WU GUANZHONG (1919-2010)
1973 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.
1973 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.
1973-1974 Ten Thousand Li of the Yangtze River
2011 SOLD for RMB 150M by Beijing A&F
During the second half of 1973 after a few short months spent in Beijing, Wu Guanzhong received a government assignment to travel south and collect material for The Ten Thousand Li Landscape of the Yangtze River. The river flows for some 6,300 kilometers, and a li equals 500 meters.
A hand scroll 22.5 x 510 cm executed in oil painting between 1973 and 1974 was sold for RMB 150M by Beijing A&F on November 19, 2011. It is illustrated in the post sale report shared by Artron Art Index.
In 2018 a 200 meter long ink painting on the same scenery and title entrusted to a team of about 50 artists was displayed at the National Museum of China in Beijing.
A hand scroll 22.5 x 510 cm executed in oil painting between 1973 and 1974 was sold for RMB 150M by Beijing A&F on November 19, 2011. It is illustrated in the post sale report shared by Artron Art Index.
In 2018 a 200 meter long ink painting on the same scenery and title entrusted to a team of about 50 artists was displayed at the National Museum of China in Beijing.
1974 Lotus Flowers
2019 SOLD for HK$ 130M by Sotheby's
The lotus, everlasting Chinese symbol of purity, was a choice theme for the artistic rebirth of Wu Guanzhong in the last years of the Cultural revolution. The plant stands straightforward over the leaves floating on the surface of the pond.
In 1973 the artist is at last authorized after a six year ban to resume his work in Beijing, where he executes a series of lotus paintings and drawings in the Purple Bamboo Park. He much later described that rosy flower as “calm and docile, disliking dragonflies and frogs”, thus inviting the art critics to consider it as a psychological selfie.
Lotus Flowers, oil on canvas 61 x 50 cm, is a large size opus for that first year. In a surrounding of green leaves, it features two buds in impasto in the foreground at dissimilar heights, expressing the optimism of the artist for a revival. A wide range of green hues enables to express the reflection of the leaves in the pond. It was sold for HK $ 34.4M by Sotheby's on April 4, 2015, lot 1009.
In 1974 a larger opus is numbered Lotus Flowers (I). The central bud is here superseded by a glorious full blossom, surrounded by plants in buds at lower heights. This oil on canvas 120 x 90 cm was sold for HK $ 130M from a lower estimate of HK $ 15M by Sotheby's on March 31, 2019, lot 1008.
The difference in self assurance between the 1973 and 1974 may be explained by the successful commission executed in the mean time for preparing a mural landscape of the Yangzi river.
In 1973 the artist is at last authorized after a six year ban to resume his work in Beijing, where he executes a series of lotus paintings and drawings in the Purple Bamboo Park. He much later described that rosy flower as “calm and docile, disliking dragonflies and frogs”, thus inviting the art critics to consider it as a psychological selfie.
Lotus Flowers, oil on canvas 61 x 50 cm, is a large size opus for that first year. In a surrounding of green leaves, it features two buds in impasto in the foreground at dissimilar heights, expressing the optimism of the artist for a revival. A wide range of green hues enables to express the reflection of the leaves in the pond. It was sold for HK $ 34.4M by Sotheby's on April 4, 2015, lot 1009.
In 1974 a larger opus is numbered Lotus Flowers (I). The central bud is here superseded by a glorious full blossom, surrounded by plants in buds at lower heights. This oil on canvas 120 x 90 cm was sold for HK $ 130M from a lower estimate of HK $ 15M by Sotheby's on March 31, 2019, lot 1008.
The difference in self assurance between the 1973 and 1974 may be explained by the successful commission executed in the mean time for preparing a mural landscape of the Yangzi river.
1988 Lion Grove Garden
2019 SOLD for RMB 144M by China Guardian
Wu Guanzhong is the most complete artist of the post-Maoist period. Resolutely modernist and inspired by both East and West, he makes up for the time lost during the Cultural Revolution by treating many themes from realism to abstraction in all the graphic techniques.
Wu begins with a preliminary sketch that allows him to choose between an oil on canvas and an ink on paper which he paints in an impulsive gesture. Looking for the elemental forms that constitute his subject, he reworks his figuration and his color up to an ultimate state. Lion Grove Garden, ink and colors on paper 144 x 297 cm painted in 1988, is an example led by the artist to an almost complete abstraction.
The city of Suzhou, 100 km away from Shanghai, is famous for its gardens, several of which have been classified together as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Lion Grove was created by a Zen monk under the Yuan dynasty and was so named for the likeness of one of its rocks with a reclining lion. The garden is bordered by a pond and includes a grotto.
Wu is interested in this site maintained without religious attributes. His meditation brings a pattern of lines and spots of various colors, superseding the real topography of the rock. Two pavilions and a bridge appear beyond the rock. Simplified shapes simulate visitors in the pavilions and fish in the pond.
The whole is looking like a huge cliff by the sea with boats. The shape predominated the theme, responding to the artist's deepest conceptions. Do not search for the lion.
Lion Grove Garden was sold for RMB 115M by Poly on June 3, 2011 and for RMB 144M on June 2, 2019 by China Guardian, lot 383.
Wu begins with a preliminary sketch that allows him to choose between an oil on canvas and an ink on paper which he paints in an impulsive gesture. Looking for the elemental forms that constitute his subject, he reworks his figuration and his color up to an ultimate state. Lion Grove Garden, ink and colors on paper 144 x 297 cm painted in 1988, is an example led by the artist to an almost complete abstraction.
The city of Suzhou, 100 km away from Shanghai, is famous for its gardens, several of which have been classified together as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Lion Grove was created by a Zen monk under the Yuan dynasty and was so named for the likeness of one of its rocks with a reclining lion. The garden is bordered by a pond and includes a grotto.
Wu is interested in this site maintained without religious attributes. His meditation brings a pattern of lines and spots of various colors, superseding the real topography of the rock. Two pavilions and a bridge appear beyond the rock. Simplified shapes simulate visitors in the pavilions and fish in the pond.
The whole is looking like a huge cliff by the sea with boats. The shape predominated the theme, responding to the artist's deepest conceptions. Do not search for the lion.
Lion Grove Garden was sold for RMB 115M by Poly on June 3, 2011 and for RMB 144M on June 2, 2019 by China Guardian, lot 383.
1994 Awakening
2021 SOLD for RMB 115M by Yongle
An eclectic artist, Wu Guanzhong is flirting between East and West for both themes and techniques.
In his quest of the basic forms of nature, he follows Georgia O'Keeffe up to abstraction. His dynamic waving lines in an unframed space may evoke an unfinished Pollock. Awakening is an abstract title referring to spring.
One of these Awakening artworks executed in 1994 is an ink and color on paper 150 x 360 cm, a large size evolution of the classical Chinese technique, mingling dark brushstroke and soft wash. Its dots and formations were inspired by the interwoven branches of a centuries old cypress tree.
It was sold for RMB 115M by Yongle on May 21, 2021, lot 1818. It is illustrated in a pre sale article shared by China Daily and in a later invitation to consign press release by the auction house.
In his quest of the basic forms of nature, he follows Georgia O'Keeffe up to abstraction. His dynamic waving lines in an unframed space may evoke an unfinished Pollock. Awakening is an abstract title referring to spring.
One of these Awakening artworks executed in 1994 is an ink and color on paper 150 x 360 cm, a large size evolution of the classical Chinese technique, mingling dark brushstroke and soft wash. Its dots and formations were inspired by the interwoven branches of a centuries old cypress tree.
It was sold for RMB 115M by Yongle on May 21, 2021, lot 1818. It is illustrated in a pre sale article shared by China Daily and in a later invitation to consign press release by the auction house.
1994 Two Swallows
2018 SOLD for RMB 113M by Poly
Shuangyan, better described as Two swallows, was a favorite modernist theme of Wu Guanzhong, conceived by him in 1981 during a sketching visit in Suzhou with his students.
It features a range of five low Jiangnan dwellings with white walls integrating a few narrow black doors and a single tiny window near the right side. These minimalist buildings reflect in a waterway. The only living beings is a pair of swallows coming and going in the blue sky in a varying position from an opus to another. The roofs are made of a single narrow black line. A tree marks the spring calling and a stone bench is empty. Some steps dive into the water.
Two examples were sold by Poly on December 6, 2018. An ink on paper 69 x 137 cm made in 1988 was sold for RMB 54M, lot 3202. An oil on canvas 69 x 140 cm painted in 1994 was sold for RMB 113M, lot 3203. It is illustrated in the post sale report by China Daily.
The blind walls bring the impression that the house is not finished. The rectangular shapes and the contrasts supersede the realism. The swallows are a reminiscence of Wu's happy childhood in his beloved Jiangnan.
An undated ink and color on paper of same size titled Spring Calling was sold for HK $ 17.5M by Christie's on May 31, 2011, lot 2771.
It features a range of five low Jiangnan dwellings with white walls integrating a few narrow black doors and a single tiny window near the right side. These minimalist buildings reflect in a waterway. The only living beings is a pair of swallows coming and going in the blue sky in a varying position from an opus to another. The roofs are made of a single narrow black line. A tree marks the spring calling and a stone bench is empty. Some steps dive into the water.
Two examples were sold by Poly on December 6, 2018. An ink on paper 69 x 137 cm made in 1988 was sold for RMB 54M, lot 3202. An oil on canvas 69 x 140 cm painted in 1994 was sold for RMB 113M, lot 3203. It is illustrated in the post sale report by China Daily.
The blind walls bring the impression that the house is not finished. The rectangular shapes and the contrasts supersede the realism. The swallows are a reminiscence of Wu's happy childhood in his beloved Jiangnan.
An undated ink and color on paper of same size titled Spring Calling was sold for HK $ 17.5M by Christie's on May 31, 2011, lot 2771.
1997 The Zhou Village
2016 SOLD for HK$ 236M by Poly
Wu Guanzhong is a full range artist who integrated tradition and modernism. After the torments of the Cultural Revolution, he endeavored to make people love his native region, Jiangnan, south of the Yangtze River. He observes landscapes and villages by bringing the utmost importance to their geometric decomposition.
Suzhou is a big city enjoying 2,500 years of history. Wu took in 1983 as one of his favorite themes the Lion Grove Garden, with a texture of rocks that reaches the limits of abstraction. An ink and colors on paper 144 x 297 cm painted in 1988 was sold for RMB 144M by China Guardian in 2019.
The Zhou village is also located in Suzhou. On April 4, 2016, Poly sold for HK $ 236M a painting 148 x 297 cm made in 1997, which transposed to oil an ink and colors made in 1986. It is illustrated in the report of the sale shared by Art Market Monitor.
The old village is appealing to tourists, with its pattern of houses huddled together. Suzhou is the Venice of the East which amazed Marco Polo with its canals crossed by a multitude of small stone bridges.
The image is seen in a slightly plunging perspective. The village is symmetrical, with its central axis on the very narrow street leading to the bridge. The edge of the canal and the horizon form an oval, like in a fish eye photo. This harmony of curves is reinforced by the arched shapes of the bridge.
Suzhou is a big city enjoying 2,500 years of history. Wu took in 1983 as one of his favorite themes the Lion Grove Garden, with a texture of rocks that reaches the limits of abstraction. An ink and colors on paper 144 x 297 cm painted in 1988 was sold for RMB 144M by China Guardian in 2019.
The Zhou village is also located in Suzhou. On April 4, 2016, Poly sold for HK $ 236M a painting 148 x 297 cm made in 1997, which transposed to oil an ink and colors made in 1986. It is illustrated in the report of the sale shared by Art Market Monitor.
The old village is appealing to tourists, with its pattern of houses huddled together. Suzhou is the Venice of the East which amazed Marco Polo with its canals crossed by a multitude of small stone bridges.
The image is seen in a slightly plunging perspective. The village is symmetrical, with its central axis on the very narrow street leading to the bridge. The edge of the canal and the horizon form an oval, like in a fish eye photo. This harmony of curves is reinforced by the arched shapes of the bridge.
1997 Lotus Pond
2016 SOLD for HK$ 106M by Poly
Wu Guanzhong assured the transition between classicism and modernism in Chinese graphic art. He was persecuted during the Cultural Revolution and the works of his early career are barely known. Like Zhang Daqian before him he had the merit of being a complete artist able to master a variety of techniques, styles and themes.
Wu was watching the earth as an environment for the lifestyle, from wide landscapes around the world up to tiny details in the blossoming trees. He successfully practiced oil painting and returned to the traditional ink when he wanted to position spots of pure colors.
1997 is a year of great creativity. Freed of threats at 78, he continues to explore many possibilities of the artistic language. The Zhou Village, sold for HK $ 236M by Poly in April 2016, is an oil on canvas. Wu also resolutely entered contemporary art through his practice of very large formats.
An ink and colors on paper 144 x 368 cm from 1997 was sold for HK $ 106M by Poly in October 2016, lot 139. Its theme of the lotus pond is an excuse for a color balance that comes close to abstraction. The field is unlimited as in a Pollock. The bright spots compensate for the lack of perspective by suggesting the depth of the bottom. The leaves and their reflections are interwoven in a tight pattern.
Wu was watching the earth as an environment for the lifestyle, from wide landscapes around the world up to tiny details in the blossoming trees. He successfully practiced oil painting and returned to the traditional ink when he wanted to position spots of pure colors.
1997 is a year of great creativity. Freed of threats at 78, he continues to explore many possibilities of the artistic language. The Zhou Village, sold for HK $ 236M by Poly in April 2016, is an oil on canvas. Wu also resolutely entered contemporary art through his practice of very large formats.
An ink and colors on paper 144 x 368 cm from 1997 was sold for HK $ 106M by Poly in October 2016, lot 139. Its theme of the lotus pond is an excuse for a color balance that comes close to abstraction. The field is unlimited as in a Pollock. The bright spots compensate for the lack of perspective by suggesting the depth of the bottom. The leaves and their reflections are interwoven in a tight pattern.
1998 Harvest
2023 SOLD for RMB 78M by China Guardian
Harvest, executed in 1998 by Wu Guanzhong, comes in the follow of his 1997 Lotus Pond sold by Poly for HK $ 106M in October 2016.
Both works share the same technique of ink and colors on paper, in a similar format, announced as 143 x 365 cm for Harvest. Both display an unlimited view of a tightly arranged basic pattern, which in Harvest takes the form of a fully grown cereal plant. The perspective is canceled in a trend to abstraction.
Harvest was sold for RMB 78M from a lower estimate of RMB 68M by China Guardian on June 12, 2023, lot 746.
Both works share the same technique of ink and colors on paper, in a similar format, announced as 143 x 365 cm for Harvest. Both display an unlimited view of a tightly arranged basic pattern, which in Harvest takes the form of a fully grown cereal plant. The perspective is canceled in a trend to abstraction.
Harvest was sold for RMB 78M from a lower estimate of RMB 68M by China Guardian on June 12, 2023, lot 746.
