1973
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Zhang Daqian Wu Guanzhong Ruscha
See also : Zhang Daqian Wu Guanzhong Ruscha
1973 Pink Lotuses on Gold Screen by Zhang Daqian
2023 SOLD for HK$ 250M by Sotheby's
After a lifelong inspiration from the whole Chinese pictural history, Zhang Daqian started in the mid-1960s his unprecedented technique of application of splashed colors. In this breakthrough he also tried his skilled hand with the use of gold background.
Ancient Temples amidst Clouds, a scroll 172 x 90 cm painted in 1965 in ink and color on gold paper, was sold for HK $ 102M by Christie's on May 30, 2017, lot 8001. A smaller example from the same year is Autumn Foliage on Verdant Hills, 81 x 39 cm, sold for HK $ 8.8M by Christie's on May 29, 2022, lot 1099.
Painting on gold leaves is a costly and demanding technique. The smooth leaf does not absorb water or ink. Applying ink and color generates distinct traces on gold, so even the slightest mistake would have ruined the painting.
Zhang loved water flowers in his garden, like Monet, and often pictured blooming lotuses. Lotus and mandarin ducks, 185 x 95 cm scroll painted in 1947, was sold for HK $ 190M by Sotheby's on May 31, 2011.
In the splashed color period, Zhang painted three pictures of lotuses on gold leaf in Japanese screen formats. The first of them, in 1965, a diptych 158 x 140 cm overall, was made for the dowry of his fourth daughter.
Painted in 1973, Pink Lotuses is a very close replica of the earlier example, also with about half of the surface for the glowing raw gold background. This folding diptych 170 x 176 cm overall was sold for HK $ 250M by Sotheby's on April 5, 2023, lot 5004 consigned by the family of its first owner. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The third and last example, Crimson Lotuses, painted in 1975 in five panels of irregular width 170 x 370 cm overall, was sold by Sotheby’s for HK $ 20M in 2002.
Ancient Temples amidst Clouds, a scroll 172 x 90 cm painted in 1965 in ink and color on gold paper, was sold for HK $ 102M by Christie's on May 30, 2017, lot 8001. A smaller example from the same year is Autumn Foliage on Verdant Hills, 81 x 39 cm, sold for HK $ 8.8M by Christie's on May 29, 2022, lot 1099.
Painting on gold leaves is a costly and demanding technique. The smooth leaf does not absorb water or ink. Applying ink and color generates distinct traces on gold, so even the slightest mistake would have ruined the painting.
Zhang loved water flowers in his garden, like Monet, and often pictured blooming lotuses. Lotus and mandarin ducks, 185 x 95 cm scroll painted in 1947, was sold for HK $ 190M by Sotheby's on May 31, 2011.
In the splashed color period, Zhang painted three pictures of lotuses on gold leaf in Japanese screen formats. The first of them, in 1965, a diptych 158 x 140 cm overall, was made for the dowry of his fourth daughter.
Painted in 1973, Pink Lotuses is a very close replica of the earlier example, also with about half of the surface for the glowing raw gold background. This folding diptych 170 x 176 cm overall was sold for HK $ 250M by Sotheby's on April 5, 2023, lot 5004 consigned by the family of its first owner. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The third and last example, Crimson Lotuses, painted in 1975 in five panels of irregular width 170 x 370 cm overall, was sold by Sotheby’s for HK $ 20M in 2002.
1973 WU GUANZHONG
1
Scenery of North China
2020 SOLD for HK$ 150M by Sotheby's
In 1949, when the People's Republic of China was created, Wu Guanzhong was in Paris where he was studying modern art and familiarizing himself with oil painting. His return is enthusiastic : he will be able to bring his new skills to China.
In 1966 the Cultural Revolution prohibited Wu from painting. A little later a rehabilitation was imposed on him. He did not resist, because his ambition was not political. When they needed his art again, in 1972, he took up his brushes again without expressing a grudge.
Chairman Mao is aging and his regime is becoming less restrictive. Wu can now become a resolutely modern artist, through the diversity of his themes, and through his subtle balance between realism and geometry and between traditional Chinese taste and Western pictorial techniques.
An oil on board 72 x 160 cm painted in 1973, a large size for this period, is perhaps a demonstrator of his know-how. As a precaution, its theme is decidedly Maoist. Li Keran, who had also been persecuted by the Cultural Revolution, will soon follow a similar path.
Wu's painting, titled Scenery of North China, is based on Snow, Mao's most famous poem, which begins by glorifying the power of nature before stating that his regime will do better than the greatest emperors. Wu's image is loaded with symbols : the pristine snow covering the mountains, the protective vivacity of the pine, the endless line of the Great Wall. A steam locomotive, which was not foreseen in the poem, illustrates the technical progress.
This painting was sold for HK $ 32M by Christie's on May 27, 2007and for HK $ 150M by Sotheby's on October 5, 2020, lot 1013.
In 1979 Wu was one of the artists commissioned to paint the wall decorations of the Beijing airport. He made a 6 m wide version of this landscape which was still politically correct, three years after the death of the Great Helmsman.
In 1966 the Cultural Revolution prohibited Wu from painting. A little later a rehabilitation was imposed on him. He did not resist, because his ambition was not political. When they needed his art again, in 1972, he took up his brushes again without expressing a grudge.
Chairman Mao is aging and his regime is becoming less restrictive. Wu can now become a resolutely modern artist, through the diversity of his themes, and through his subtle balance between realism and geometry and between traditional Chinese taste and Western pictorial techniques.
An oil on board 72 x 160 cm painted in 1973, a large size for this period, is perhaps a demonstrator of his know-how. As a precaution, its theme is decidedly Maoist. Li Keran, who had also been persecuted by the Cultural Revolution, will soon follow a similar path.
Wu's painting, titled Scenery of North China, is based on Snow, Mao's most famous poem, which begins by glorifying the power of nature before stating that his regime will do better than the greatest emperors. Wu's image is loaded with symbols : the pristine snow covering the mountains, the protective vivacity of the pine, the endless line of the Great Wall. A steam locomotive, which was not foreseen in the poem, illustrates the technical progress.
This painting was sold for HK $ 32M by Christie's on May 27, 2007and for HK $ 150M by Sotheby's on October 5, 2020, lot 1013.
In 1979 Wu was one of the artists commissioned to paint the wall decorations of the Beijing airport. He made a 6 m wide version of this landscape which was still politically correct, three years after the death of the Great Helmsman.
2
Plum Blossoms
2022 SOLD for HK$ 104M by Sotheby's
Wu Guanzhong is an intellectual directly targeted by the Cultural Revolution of 1966. Exiled for hard labor in the countryside, he has no right to paint or to teach art.
His regime softens in 1972. Wu partially resumes his activity, taking his models from nature with a surprising optimism. He loves his country but his inspiration is global. He deliberately forgets the vexations.
Plum blossoms, oil on canvas 90 x 70 cm mounted on board, painted in 1973 during a short stay in Beijing, is a masterpiece of his restarting period. This painting was sold by Sotheby's for HK $ 67M on April 4, 2015, lot 1006 and for HK $ 104M on April 27, 2022, lot 1038. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
In this painting, Wu captures the utter joy offered by the rebirth of spring. Butterflies circle around the tree in full bloom.
Oil on canvas is a Western technique. The domination of color is influenced by both French impressionism and American abstract expressionism but the delicate restraining of the hues avoiding any saturation is Asian. The blooming tree is a prime concern in Chinese lifestyle and the meticulously repeated details got their inspiration in the old masters.
His regime softens in 1972. Wu partially resumes his activity, taking his models from nature with a surprising optimism. He loves his country but his inspiration is global. He deliberately forgets the vexations.
Plum blossoms, oil on canvas 90 x 70 cm mounted on board, painted in 1973 during a short stay in Beijing, is a masterpiece of his restarting period. This painting was sold by Sotheby's for HK $ 67M on April 4, 2015, lot 1006 and for HK $ 104M on April 27, 2022, lot 1038. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
In this painting, Wu captures the utter joy offered by the rebirth of spring. Butterflies circle around the tree in full bloom.
Oil on canvas is a Western technique. The domination of color is influenced by both French impressionism and American abstract expressionism but the delicate restraining of the hues avoiding any saturation is Asian. The blooming tree is a prime concern in Chinese lifestyle and the meticulously repeated details got their inspiration in the old masters.
1973 Truth by Ruscha
2024 SOLD for $ 14.8M by Christie's
In 1972 Ed Ruscha selects singular words that can have a moral appealing to the visitor : Mercy, Purity, Faith, Hope, Truth and an oblique Gospel, some of them in several versions.
TRUTH expresses the fear of a critical raise of falsehood in the modern world. In a 1973 example, the five bold italic capitals are aligned on a wide light orange horizon that separates throughout the width the volcanic brown and orange color fields. The color inside the letters is gradually amended from deep red to lemon yellow by the background over and under that horizon.
This oil on canvas 137 x 152 cm was sold for $ 14.8M from a lower estimate of $ 7M by Christie's on May 16, 2024, lot 12 B. A dedication to a dentist on the reverse stirs a comment by the artist related to the homophony between Truth and Tooth. Ruscha had executed a TOOTH in 1970 for the same collector.
TRUTH expresses the fear of a critical raise of falsehood in the modern world. In a 1973 example, the five bold italic capitals are aligned on a wide light orange horizon that separates throughout the width the volcanic brown and orange color fields. The color inside the letters is gradually amended from deep red to lemon yellow by the background over and under that horizon.
This oil on canvas 137 x 152 cm was sold for $ 14.8M from a lower estimate of $ 7M by Christie's on May 16, 2024, lot 12 B. A dedication to a dentist on the reverse stirs a comment by the artist related to the homophony between Truth and Tooth. Ruscha had executed a TOOTH in 1970 for the same collector.
1973 Mao by WARHOL
1
2015 SOLD for $ 14.5M by Sotheby's
In 1973 Warhol multiplies his Mao's with smaller formats and new color variants. Mao's head, proportionally smaller, has lost the dignity of the official portrait.
One of them, 127 x 107 cm with a dark red tunic and a black background, was sold for $ 13.5M by Phillips de Pury on November 15, 2012 and for $ 14.5M by Sotheby's on May 12, 2015, lot 19.
One of them, 127 x 107 cm with a dark red tunic and a black background, was sold for $ 13.5M by Phillips de Pury on November 15, 2012 and for $ 14.5M by Sotheby's on May 12, 2015, lot 19.
2
2017 SOLD for HK$ 99M by Sotheby's
Many Chinese people are still hurt by Mao's portrait interpreted by Warhol more than 40 years ago in multiple paintings and prints. Nevertheless Sotheby's goes boldly into the adventure by offering a painting from that series in Hong Kong on April 2, 2017, lot 1030 . It was sold for HK $ 99M.
The same painting had been sold for £ 7.6M by Sotheby's on February 12, 2014.
This opus of the same size as the example above is characterized by the dramatic lighting of the face brimming to the left like a divine halo, on a neutral background.
The same painting had been sold for £ 7.6M by Sotheby's on February 12, 2014.
This opus of the same size as the example above is characterized by the dramatic lighting of the face brimming to the left like a divine halo, on a neutral background.
1973 Femme de Venise VIII by Giacometti (posthumous)
2023 SOLD for $ 12.7M by Sotheby's
The Femmes de Venise set is made of nine models numbered I to IX. They are different from one another. For example, I and IV are the more anatomical while II, III, VII and IX are more abstract. The VIII, 122 cm high, is one of the tallest, displaying a commanding presence and a solid standing with broad shoulders.
The bronzes were cast by Susse in Paris. The Femme de Venise VIII 4/6 cast in 1957 was sold for $ 10.1M by Sotheby's on May 7, 2008, lot 20.
A number 0/6 of the Femme de Venise VIII, edited posthumously in 1973, was sold for $ 12.7M by Sotheby's on November 13, 2023, lot 26.
The bronzes were cast by Susse in Paris. The Femme de Venise VIII 4/6 cast in 1957 was sold for $ 10.1M by Sotheby's on May 7, 2008, lot 20.
A number 0/6 of the Femme de Venise VIII, edited posthumously in 1973, was sold for $ 12.7M by Sotheby's on November 13, 2023, lot 26.
Reclining Figure by MOORE
1
1972-1973 Four Piece
2017 SOLD for $ 8.2M by Christie's
The reclining figure by Henry Moore is a post Cubist deconstruction, psychologically neutral, looking for geometric elements beside the waving shapes of the reclining body, adding voids or breaks. In 1951 the monolithic park monument 2.30 m long was cast in bronze in five copies plus one artist's proof. The proof was sold for $ 31M by Sotheby's in 2022.
The artist considered that his Two Piece Reclining Figure No. 1 conceived in 1959 "is a mixture of rock form and mountains combined with the human figure".
A 250 cm long highly geometric realistic figure in three pieces constituting a bridge prop was conceived in 1963 and cast by H. Noack in Berlin in an edition of six. The 4/6 was sold for £ 4.3M by Christie's on February 4, 2015, lot 9.
The Large Four Piece Reclining Figure is fully exploded in two blocks on a flat base. This 400 cm long figure was conceived and cast in 1972-73 in an edition of 7 plus 1 artist's proof by H. Noack in Berlin. The 7/7 with a bronze patina was sold for $ 8.2M from a lower estimate of $ 6M by Christie's on May 15, 2017, lot 41A.
The artist considered that his Two Piece Reclining Figure No. 1 conceived in 1959 "is a mixture of rock form and mountains combined with the human figure".
A 250 cm long highly geometric realistic figure in three pieces constituting a bridge prop was conceived in 1963 and cast by H. Noack in Berlin in an edition of six. The 4/6 was sold for £ 4.3M by Christie's on February 4, 2015, lot 9.
The Large Four Piece Reclining Figure is fully exploded in two blocks on a flat base. This 400 cm long figure was conceived and cast in 1972-73 in an edition of 7 plus 1 artist's proof by H. Noack in Berlin. The 7/7 with a bronze patina was sold for $ 8.2M from a lower estimate of $ 6M by Christie's on May 15, 2017, lot 41A.
2
1973 Two Piece - Points
2015 SOLD for $ 7.7M by Christie's
The Two Piece Reclining Figure - Points has two well separated elements. The seated figure looks broken at mid thighs. That lower body part is sharply pointed to the upper part.
This figure is 234 cm high, 366 cm long and 183 cm deep. It has been conceived in 1969-1970 and cast by 1973 by Noack. The 5/7 was sold for $ 7.7M by Christie's on November 12, 2015, lot 46C.
This figure is 234 cm high, 366 cm long and 183 cm deep. It has been conceived in 1969-1970 and cast by 1973 by Noack. The 5/7 was sold for $ 7.7M by Christie's on November 12, 2015, lot 46C.
1973 Ocean Park by Diebenkorn
2014 SOLD for $ 6.8M by Sotheby's
After the # 48 of 1971, the Ocean Park # 50 by Diebenkorn displays a further step to a full geometry of horizontal and vertical rectangles and stripes from which the diagonals were nearly erased. # 50, oil on canvas 236 x 206 cm painted in 1972, was sold for $ 8.2M by Sotheby's on November 10, 2014, lot 23. An experience of aerial views of flattened agricultural fields is added to the window effect.
Also painted in 1972 in the same size as the # 50, the # 56 is made of the ethereal colors of ocean, sand and atmosphere : azure, periwinkle, mauve and bright yellow, separated by dark blue and light gray lines, with underpainting surfacing in reworked areas. It was sold for $ 11.4M by Sotheby's on November 15, 2023, lot 127.
Compared with the # 50 and # 56, the Ocean Park # 55 has some experimental features in a full square format, 200 x 200 cm.
In the upper part some separating lines are disturbed and one of the major rectangular areas is a mingle of subtle colors departing to the plain effect of Mondrian's style. The deep blue area of the ocean is omitted in the whole picture. Hues of apricot pink, marigold, and cream are producing a luminescent depth. The lines are painted in vibrant violet, pale pink, red and blue.
That oil on canvas painted in 1972 was sold for $ 11M by Sotheby's on May 16, 2018, lot 18.
# 61 was painted in 1973. The upper side is like the color of a sunset but any idea of a landscape through a window is canceled by the areas of various colors separated by a vertical line.
This oil on canvas 236 x 206 cm was sold for $ 6.8M by Sotheby's on November 10, 2014, lot 18.
Also painted in 1972 in the same size as the # 50, the # 56 is made of the ethereal colors of ocean, sand and atmosphere : azure, periwinkle, mauve and bright yellow, separated by dark blue and light gray lines, with underpainting surfacing in reworked areas. It was sold for $ 11.4M by Sotheby's on November 15, 2023, lot 127.
Compared with the # 50 and # 56, the Ocean Park # 55 has some experimental features in a full square format, 200 x 200 cm.
In the upper part some separating lines are disturbed and one of the major rectangular areas is a mingle of subtle colors departing to the plain effect of Mondrian's style. The deep blue area of the ocean is omitted in the whole picture. Hues of apricot pink, marigold, and cream are producing a luminescent depth. The lines are painted in vibrant violet, pale pink, red and blue.
That oil on canvas painted in 1972 was sold for $ 11M by Sotheby's on May 16, 2018, lot 18.
# 61 was painted in 1973. The upper side is like the color of a sunset but any idea of a landscape through a window is canceled by the areas of various colors separated by a vertical line.
This oil on canvas 236 x 206 cm was sold for $ 6.8M by Sotheby's on November 10, 2014, lot 18.
