Zao Wou-Ki (Zhao Wuji)

signed in pinyin and Chinese; signed in pinyin, titled and dated 7.6.65 on the reverse

Private American Collection

This work is in very good condition. There is evidence of very minor black and yellow accretions across the surface of the work, only visible under close examination, presumably inherent to the artist's working method. There is no evidence of restoration under UV.
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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."

To Zao Wou-Ki, canvases of different sizes have their own advantages and bring about different challenges during the creation process.  Among the great Western abstract painters, Mark Rothko has once acknowledged that he favours large-sized pictures.  In the 1960s Zao created not only large scale paintings but also small ones.  The artist believes that the smaller the canvas is, the more demanding it is in respect of the painter's skills.  In another way, the better an artist masters the brush, the better he can make use of the canvas.  A light-blue tone is set in 7.6.65; on the olive basis the artist mixes in lead white, indigo blue and ink colour which is the source of power of the painting.  Stark contrast and impact are not the theme of this construction, instead the artist wants to create a harmonious relationship between these elements which would combine and irradiate a sense of softness.  Different from his other typical works in the 1960s, where vigorous brushstrokes and splashes of colours dominate the construction, he cultivates on the canvas meticulously, creating a scene which is gentle as breezes and mellifluent as a flowing stream.