Grands parents (Lot 1016) is a spectacular work by the Vietnamese-born artist Mai Trung Thu. Executed in 1957, the present work captures the artist’s stylistic evolution, simultaneously featuring the harmonious palette of his early period and the vivid and bold colours of his later works. While Mai Thu is celebrated for his depiction of human figures, most of the works that surface in the market include only one or two individuals. Grands parents stands as a highly rare work from the artist’s oeuvre, depicting the interactions of ten subjects in a dazzling composition including multiple allegorical narratives. Among his paintings that have been sold at auctions over the past three decades, only ten depict scenes with ten or more individuals.

枚中栨 (梅忠恕)《沐浴》彩墨 絹本,1962年作。巴黎賽努奇博物館收藏(由藝術家女兒Mai Lan Phuong饋贈)
In the present work, Mai Thu captures a joyous familial moment, demonstrating his sensitivity towards human relationships across generations. The interactions between the figures are rhythmical and orderly, conjuring a scene of profound drama, humour and symbolic meaning. At the upper left corner of the composition, a young girl on a boat approaches the shoreline with a bouquet of pink lotus buds. Symbolic of good fortune and prosperity, particularly amongst Asian cultures, the lotus flowers echo the warm connection between the elders and the children in the foreground. The girl is enthusiastically greeted by her sanguine siblings, nurturing grandmother and scholarly grandfather.
Surrounded by his kin, the grandfather assumes a revered status at the very front of the composition, reflective of his role in upholding family expectations, beliefs and decorum. Seated upright while attentively teaching and listening to the children with book in hand, he actively passes down his knowledge and traditions to the children, preserving his familial legacy.
Baignade, a direct comparable and one of the most iconic and recognizable Mai Thu works, is currently in the permanent collection of Musée Cernuschi, Paris. Though Baignade features only children, the two works share a similar composition, featuring figures on land in the foreground while portraying a body of water in the upper section. Both visually splendid and complex with narrative, these two museum quality works rank as top quality works in artist's celebrated oeuvre.
2021 marks the height of the artist’s performance at auctions, as Sotheby’s has set the top two records with Portrait de Mademoiselle Phuong and Femme au chapeau conique le long de la rivière. The 8 highest prices for the artist were achieved in 2021, while works of similar theme and size have achieved prices upwards of HK$ 4 million in recent sales. The recent market enthusiasm has been supplemented by widespread institutional recognition institutionally, coinciding with the artist's first retrospective held at Musée des Ursulines in Mâcon in 2021.
Scented with the artist’s nostalgic love for a bygone era, this exceptionally rare silk painting provides a glimpse into the artist’s personal experience and observations with regards to his treasured homeland, ultimately celebrating the sophisticated social and familial interactions that occur within the upper-class homes of Vietnam.

- Lotus flowers 蓮花
In Asian cultures, the lotus is a symbol of purity and love.
在亞洲的文化中,蓮花象徵著純潔與愛。 - Grandparents 祖父母
The grandparents, seated upright, attentively teach and listen to the children. The scene reflects traditional Asian familial relations, and the elders represent the values of knowledge, compassion, and care.
祖父母坐立筆直並專注地面向小孩,一邊教導、一邊聆聽,表達了東方傳統家庭的輩分關係,以及長輩形象所包含的知識、仁慈與愛護。
- Ten Figures 十人構圖
While Mai Thu is celebrated for his depiction of human figures, most of the works include only one or two individuals. This work stands as a highly rare work from the artist’s oeuvre, depicting the interactions of ten subjects in a dazzling composition including with multiple allegorical narratives.
枚中栨擅畫人物,而大多數作品均聚焦描繪一至兩人,本作卻描畫多達十人的精彩互動,塑成敘事性極强的構圖,讓觀者目不暇給。
- Comparable to "Baignade" in the collection of the Musée Cernuschi 媲美現藏於巴黎賽努奇博物館之《沐浴》
Récréation près d'une rivière is comparable to Baignade in the collection of the Musée Cernuschi, one of the artist's most iconic paintings that also features figures by a water body.
《河畔閒情》直接媲美現藏於巴黎賽努奇博物館之《沐浴》;兩作的構圖互相呼應,前景的人物置於岸邊,上方後景則以水面劃分界線,意趣相通。
《祖父母》(拍品編號1016)是法籍越南藝術家枚中栨創於1957年之精彩作品,風格上既有早年作品的柔和色調,亦有後期較鮮艷、活潑的用色,可謂見證著畫家於此兩段時期的風格演變。本作畫面不僅色調上精妙豐富,複雜而生動的構圖亦顯示藝術家的創作構思已邁向成熟,以其獨特觸覺建構新風。枚中栨擅畫人物,而大多數作品均聚焦描繪一至兩人,去年蘇富比上拍並勇創拍賣紀錄之《芳小姐的肖像》及《河邊的斗笠仕女》即爲重要兩例;本作雖然畫幅精巧,卻描畫多達十人的精彩互動,塑成敘事性極强的構圖,讓觀者目不暇給。縱觀枚中栨三十年來的全球拍賣紀錄,除本作外亦僅得十幅作品繪有十人或以上的熱鬧場景,足見本作之罕見珍稀。
枚中栨以宏觀的角度捕捉了一個家庭日常悠閒而歡樂的一刻,充分地展現藝術家在細節描寫方面過人的敏銳度。人物之間的互動如旋律般優美而有序,塑造了畫中充滿戲劇性和俏皮感的一幕。《祖父母》的珍罕質量,直接媲美現藏於巴黎賽努奇博物館之《沐浴》,該作為藝術家最具標誌性和知名度的作品之一;兩作的構圖互相呼應,前景的人物置於岸邊,上方後景則以水面劃分界線,意趣相通。若將兩作並置而觀,其優雅魅力不相伯仲,堪稱枚中栨的頂尖作品。
在畫面的左上方,年輕女孩在一艘堆滿粉紅蓮花的小船上輕輕靠岸;在亞洲的文化中,蓮花象徵著純潔與愛,而此一具意義的符號,亦呼應著畫中老人與小孩緊密聯誼的溫馨一幕。祖父母坐立筆直並專注地面向小孩,一邊教導、一邊聆聽,表達了東方傳統家庭的輩分關係,以及長輩形象所包含的知識、仁慈與愛護,賦予畫面重要的寓意,在平凡樸素的生活中發現美的所在。
近年,枚中栨作品在拍場上的走勢凌厲,現居藝術家拍賣紀錄之首八位全數創於2021年,而與本作尺幅及主題相近之畫作,已多次超越四百萬港幣成交。去年法國馬孔的烏爾蘇拉博物館為枚中栨舉辦首個回顧展,可見其成就在學術界與市場上所獲得的迴響一致。