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A hanging scroll by landscape ink master Fu Baoshi (1904-65) is
expected to attract bids of up to 12 million yuan (US$1.5 million)
at an art auction in Beijing today.
About 500 pieces of ancient, modern and contemporary paintings
will go under the hammer at the Beijing Forever International
Auctions at the Great Wall Sheraton Hotel.
A spectacular set of 12 hanging scrolls of birds-and-flowers ink
paintings by Li Kuchan (1898-1983); an elegant, colored ink
painting depicting a cluster of blossoming chrysanthemum, created
by Lin Fengmian (1900-91), and a pair of lovely pandas painted on
Chinese rice paper by Lin's talented student Wu Guanzhong (1919-)
are among the highlights of the sale, according to Liu Xinhui, an
art expert with the auction house.
Among them, Fu Baoshi's imposing hanging scroll, entitled
"Landscape Inspired by Tang Dynasty Poet Du Fu's Sentiments," is
widely believed to be an iconic work the veteran artist painted in
his Jingangpo period of artistic creation during the World War II
in Southwest China's Chongqing. The rare offering is estimated at
10-12 million yuan or US$1.25-1.5 million.
Most of Li Kuchan's well-known hanging scrolls of
birds-and-flowers works are single pieces, which makes this rarely
seen set of 12 scrolls very precious for art collectors, critics
say.
Lin's chrysanthemums, very much like an oil work, is actually
done with ink and color on rice paper in the 1950s. The impressive
work was rendered in a whole new approach by the Chinese ink
master, one of the early pioneers who made successful efforts to
combine concepts, techniques from both West and East to achieve the
desirable visual effects in their painting works.
As a result, the painting appeals to the viewers for its
sculpture-like texture, and eye-refreshing coloring, underlying the
artist's inner peace and tranquility.
This small piece is estimated at 0.9-1.1 million yuan
(US$114,000-139,000).
What might also attract attention from the collectors are 30
selected calligraphic and painting works from Beijing connoisseur
Xin Guanjie's Ceng Jing Tang collection.
Most of these works were created by well-known artists of the
Ming and Qing dynasties, such as Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), Wang
Duo (1592-1652), Fu Shan (1605-90), Wang Hui (1632-1717), Wang
Yuanqi (1642-1715) and Zheng Banqiao (1693-1765).
Expected to fetch over 8 million yuan or US$1 million, many of
the works have remained in the hands of the same collector for the
past half century.
The income from this auction of the Ceng Jing Tang collection
works will all be donated to build a Confucius Studies Institute
based in Nishan, believed to be the birthplace of Confucius, near
Qufu, in East China's Shandong Province, according to Xin.
(China Daily October 18, 2006)
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