GUAN LIANG | Swineherd

executed in 1960s

Collection of Guan Hanxing
Acquired directly from the above by the present important private Asian collector

Xue Jianhua, ed., Guan Liang, People's Fine Arts Publishing House, Shanghai, 2009, p. 107
CANS Art News Editing Team, ed., Guan Liang 1900 - 1986, Chinese Art Books Co., Taipei, 2012, p.117
Cheng Nai-Ming, ed., CANS Art News April 2012 No. 87, Chinese Art Books Co., Taipei, 2012, p. 82
Huang Yi-Han, ed., CANS Art News January 2014 No. 192, Chinese Art Books Co., Taipei, 2014, p. 82

The work is overall in good condition, except for the hairline craquelure near the top right corner and left edge. Examination under UV light reveals minor signs of retouching, primarily along the top edge of the canvas.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Guan Liang’s childlike spirit is apparent not only in his blunt yet expressive artistic language, but in his egalitarian choice of subjects. He was concerned in his craft not with the assigned nobility of his human figures. Instead, aesthetics were paramount. Guan Liang enjoyed delving into people’s lives, excavating beauty from the ordinary. The 1950s and 60s marked the rise of the communist era in Mainland China. The artistic pioneers of Modernism under the Republic, following the shift in the government’s political ideology, were now subject to reform. Thereafter, they were to make only “red-themed,” or revolutionary, works. Guan Liang’s journey during those extenuating times was relatively smooth. While adhering to the mandate of depicting certain societal themes, he was able to preserve in himself a purity and sincerity, as well as a modernist spirit. As in the past, when he refused to be hindered by the conventions of traditional society and devoted himself to depicting characters from Beijing opera, Guan Liang again fully immersed himself in the lives of the Chinese working people. He experienced their daily joys and pains, living alongside them. In this way, he found inspiration for his art, celebrating and promoting the dignity of the workers’ lives. This would become the subject of a visually distinct series of paintings. As part of the “Song of Innocence” collection, last year’s Autumn Sale featured a 1965 oil painting by Guan Liang, titled Cattle Pasturing (55 x 67cm). It sold for more than five times the estimate, at HKD 5,175,000, setting off a sensation of excitement at the evening auction. The lot available at this Spring Sale, Swineherd (Lot 1007), comes from the same series.  Simply and without embellishment, the painting depicts the daily lives of swineherds as they feed a circle of hogs. The artist intentionally conceals the two men’s expressions, even placing them on the left and right peripheries of the painting. The center of the painting is reserved for the seven plump and delightful piglets, rich with the suggestion of happiness and contentment that resides in an ordinary life. This painting depicts a scene with both realism and an aesthetic aura of joy and optimism. It is a true accomplishment, indeed.