Zhan Wang

Private Collection, London
Sale: London, Phillips de Pury & Co, Contemporary Art, 29 June 2009, Lot 126
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate. Condition: This work is in very good condition. There is light wear, handling marks and very faint and shallow scratching to the most polished surface areas. Close inspection reveals a few very small areas of tarnish to the sides of each rock.
"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."

Zhan Wang is among China’s most highly regarded contemporary artists, and his work is represented in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the De Young Museum, San Francisco. Rocks Off, executed in 2007, belongs to the artist’s acclaimed Jianshanshi (literally “artificial mountain rocks”) art project which he began in 1995. These sculptures are in dialogue with a centuries-old Chinese tradition of  investing beautifully or strangely shaped rocks found in nature with the aesthetic value of fine art. The nobles and literati of ancient Chinese dynasties were connoisseurs of these forms, collecting and illustrating the best specimens in scrolls.

Engaging with historical precedent, Zhan Wang masterfully updates these objects of reflection and contemplation for the contemporary age. Various small sheets of stainless steel are hammered by Wang onto the garden rock, taking an impression. The sheets are then removed, welded together, and polished vigorously to erase the seams, creating a hollow copy of the original. For the artist, this process metaphorically reflects an important aspect of modernity: “[t]oday, real life lies hidden in fantasies beneath dazzling surfaces, in stones now made hollow” (the artist in 1995, quoted in: Philip Tinari and Angie Baecker, eds., Zhan Wang: The New Suynan Stone Catalogue, Milan 2011, p. 7).

A unique variant of the Jianshanshi, Rocks Off forms part of the “China Chair Project,” a multi-artist initiative that blurs the boundaries between contemplative and functional art. Comprising a table and four chairs, the set is an example of functional contemporary Chinese sculpture. Introducing a spatial and interactive element into the experience of his rocks, Wang pushes his project one step further, ever expanding the limits of modern Chinese engagement with traditional forms.