GUAN LIANG | Flowers and Fruits

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

Hong Kong, Furama Hotel Hall and Boya Art Exhibition Hall, An Exhibition of Guan-Liang's Works: Oil Paintings & Chinese Paintings, December 1981 - January 1982

CANS Art News Editing Team, ed., Guan Liang 1900 - 1986, Chinese Art Books Co., Taipei, 2012, p.96
Xue Jianhua, ed., Guan Liang, People’s Fine Arts Publishing House, Shanghai, 2009, p. 25

The work is overall in very good condition, except for two very minor signs of tear near the bottom edge of the paper.
"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."

Among his completed works, color ink was the dominant medium of Guan Liang’s artistic career. Although color ink originates from the realm of traditional Chinese landscape painting, the artist persistently invoked elements of Modern art within his color ink works, striving to create new expressive methods for traditional ink-wash painting. Flowers and Fruits (Lot 1017) and Still Life (Lot 1020) stand out as two gems in the artist’s ink color oeuvre. Not only do they share an interesting visual resonance with the Evening Sale’s opening pair of still life oil paintings—Lin Fengmian’s Blooming Chrysanthemums (Lot 1018) and Still Life with White Rose (Lot 1019) — viewing these four paintings together, one is able to discern the individual paths taken by these two artistic masters in their common endeavor of uniting traditional Chinese painting with Modern art. Flowers and Fruits: Western Form with Eastern Spirit

At 137 cm in length, Flowers and Fruits is the only extant color ink painting by Guan Liang at these dimensions, featuring the still life subject of flowers and fruits. The image exudes bounty and brilliance, echoing the iconic style of Qi Baishi’s “red flowers and dark leaves.” Demonstrating the philosophy of “skillful coarseness,” the artist’s brushwork is natural, the lines smooth with no trace of hesitation. The objects appear both simple and vivid, sketched from concise and quick brushstrokes that reveal both virtuosic ease and meticulous attention.

At the same time, Guan Liang demonstrates his deep study of Western painting. Using techniques of light and shadow, he reconstructs the traditional Chinese painting philosophy of space by generating a sense of three-dimensionality using the liubai or “leave blank” technique and a wide range of ink colors. The blooming flowers in the vase are simply sketched with color ink, and not filled in with color, as though the brilliant petals are catching the light. Most of the surroundings and background have also been “left blank,” the skillful and clever use of different light gradations creating a distinction between foreground and background. In his use of color ink, one can detect traces of Guan Liang’s Fauvist influences. With realism as a foundation, Guan Liang generates bold and strong color contrast, even using pure and unmixed color, the interplay of rich colors enlivening the traditional elements and adding vitality to traditional Chinese painting techniques. 

Comparing Flowers and Fruits with the artist’s oil painting Flowers in a Vase, sold at Sotheby’s Autumn Evening Sale in 2018, one can see that despite the different choice in medium, they share a unified creative vision. As Guo Moruo once said, describing Guan Liang’s still life paintings, “[The artist uses] the simplicity, concision, substantiality, and rich density of Western technique to express the serenity, naturalness, elegance, and organic quality of traditional Chinese painting.”