HONG KONG.- Sotheby’s Hong Kong will present its Fine Chinese Paintings Spring Sale 2013 on 5 April at Hall 5, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. This sale will feature exquisite paintings executed at different stages of the artistic careers of such modern Chinese artists as Zhang Daqian, Qi Baishi, Huang Binhong, Wu Changshuo, Lin Fengmian, etc., many of which amassed from prestigious collections and are fresh to the market. Offering over 300 lots, the sale is expected to fetch in excess of HK$130 million / US$16.6 million*.

C.K. Cheung, Head of Sotheby's Fine Chinese Paintings Department, said: “Commemorating our 40th Anniversary in Hong Kong, Sotheby’s is proud to reassemble some of the most outstanding works sold at our past auctions, including Ding Yanyong’s Crane in the Wait for Flight and a four-panel painting, Narcissus, by Tao Lengyue. The former was previously sold at Sotheby’s legendary Special Sale of Paintings and Calligraphy by Ding Yanyong - The Great Master in 1998 – the first dedicated sale held by an international auction house for an established Hong Kong-based Chinese ink painting artist. It is one of the largest works ever painted by Ding and was created for an important art exhibition held by Nanga Society of Japan. As for Tao’s Narcissus, it was entrusted to Sotheby’s by the artist’s family in 2001, and we are delighted to offer this exceptional piece again on our 40th Anniversary.

“Also noteworthy is an ensemble of late Qing and early 20th Century calligraphy and fan paintings, which include the collections from renowned Shanghai collector Qian Jintang and Hong Kong collector Liang Jinyu respectively. Celebrated for its thematic focus, the former collection features immaculate fan paintings by three masters of the genre, including Wu Changshuo, Zhao Zhiqian and Ren Yi. Among the works in Liang Jingyu’s collection, on the other hand, many were personal gifts from the artists to the collector. Calligraphies by Qian Mu, Rao Zongyi, Deng Erya and Feng Kanghou from the collection will be on offer. The appeal of these works with noble quality is likely to set off intense bidding at the auction.”

SALES HIGHLIGHTS
Composed in fine Gongbi brush technique, Zhang Daqian’s The Drunken Dance (Est. HK$7 – 9 million / US$900,000 – 1.2 million) was executed in 1951, during the artist’s short stay in Hong Kong after returning from his temporary abode in Darjeeling, India. In early 1940s, Zhang travelled to Xining, the capital city of Qinghai province, during his painting trip in Dunhuang, where he assiduously copied the ancient wall murals inside the Dunhuang caves. During his sojourn at the Kumbum Monastery in Xining, he executed a large number of sketches, mostly based on his observations of the daily life of the local ethnic minorities. The indelible influences of this period can be seen in the current work.

Rendered accurately in every detail, the costume worn by the foreign female dancer is adorned with ethnic features, from fur-lined collar to cuffs and lapel, all designed for ceremonial functions. Sporting a long braid tied with a colourful ribbon, the dancer is also bedecked with a leather headgear, pointed Tibetan boots and a sash around her waist. Zhang’s depiction of the dancer’s appearance, from her facial expressions to hand gestures and choice of colours, points to the profound inspiration he draws from the art of the Dunhuang cave paintings, tempered with a touch of his own artistic ingenuity.

Shortly upon its completion, this painting was brought overseas by its current owner until it returned to Hong Kong some years ago, looking as pristine as new.

Harmony of Strings (Est. HK$1.2 – 1.8 million / US$150,000 – 230,000) is a portrait by Jiang Zhaohe for his close friend Jiang Fengzhi, one of the greatest erhu musicians of his times. In the social circle of Beijing, both Jiangs maintained a deep friendship with Jiang Hancheng, a medical photographer, and the trio was known as the “Three Jiangs”.

Executed in 1939, Harmony of Strings was subsequently included in Paintings by Jiang Zhaohe Vol. 1, a drawing album featuring 41 paintings published by the artist himself, despite his financial lack. As the artist’s most representative works, they were all executed in the late 1930s, which attest to the hardship experienced by the populace in an era of war and social upheaval.

Harmony of Strings bears silent testament to the enduring friendship between the artist and Jiang Fengzhi, the musician, alongside their mutual passion for the arts and the resilience they shared during the Japanese occupation. It is a great privilege for Sotheby’s Hong Kong to bring such an important piece from overseas and present it at auction in its 40th Anniversary year.

Another highlight of the sale is Ding Yanyong’s Crane on the Wait for Flight (Est. HK$1.6 – 2.2 million / US$210,000 – 280,000), a monumental work of over three metres in height, one of the largest ever by the artist. It was created for the XVI Annual Exhibition of the Nanga Society, Japan, in 1976. A gigantic paper scroll was specially arranged by the then director of the revered Nihon Syunzyuu Syogeiin to be shipped from Japan for Ding to complete the painting.

Its centerpiece is an orchid tree, reaching for the heavens with its sturdy stem and entangling branches and flowers blooming in exuberance. Standing beside it is a white crane, which stretches its neck to study a jet-black butterfly hovering around the plant with concentration.

Ding Yanyong devoted himself to a lifelong pursuit for the unfettered freedom to exercise his artistic creativity. Though long confined to a shoebox dwelling, the painter was able to rise above the limitations around him to convey a magnanimous vision and optimistic attitude through his works.

Tao Lengyue’s Narcissus (Est. HK$500,000 – 700,000 / US$64,000 – 90,000) comes previously from the Collection of Madame Tao Xue Changwen, the artist’s spouse. Like her husband, Madame Tao was nonchalant to the lure of fame and materialism but she was fervently dedicated to promoting his art. Thanks to her generosity, a number of Tao’s works were donated to museums around the world. Even in her nineties, she instructed her children to entrust her treasured collection of his paintings to Sotheby’s in the hope they would ultimately find the ownership befitting their stature. This April, Sotheby’s is delighted to offer this monumental painting once again in the market, providing their admirers an unprecedented glimpse into the greatness of Tao’s artistry, as with the final wish of his late wife.

The painting was executed in 1943, with reference to the artist’s hand-written manuscripts. Originally, it was comprised of four paper panels that reveal a painting in full when unfolded - a very rare format in the artist’s oeuvre. Inspired by a narcissus motif, this work is distinguished by a dense composition, where overlapping flowers accented with lush greens are delineated in an orderly fashion. Some of these blossoms and leaves can be seen dancing to the movement of an unseen breeze. The painter’s meticulous Chinese ink painting techniques is complemented by the use of vivid colours to capture the magnificence of the nature.

Completed during the second Sino-Japanese War in 1940s, its focus on the untainted, pristine beauty of narcissus evokes the artist’s unbending patriotism in the face of his motherland’s occupation by the enemies.

Lin Fengmian’s The Fiery Battle of Red Cliffs (Est. HK$3 – 5 million / US$380,000 – 640,000) was created in 1984 and selected as a participating entry by the artist for the Exhibition of Lin Fengmian’s Works held in Taipei in 1989. Since then, it has been kept in Ms. Feng Yeh’s private collection and never been seen in the market.

It was in his advanced years that Lin revisited the historical motif of the famous battle to produce this painting, widely deemed as one of his finest that closes an illustrious artistic career. The Fiery Battle of Red Cliffs may be akin to similarly themed works in composition and artistic approach. Marking a radical departure, though, is the artist’s use of opera-like masks in reference to the historical characters. Half obscured amid the fiery flames and billowing smoke, the personas are portrayed in bodiless form. Taking this semiabstract approach further, the painter emphasises the protagonists’ facial expressions to highlight the dramatic tensions of the story narrated.

Works by 20th Century Modern Chinese Ink Artists
Besides the masterpieces of early 20th century artists and calligraphers, the Spring auction will also present a range of highly acclaimed works by modern Chinese ink artists from the same period, such as Zhou Sicong, Jia Youfu and Liu Guosong. Among all the salient works on offer, Autumn Landscape After Du Fu’s Poem, a magnificent work spanning a length of nine feet, as well as Marshall Garden, were specially created by Tang Zheming and Liu Yong respectively to commemorate Sotheby’s 40th Anniversary in Hong Kong.