PRINTILLUSTRATED:
Zhou Chunya , Timezone 8, Hong Kong, 2010, color illustrated, p. 33
Zhou Chunya , Timezone 8, Hong Kong, 2010, color illustrated, p. 33
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Cyan Stone
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1993 Oil on canvas 80 x 100 cm Signed lower right Zhou Chunya in Chinese and dated 1993 |
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Estimate
1,200,000 - 1,800,000 4,615,000 - 6,923,000 154,800 - 232,300
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Sold Price
1,920,000 7,384,615 247,742
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Catalogue Note:
When the artist return to his motherland from the German city of Kassel in January of 1989, where he had paid pilgrimages to the various masterpieces he once admired in painting albums; he was deeply intrigued by aspects of neo-expressionism. Incidentally, the artist's indulgence in traditional Chinese paintings stemmed from having heard a cassette of guzhen and the pipe of a tune entitled "Border Pass Ballad", he resonates greatly with the narrative of the song about Wang Zhaojun departing her hometown and the associated feeling of being immersed in a culture that was vastly different from the one they were born in. He was inspired to further explore works of art by historical Confucians such as Bada Shanren (Fig. 1) and the four Wang,
namely, Wang Shimin, Wang Jian, Wang Hiu and Wang Yuanqi. The artist even made numerous trips to photograph the Taihu and was enlightened by the breathtaking scenery.
"Cyan Stone" created in 1993 epitomizes the artist's consistent endeavor in merging techniques of the Western approach with attributes derives from traditional Chinese ink paintings. In retrospect, the depiction of rocks has traditionally been a pertinent theme according to the Classical Chinese painting manual A garden as large as a mustard seed , (Jiezi yuan hua pu) of the 17th century. Traditionally, the depiction of nature and rocks take its raison d'être from a more scenography reality relative to the European one. The artist's have managed to extrapolate the hardness and complexity of rocks from tradition and transferred onto the canvas with an unusual medium of oil, this attribute is indicative of the artist's state of suspension between the past and the contemporary, between China and the west.
The present lot is also evidential of the artist's attempt in captivating the visual elements hidden within the subject matter of rocks, simultaneously enhancing and enlarging them in form. The texture and tactility of the rocks in the lower left corner on the foreground mesmerizes the viewer with compelling oil colours and dynamic brushstrokes within multiple layers of thick and
saturated black and caramel beige colours resulting in a complex structure that replaced the traditional flat visual impression of literati paintings. The artist applied the techniques of neo-expressionism to present the layered texture of the rocks and the form of the slender branches on the canvas, richly imbue with earthy tones that contrasts harmoniously with the airy light background that serves to amplify dimensions and the dynamic relationships between the subject matters. The artist had deliberately utilized a lot of sculptural language to soften the mildness and introversive tendencies of traditional Chinese ink
paintings, treating the composition of the subject matter much like a sculpture on the canvas, whereby the artist's brush turns into the knife of a sculptor.
Furthermore, the rocks have no distinctive outlines allowing the painter free rein to his imagination and a free flowing painting style is thus created by the much lighter and darker areas on the canvas. This quality of an indistinct outline can also be observed from the clouds and color blocks in Da Vinci's painting, similarly allowing the artist to accord free rein to his imagination. Likewise, the rocks are "a chance to free Zhou's pictorial impetus and to draw up energetic brushstrokes by dipping into the existing iconographic patrimony but without feeling restricted." The natural flow of the brushstrokes is not
limited by the confines of any traditional stylized rules, enticing the viewer to follow a visual flow that is uniquely Zhou's. The result is a multi-faceted, lively fusion of painterly techniques that reflects the artist's personality. "Cyan Stone" becomes a means for the artist to reflect upon issues concerning western sensitivity and eastern cultures, modernity or tradition, nostalgia
or avant garde limitations but simultaneous retains aspects of the spiritual heritage of the Chinese literati tradition.
The structural organization of these pictorial themes pays tribute to the artist's signature stylistic approach, which predicates upon a juxtaposition between the ancient and contemporary or of traditional and revolutionary. The reinterpretation of the literati painting from an expressionist perspective, both of which are language modes where emotional expressions are directly
involved in the paintings. In this regard, Zhou never fails to adhere to the beautiful, truthful aspect of life through a stylistic approach that is uniquely his.
namely, Wang Shimin, Wang Jian, Wang Hiu and Wang Yuanqi. The artist even made numerous trips to photograph the Taihu and was enlightened by the breathtaking scenery.
"Cyan Stone" created in 1993 epitomizes the artist's consistent endeavor in merging techniques of the Western approach with attributes derives from traditional Chinese ink paintings. In retrospect, the depiction of rocks has traditionally been a pertinent theme according to the Classical Chinese painting manual A garden as large as a mustard seed , (Jiezi yuan hua pu) of the 17th century. Traditionally, the depiction of nature and rocks take its raison d'être from a more scenography reality relative to the European one. The artist's have managed to extrapolate the hardness and complexity of rocks from tradition and transferred onto the canvas with an unusual medium of oil, this attribute is indicative of the artist's state of suspension between the past and the contemporary, between China and the west.
The present lot is also evidential of the artist's attempt in captivating the visual elements hidden within the subject matter of rocks, simultaneously enhancing and enlarging them in form. The texture and tactility of the rocks in the lower left corner on the foreground mesmerizes the viewer with compelling oil colours and dynamic brushstrokes within multiple layers of thick and
saturated black and caramel beige colours resulting in a complex structure that replaced the traditional flat visual impression of literati paintings. The artist applied the techniques of neo-expressionism to present the layered texture of the rocks and the form of the slender branches on the canvas, richly imbue with earthy tones that contrasts harmoniously with the airy light background that serves to amplify dimensions and the dynamic relationships between the subject matters. The artist had deliberately utilized a lot of sculptural language to soften the mildness and introversive tendencies of traditional Chinese ink
paintings, treating the composition of the subject matter much like a sculpture on the canvas, whereby the artist's brush turns into the knife of a sculptor.
Furthermore, the rocks have no distinctive outlines allowing the painter free rein to his imagination and a free flowing painting style is thus created by the much lighter and darker areas on the canvas. This quality of an indistinct outline can also be observed from the clouds and color blocks in Da Vinci's painting, similarly allowing the artist to accord free rein to his imagination. Likewise, the rocks are "a chance to free Zhou's pictorial impetus and to draw up energetic brushstrokes by dipping into the existing iconographic patrimony but without feeling restricted." The natural flow of the brushstrokes is not
limited by the confines of any traditional stylized rules, enticing the viewer to follow a visual flow that is uniquely Zhou's. The result is a multi-faceted, lively fusion of painterly techniques that reflects the artist's personality. "Cyan Stone" becomes a means for the artist to reflect upon issues concerning western sensitivity and eastern cultures, modernity or tradition, nostalgia
or avant garde limitations but simultaneous retains aspects of the spiritual heritage of the Chinese literati tradition.
The structural organization of these pictorial themes pays tribute to the artist's signature stylistic approach, which predicates upon a juxtaposition between the ancient and contemporary or of traditional and revolutionary. The reinterpretation of the literati painting from an expressionist perspective, both of which are language modes where emotional expressions are directly
involved in the paintings. In this regard, Zhou never fails to adhere to the beautiful, truthful aspect of life through a stylistic approach that is uniquely his.