder of Fifth Moon Group, typically produces ink paintings of exquisite penmanship, four of which will be featured in this season’s collection, including “The Mountains without Season: Tibet Series No. 54,” “Movement in Stillness,” “Green Field,” and “Mountains into the Sky.” Chuang Che ingeniously integrates Chinese ink painting techniques with Western art in the creation of an abstract spiritual ambience. Hsiao Chin, another early leading figure of Taiwan’s modern art scene and iconic member of the Ton Fan Group, will be represented by two grand scale paintings from the “Il giardino eterno” series and the “Cosmic Explosion—1” series, the latter of which explores the wonders of our universe. Ho Kan’s fundamental roots in Chinese culture are augmented by a unique vocabulary derived from the abstract geometric symbols of the West. The works of these artists are fully representative of the initial phases of Taiwan’s abstract artistic movement.

Taiwanese contemporary artist Yeh Tzu-chi’s “Yang-min Mountain” portrays the artist’s fascination and adoration for the magnificent sceneries of mountains and greenery, while “Ginger Lily” and “Camellia” emit the simple but classically elegant charm of floral depictions. Meanwhile, Chiu Ya-tsai’s graceful, unpretentious portraits exude a sense of nostalgia and the frustration resulting from lack of critical attention early in his career but were nevertheless imbued with the delicacy of minute artistic observation. Pang Jiun’s utilization of oil textures to represent the liberal spirituality so integral to Chinese art has resulted in paintings of vivid strokes and vibrant colors rich in the exotic ambiences of the Orient. The sculpture category features works from Ju Ming’s Taiji series, exquisitely quaint small-scale pumpkins by Yayoi Kusama, the Yoga series from contemporary Japanese sculptor Ikki Miyake, and select creations by Kohei Nawa. This Ravenel auction features more than two hundred pieces of modern and contemporary Asian art, including many works with immense appreciation potential, providing our savvy collectors with the opportunity to procure some of the most iconic creations of the bygone century.