RICHARD LIN (LIN SHOUYU) | May 58

Gifted directly by the artist to John Jeffcott in the late 1950s
Private European Collection
Christie's, London, 14 July 2011, Lot 247
Acquired directly from the above by the present important private European collector 

The work is overall in good and its original condition, except for slight wear along the borders, and minor signs of accretion near the right border. There is no sign of restoration under UV light examination.
"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."

The Blues of Nobility

Among the postwar Chinese artists, Richard Lin’s artistic path stands out as unique, and is regarded as an important, singular chapter in the postwar interactions between the East and West. Lin was the eldest son from a distinguished Taiwanese family in Wufeng. In 1949, he graduated from Jianguo Junior High, and went on to Hong Kong to attend the Diocesan Boys’ School. In 1952, he continued his studies in England, and in 1958, graduated from London’s Regent Street Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster). That same year, after gaining the support of the Gimpel Fils Gallery, his career as an artist officially began, setting him on a continuously rising trajectory. In 1974, Lin was invited to participate in Hsiao Chin’s “Chinesische Künstler der Gegenwant” at the Stadtisches Museum in Leverkusen, and around the same time, Lin became the first Chinese artist to participate in Germany’s documenta III, Kassel. In 1966, Lin began a 10-year relationship with the Marlborough New London Gallery, which led to a personal visit from surrealist master Joan Miro to Lin’s studio. In 1967, Lin was chosen to participate in the Carnegie International in Pittsburgh, and along with Francis Bacon, was awarded the William Frew Memorial Purchase Award. Subsequently, Lin’s work was inducted into the collection at the Carnegie Institute. In 1983, one of Lin’s paintings set a new record as the first contemporary piece acquired by the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Although the artist had travelled from Taiwan to Hong Kong to London, and then from London to the rest of Europe and the United States, the amount of time Lin spent in England spanned almost 50 years. His relationship with England, and his accomplishments in the country, are much like Zao Wou-ki and Chu Teh-chun in France, Hsiao Chin and Ho Kan in Italy, and Walasse Ting in the United States. For the postwar Chinese artists, Richard Lin was a vital bridge in the artistic interaction between the Chinese and British.

“Not much colour? It’s overflowing with colour! Look!”

In 2010, the Kaohsiung Museum of Arts hosted the large-scale retrospective exhibition “One is Everything: 50 years of Work by Richard Lin.” The quote above is the artist’s own commentary on his early work, included in the official media materials for the event, a perspective that applies also to May 1958 (Lot 1028), the lot on offer at this Evening Sale. Lin’s works have largely been collected into museums, with few ever reaching the market. Of these works, his early pieces are even rarer, yet. This painting was completed in 1958, which was the first year Lin began officially working as an artist, and is a representative of his early style. While in college, Lin studied architecture and art. Naturally, then, this piece demonstrates a strong sense of architectural awareness, with notable Bauhaus influences. At the same time, the artist’s fascination with the philosophies of Laozi and Zhuangzi contributed to the painting’s minimalist composition and restrained use of colour. These characteristics were to remain throughout the artist’s entire career. May 1958 features gradients of blue-green and purple, with a bold and decisive black line appearing strikingly along the top. The heavy and thick ink is reminiscent of calligraphy ink in traditional Chinese painting, yet it contains a flavour of the modern industrial Bauhaus influence. It is succinct and simple, yet refined and reserved. The edges of the lines are slightly translucent, with the changing gradients of colour conveying contrasts in depth, movement, stillness, void, and substance. The canvas is rich with elements of elegant Eastern grace, the colours emerging like the faint lights in the dark sky at daybreak. The artist takes the infinite forms of nature, in all of their variety and complexity, and recomposes them using simple colours and lines. The scene depicted is no longer a realistic portrayal of what one sees in the mundane world, but appears like an after-image of light burning in the mind, when one closes one’s eyes.

Emotionally restrained, May 1958 emanates a subtle, lingering charm, an effect which can be attributed to abstract expressionism. Yet it also contains rational, geometric elements, conveying the realms of “emptiness” and “nothingness” in Chinese literati paintings, and invoking the blue of the honourable, the divine, and the noble. These are particularly representative of the artist’s early style. Lin once remarked that prior to his “White Series,” his work could have been titled, “The Blue Series.” In 1958, during the height of American abstract expressionism, Lin encountered Mark Rothko’s paintings and was completely taken by them. He said, “Rothko’s paintings contain large blocks of colour, which seem to originate from somewhere far, far away, unceasing in their mellifluousness, and deeply vibrating, resounding, swaying in the heart forever.” Lin identified an Eastern spirituality in Rothko’s paintings. Their Taoist worldview, and the dazzling colours of primal chaos awakened and inspired Lin, such that his own works grew more assuredly succinct, transcending the complex noise of reality, and entering into a distant realm of profundity. These works, the result of long meditation, announced the birth of an Eastern minimalist master.