HONG KONG.- Sotheby’s presents the fifth installment of Boundless: Contemporary Art on 11 June at Sotheby’s Hong Kong Gallery. Blending Western and Asian modern and contemporary works with iconic 20th-century design furniture, the Boundless series presents eclectic offerings across genre, style, period and international borders. Exploring the lyrical aspects of abstraction, T’ang Haywen, Zao Wou-Ki, Chu Teh-Chun and Chao Chung-Hsiang will be featured alongside Sam Francis and Georges Mathieu in the upcoming sale. For the first time at auction in Hong Kong, works by Henri Michaux will be reunited with those by his longtime friend Zao Wou-Ki’s, with a strong line-up of nine works by Andy Warhol adding to the excitement. To these dynamic combinations, the auction will add fresh and rare design pieces including French designer Roger Tallon’s iconic Helicoid Staircase - M 400, debuting at auction in Asia, plus an assemblage of lamps by internationally renowned designers. More than 100 lots estimated at HK$27 million / US$3.5 million* will be offered, catering to collectors across the region whose creative lifestyles include passion for art.

Isaure de Viel Castel, Head of Boundless Sales at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, said: ‘Boundless: Contemporary Art has established itself as a pioneer in presenting Asian and Western modern and contemporary art in a single platform. By placing them together in an international context, this sale exposes the relationships that artists from the East and West established with one another, regardless of geographical and cultural boundaries. Building on this concept, we are pleased to also offer 20th-century design furniture for discerning collectors who wish to infuse art into the everyday life. Roger Tallon’s signature “stairs” amounts to an important acquisition opportunity, as does a special assemblage of lamps by leading designers from around the world.’

WESTERN ART
Andy Warhol (1928 – 1987) Sofu Teshigahara (two works) Late 1974 – early 1975 Acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas 101.6 x 101.6 cm each Est. HK$3 – 4 million / US$385,000 – 513,000
Born in Osaka in 1900, the Japanese artist Sofu Teshigahara founded the Sogetsu School of Ikebana, forging a new style of the traditional Japanese art of flower arranging which emphasised free expression befitting the modern age. In addition to Ikebana, Teshigahara also developed his creativity through sculptures, drawings, paintings and calligraphy. In 1974, Andy Warhol visited Japan on the occasion of an exhibition of his work at which he met Teshigahara. The portrait of him that Warhol created is not only fresh to the market, but also marks the first time a Warhol work of the Japanese artist to appear at auction. Warhol’s daring chromatic explorations are evident in his faultless execution of dazzling and vibrant colors, transforming an important Japanese art historical figure into a striking icon.

Bernard Buffet (1928 – 1999) L'antichambre et la chaise longue (The antechamber and chaise longue) 1997, oil on canvas, 89 x 130 cm Est. HK$600,000 – 800,000 / US$77,500 – 103,000
In 1986, the French artist Bernard Buffet bought an estate, La Baume, in southern France’s legendary Provence. The home – the last one that the artist had lived in – inspired him and became the subject of a new series of works he created, also the last before his death. Depicted lovingly in L'antichambre et la chaise longue (The antechamber and chaise longue), Buffet found La Baume to be a shelter in which he could return to his passion for painting, his appreciation for a quiet and peaceful life, and his quest for serenity.

Keith Haring (1958 – 1990) Untitled 1983, Japanese Sumi ink on paper, 60 x 74.5 cm Est. HK$1 – 1.5 million / US$128,000 – 192,000
When the American artist Keith Haring moved to New York City in 1978, he began using the city as his canvas. His art was eventually seen everywhere, from public murals and nightclubs to galleries and museums, not only in New York but around the world. Untitled is a seminal example of the artist’s celebration of music and movement. The central figure with arms raised is carrying two small dancing men, forming an endearingly surreal and intensely rhythmic scene. Untitled was exhibited in Galerie Watari, Tokyo in 1983, the year in which the work was created.

ASIAN ART
Zhan Wang (b. 1962), Artificial Rock 2006, stainless steel, 277 (H) x 83 x 60 cm Est. HK$ 2 – 3 million / US$256,000 – 385,000
Seeking a dialogue between new technologies and cultural traditions, Zhan Wang draws his inspiration from the Chinese traditional culture of viewing and appreciating Jiashanshi (scholar’s rocks). Artificial Rock embodies the stillness, divinity and temptation found in a real ancient Jiashanshi. Its long, slim shape and indented surface in shiny modern material fits well into many aspects of the fast paced lifestyle of contemporary industrial society; yet its concept remains deeply rooted in traditional Chinese culture. A symbol for both old and new, the natural and manufactured, Artificial Rock opens up a dialogue between the viewers and their inner world – a modern manifestation of the Chinese view of the cosmos.

Yuan Yuan (b. 1973), BLUE IV 2010, oil on canvas, 145 x 180 cm Est. HK$220,000 – 280,000 / US$28,000 – 36,000
Trained at the prestigious China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, Yuan Yuan presents dramatic perspectives in his large-scale oil paintings, which share a sense of abandonment and dereliction. Unlike his other works, which usually depict interior setting, BLUE IV is a rare example of a landscape painting from the artist’s oeuvre. The desolate forest is immersed in a fluidity of cold blue shades, exuding an air of melancholy and mystery. By portraying vacant and forsaken woodland devoid of any human presence, Yuan conveys his strong personal longing for what has been lost in China today: the disappearing natural environment overrun by rapid development. Exhibited at Galerie Mitterrand, Paris in the artist’s first overseas solo show in 2011, BLUE IV is a representative work that offers the viewer an almost ethereal interaction, yet reinforces the artist’s concern about and affection for his homeland.

20TH-CENTURY DESIGN FURNITURE
Having led the introduction of design furniture at auction in Hong Kong, Sotheby’s Boundless sale will now bring together yet another array of meticulously-curated designer pieces this June, offering an acquisition opportunity to collectors who enjoy living with great objects. Highlights of the section include French engineer and designer Roger Tallon’s signature spiral staircase Helicoid Staircase - M 400 – appearing for the first time at auction in Asia; the Brazilian Campana Brothers’ playful Sushi Chair III; plus an assemblage of lamps created by internationally renowned designers from around the world including Japanese designers Shigeru Uchida, British designer Tom Dixon, and Australian designer Marc Newson, to name a few.