- 1023
CHEONG SOO PIENG | By the Seaside
Estimate
1,500,000 - 2,200,000 HKD
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Description
- Cheong Soo Pieng
- By the Seaside
- signed; signed and dated 1975 on the reverse
- 102 by 81.5 cm; 40 by 32 in.
Provenance
Private Collection, Singapore
Condition
This work is in good overall condition as viewed. Examination under ultraviolet light reveals small areas of restoration, primarily at background and the rock as well as the sarongs and hair of the women. Framed.
"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."
"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."
Catalogue Note
“Some may see this as a representation of Soo Pieng’s gaze towards the Other, like Gauguin, but the vibrancy of the culture is also felt through Soo Pieng’s choice of strong, bright, Fauvist-inspired colours.”1 Sotheby’s is honored to bring to auction By the Seaside, an impressive painting by the celebrated Singaporean artist Cheong Soo Pieng, epitomizing some of the strongest artistic achievements and favored motifs from the artist’s oeuvre. Revered for his immense versatility, Soo Pieng created a wide range of works with varying artistic styles and techniques, while also carving out a unique voice within modern Southeast Asian art. As one of the four pioneering artists of the Nanyang School of Art in Singapore, Soo Pieng dedicated himself to rigorous experimentation and travelled extensively in search of fresh inspiration and new idioms. Often characterized by strong colors and fluid lines, the Nanyang style captured the true spirit of the local scenes, subjects and life in Southeast Asia. Painted shortly after the artist’s second trip to Bali, By the Seaside demonstrates the essence of the Nanyang movement’s pursuits during this formative period.
Soo Pieng’s figurative paintings of Balinese maidens are among the artist’s most epochal and mature works. By the Seaside is a well composed and visually harmonious embodiment of Soo Pieng’s wayang style figures. It signifies a culmination of the artist’s years of study of the region’s subjects and culture, while also revealing the products of his stylistic experiments earlier on in his career. Women are often the main subject in Soo Pieng’s Balinese inspired works. The artist explained that “domestic life revolves mainly around the women, one can easily grasp the practices of a particular culture by paying close attention to them.” 2 Dazzling and composed, the two Balinese maidens that grace the canvas bear an undeniable elegance.
The painting depicts two women seated on a mossy rock, shaded by tropical verdure. Both maidens bear the marks of Soo Pieng’s signature stylization, with their elongated and slender limbs, almond shaped eyes and exaggerated features. They are adorned in traditional Balinese clothing which highlights the beauty of their female forms. The lady sitting in the foreground is wearing an orange sash around her slender waist; she leans her left arm on the rock while allowing her head to rest in her right hand. Her arm, propped on her daintily folded legs, not only lends an air of calm to her composure, but also draws attention to Soo Pieng’s wayang inspired proportions. The other maiden, seated slightly behind her, seems to be leaning in to whisper into her companion’s ear. The figures intimately turn towards each other, revealing the comfortable rapport between them. This discreet gesture not only creates a sense of depth within the image, it also reveals their familiar exchange to the viewer.
As described in the title, the women are situated at a coastline. They are flanked by wispy tropical foliage made up of leaves painted in simplified forms, fashioning an iridescent mosaic reminiscent of those painted in the background of works by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt. Soo Pieng’s meticulously painted dots create texture and depth within the leaves of the tree and mossy surface of the rock by scattering varying dots of brown, layered upon spots of areas of brownish-green. The artist’s refined brushwork and affinity for detail is evident in in the present painting. He executes the intricate batik patterns on the fabrics of the women’s kambens, or Balinese sarongs, with whimsical, decorative patterns that mimic traditional Indonesian textiles. This meticulously rendered minutia is paired with a fluidity and clarity of line that is typical of Soo Pieng’s hand. The hair strands that emerge from the gently tied udengs and the fluid outlines of the figure’s features bear the marks of a confident maestro.
As with many of Soo Pieng’s best works, By the Seaside reveals his immense ability to permeate his composition with a sense of balance and harmony with the use of color theory. The artist explains, “In my paintings, color in the subject is the main theme. I always work on the main subject first and then put in the foreground and background, the colors in which are of secondary importance.”3 In the present lot, Soo Pieng selects a dominantly warm, earthy palette for the leafage – the trees are rendered in subtle browns and deep greens. Juxtaposed against this background, the ladies are garbed in soft turquoise and orange clothing. The striking interplay between the cool tones of the scarves and warm hues of the fabrics draw the viewer’s eye back to the nucleus of the painting.
Influenced by the island’s verdant flora and rich culture, the present lot evokes a utopian sentiment as seen in this delightful image of young maidens framed by a lush, natural backdrop. Constantly exploring new mediums and motifs, Soo Pieng produced an oeuvre that was a dynamic fusion of Asian subject matter and Western techniques, bringing “about a way of thinking and expressing modernity, [and a] conscious effort to make new art for a new kind of belonging, a new way of seeing the world.”4 Soo Pieng’s career had a significant influence on the nation’s artistic development and his oeuvre serves as an exemplar of Singapore’s appropriation of modernist aesthetics set into an Eastern framework.
By the Seaside stands as a spectacular, golden masterwork from Soo Pieng’s varied opus, featuring his most ravishing motifs. As per his mature works, the transcendental co-existence and synergy between man and nature is portrayed beautifully in By the Seaside. The artist elevates a typical Southeast Asian subject into a visually intriguing encounter; it is a paradigm of Soo Pieng’s sophisticated yet daring style that has garnered him many admirers and followers. It reflects his ability to reconfigure aspects of reality and present an entirely new visual language that captivates the audience’s attention. By The Seaside not only captures the physical nuances of local charm, but it also speaks to the inherently inspirational nature of candid humanity, an alluring sentiment immortalized on canvas.
1 Yeo Wei Wei Ed., Cheong Soo Pieng: Visions of Southeast Asia, The National Art Gallery, Singapore, 2010, p.94
2 Refer to 1, p.97
3 Cheong Soo Pieng, The Singaporean Artist: Journal of the Singapore Art Society, Singapore, 1954, p.27
4 Soo Pieng, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore, 2013, p.143
Soo Pieng’s figurative paintings of Balinese maidens are among the artist’s most epochal and mature works. By the Seaside is a well composed and visually harmonious embodiment of Soo Pieng’s wayang style figures. It signifies a culmination of the artist’s years of study of the region’s subjects and culture, while also revealing the products of his stylistic experiments earlier on in his career. Women are often the main subject in Soo Pieng’s Balinese inspired works. The artist explained that “domestic life revolves mainly around the women, one can easily grasp the practices of a particular culture by paying close attention to them.” 2 Dazzling and composed, the two Balinese maidens that grace the canvas bear an undeniable elegance.
The painting depicts two women seated on a mossy rock, shaded by tropical verdure. Both maidens bear the marks of Soo Pieng’s signature stylization, with their elongated and slender limbs, almond shaped eyes and exaggerated features. They are adorned in traditional Balinese clothing which highlights the beauty of their female forms. The lady sitting in the foreground is wearing an orange sash around her slender waist; she leans her left arm on the rock while allowing her head to rest in her right hand. Her arm, propped on her daintily folded legs, not only lends an air of calm to her composure, but also draws attention to Soo Pieng’s wayang inspired proportions. The other maiden, seated slightly behind her, seems to be leaning in to whisper into her companion’s ear. The figures intimately turn towards each other, revealing the comfortable rapport between them. This discreet gesture not only creates a sense of depth within the image, it also reveals their familiar exchange to the viewer.
As described in the title, the women are situated at a coastline. They are flanked by wispy tropical foliage made up of leaves painted in simplified forms, fashioning an iridescent mosaic reminiscent of those painted in the background of works by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt. Soo Pieng’s meticulously painted dots create texture and depth within the leaves of the tree and mossy surface of the rock by scattering varying dots of brown, layered upon spots of areas of brownish-green. The artist’s refined brushwork and affinity for detail is evident in in the present painting. He executes the intricate batik patterns on the fabrics of the women’s kambens, or Balinese sarongs, with whimsical, decorative patterns that mimic traditional Indonesian textiles. This meticulously rendered minutia is paired with a fluidity and clarity of line that is typical of Soo Pieng’s hand. The hair strands that emerge from the gently tied udengs and the fluid outlines of the figure’s features bear the marks of a confident maestro.
As with many of Soo Pieng’s best works, By the Seaside reveals his immense ability to permeate his composition with a sense of balance and harmony with the use of color theory. The artist explains, “In my paintings, color in the subject is the main theme. I always work on the main subject first and then put in the foreground and background, the colors in which are of secondary importance.”3 In the present lot, Soo Pieng selects a dominantly warm, earthy palette for the leafage – the trees are rendered in subtle browns and deep greens. Juxtaposed against this background, the ladies are garbed in soft turquoise and orange clothing. The striking interplay between the cool tones of the scarves and warm hues of the fabrics draw the viewer’s eye back to the nucleus of the painting.
Influenced by the island’s verdant flora and rich culture, the present lot evokes a utopian sentiment as seen in this delightful image of young maidens framed by a lush, natural backdrop. Constantly exploring new mediums and motifs, Soo Pieng produced an oeuvre that was a dynamic fusion of Asian subject matter and Western techniques, bringing “about a way of thinking and expressing modernity, [and a] conscious effort to make new art for a new kind of belonging, a new way of seeing the world.”4 Soo Pieng’s career had a significant influence on the nation’s artistic development and his oeuvre serves as an exemplar of Singapore’s appropriation of modernist aesthetics set into an Eastern framework.
By the Seaside stands as a spectacular, golden masterwork from Soo Pieng’s varied opus, featuring his most ravishing motifs. As per his mature works, the transcendental co-existence and synergy between man and nature is portrayed beautifully in By the Seaside. The artist elevates a typical Southeast Asian subject into a visually intriguing encounter; it is a paradigm of Soo Pieng’s sophisticated yet daring style that has garnered him many admirers and followers. It reflects his ability to reconfigure aspects of reality and present an entirely new visual language that captivates the audience’s attention. By The Seaside not only captures the physical nuances of local charm, but it also speaks to the inherently inspirational nature of candid humanity, an alluring sentiment immortalized on canvas.
1 Yeo Wei Wei Ed., Cheong Soo Pieng: Visions of Southeast Asia, The National Art Gallery, Singapore, 2010, p.94
2 Refer to 1, p.97
3 Cheong Soo Pieng, The Singaporean Artist: Journal of the Singapore Art Society, Singapore, 1954, p.27
4 Soo Pieng, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore, 2013, p.143