- 318
Chen Wen Hsi
Description
- Chen Wen Hsi
- Gibbons
- Signed and stamped with two seals of the artist
- Ink and color on paper
- 130 by 69 cm.; 51 by 27 in.
Provenance
Condition
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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."
Catalogue Note
During his lifetime Chen Wen Hsi acquired six gibbons as pets that enabled him to study and inspect the animals in their natural environment, therefore further facilitating his painting process. His philosophy of achieving “irreducible simplicity”1 is also evident in the current piece, notably in the use of specific colours and the perspective throughout the narrative. Contrary to traditional Chinese ink paintings, Gibbons is enriched by the application of numerous colours into a two-dimensional pictorial space.
He once said, “What we are seeking in the art is not just physical likeness of shape and form, but composite image and spirit, the overall beauty and cohesion of the painting”2. Chen Wen Hsi’s gibbons are known to be true to life, and this is visible within the present work for the artist has captured the animals’ grace and agility: it is as if one can hear the gibbons themselves as they jump and chatter joyfully in play.
In Gibbons Chen Wen Hsi has chosen an earthy color palette to emphasize the natural scenery of the painting. Within Chinese culture gibbons symbolize longevity, for they are believed to live to a very old age like a xian (仙; celestial being, immortal). The present painting perfectly exemplifies the artist’s intuitive understanding of the natural world, and is reflective of Chen Wen Hsi’s Chinese ancestry and creative principles.
1Chang Tsong-Zung et al., Paintings by Chen Wen Hsi, The Old and New Gallery, Singapore, 1987
2Choy Weng Yang, Chen Wen Hsi, Retrospective 1982, International Press Singapore, 1982.