Liu Kuo-Sung (Liu Guosong)

signed LIU GUOSONG, dated 2007, and with one seal of the artist

France, Paris, Galerie 75 Faubourg, Liu Guosong, 4-26 March, 2008, p. 25

Kuo, Jason C., Chinese Ink Painting Now, Distributed Art Publishers, New York, USA; Timezone 8, Hong Kong, China, 2010, p. 18, 97

Overall in very good condition. There is a small pinhole in each upper corner of the image. Framed size: 100 x 65.4 cm; 39 3/8 x 25 3/4 in.
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Red Soil Plateau (LOT 505) exhibits a majestic landscape depicted in a mature style that combines signature Liu Kuo-Sung techniques such as fibre-plucking, airbrush and ink-rubbing. The gradient of warm tones resembles the sunset backdrops evident in his spacescape series period beginning in the late 1960s. Liu's iconic spacescape paintings focus on an abstract depiction of celestial bodies and often employ an airbrush to present a smooth stylized panorama of colour. In contrast, this present landscape is less abstract than his works from the 1960s and 1970s, and resembles the peaks and valleys of a towering landscape. It was after his first exhibition in China in 1981, when Liu began to create more realistic paintings of landscapes. The heightened realism in Liu's paintings draws upon his travels in China, where he was inspired to create subsequent series featuring the snowy mountains of Tibet and the myriad of colours from Jiuzhaigou. More recently, he has travelled to Yunnan and Hunan provinces, and continues to create powerful ink paintings. 

Recognized for his experimental techniques and revolutionary ideas about Chinese painting, Liu Kuo-Sung created textured paper surfaces and vivid colour compositions that are significant contributions to modern ink painting in the 20th century. Drawing ink onto paper from a wet, watery surface, or using an airbrush with acrylic colour, he creates non-brushwork based paintings are highly stylised and revolutionary visions of landscapes. He established the Fifth Moon Group—an association of Taiwan-based artists focused on the modernization of Chinese painting—and he continues to be involved with and write extensively on the subject. His works are featured in numerous museum collections around the world in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Philippines, Malaysia, China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.