PROVENANCE:

Collection of Sanhuai House, Hong Kong

ILLUSTRATED:

Artist Magazine (issue no. 33), The Artist Publishing, 1983, color illustrated, p. 10

Gu Zhu Jun ed.,The Collected Works of Lin Fengmian Part II of II, Tianjin People Fine Arts Publishing House, Tianjin, 1994, color illustrated, no. 159 (incorrect size)

Zhou Weiming ed., Collection of Art Garden Studio No. 72: Sanhuai House's Modern Chinese Paintings, People Fine Arts Publishing House, Shanghai, 2004, color illustrated, no. 15, p. 10

Lin Fengmian's mature work "Dawn" (Hills & Cabins in Autumn) was composed after his arrival in Hong Kong in 1977. Art critic Lang Shaojun commented that Lin Fengmian's Shanghai period featured bright autumn scenes or his recollections of the beautiful West Lake. The tone is solemn and the style strong, focusing on creating a quiet and peaceful mood. His works during his Hong Kong period retain his style from the earlier period, but made major breakthroughs in theme and some style techniques. The typical example is the landscape of Yellow Mountain and other similar works, which is his main style of landscape in the late period.

In "Dawn" (Hills & Cabins in Autumn), the artist depicts the hills as sharp triangles, where the impact of Cubism can be observed. The fascinating black lines create a complex scene. The rich colors are strong and lively with bright yellow, blue, orange-red, and rose. The change of light and shadow is borrowed from Western artistic techniques. The whole painting is endowed with a touch of power, energy, and vigor. In particular, among the hills shrouded space, the transparency of ink painting can still be sensed, with several cabins hiding in the woods, creating a relaxed and elegant atmosphere. Both the features and painting techniques were the media through which Lin Fengmian expressed his feelings.