Christie’s Swire Hong Kong, Fine 19th and 20th Century Chinese Paintings, 24 October 1993, Lot 177.
The owners of this collection began acquiring 20th-century Chinese paintings in the late 1980s. Having lived in Japan and Hong Kong, they travelled extensively throughout Asia and to China where they were excited by the intellectual rigour, the experimentation of materials and techniques, and the vitality of the artists who painted in the ink tradition. Acquiring works from galleries and auction houses, the owners assembled a diverse collection of Chinese paintings that witnessed the development of this multifaceted art tradition in the past hundred years.
The owners’ fascination with Chinese paintings is manifested by the wide range of artists and subjects present in the collection. With curiosity and an open mind, they have collected works by Qi Baishi, Li Keran, Chen Shaomei, Zhang Daqian, Shi Lu, Wu Guanzhong and Lui Shou Kwan. Each of the above artists had a strong, unique visual identity and interpreted the Chinese ink tradition differently than the others. Long treasured by the owners, these paintings are coming to the market for the first time since they were acquired over two decades ago.
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