The Bonhams Fine Chinese Painting and Southeast Asian Art sale brings together 160 Chinese paintings and calligraphy works, as well as fresh-to-market examples of Southeast Asian artworks. The auction will take place on 27 November at Bonhams Hong Kong Gallery.
CHINESE PAINTINGS
The strong line-up of Chinese paintings and calligraphy is dominated by a selection of rare pieces including a magnificent Qi Baishi Peony from an important private Romanian collection, Qi Baishi paintings from The Feng Wen Tang Collection and a selection of fine paintings and calligraphy from the celebrated Chinese master Pu Ru.
Qi Baishi's Peony is the top lot with an estimate of HK$3,500,000-5,000,000. It is one of the artist's very last works and highly sought-after among collectors. A remarkable painting, the scroll features a red flower in full blossom, with branches and leaves portrayed in dense, dry brushstrokes. The work is exceptional in that it is a full 4-feet-in-length without a single misplaced stroke; works in the later part of Qi Baishi's life are often small due to his deteriorating health. Collected by a Romanian journalist during his time in Beijing from 1952 to 1962, this is the first time that the work will be offered for sale.
Another highlight includes an important private collection of 19 classical and modern Chinese paintings. Carefully assembled from artists and dealers in Hong Kong and London during the late 1960s and early 1970s, this collection is testament to the respect for traditional Chinese art that the Chinese diaspora still holds. The collection accompanied its late owner to different corners of the world, finally settling in Singapore, where it has remained for almost half a century. Being an extremely private man, the collector never showed any of these works publicly. In offering the collection, the family hopes to convey the thoughtful assemblage of the works. Highlights from the collection include Blue and Green Landscape, attributed to Qiu Ying, with an estimate of HK$300,000 - 500,000.
Amongst 'Selected Fine Paintings and Calligraphy Works by Pu Ru', Goddess of Compassion is a leading lot with an estimate of HK$400,000 - 600,000. As a devout Buddhist and pious son, Pu Ru transcribed Buddhist sutras and drew Guanyin portraits to bless the afterlife of his mother on every anniversary of her death. Another item by Pu Ru is Album of Amitabha Sutra, in regular script and estimated at HK$800,000 - 1,200,000. It was created by Pu for the renowned lay Buddhist Li Bingnan in spring of 1952 to commemorate the founding of Lotus Temple in Taichung. The album is an excellent example of Pu Ru's superb mastery of regular script.
Elsewhere at auction, highlights include Wu Guanzhong's A Corner in the Garden, estimated at HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000. In September 1987, British-American Tobacco Company Hong Kong Limited sponsored the exhibition, Wu Guanzhong, A Retrospective at the Hong Kong Arts Centre, his first solo exhibition outside Chinese Mainland that proved pivotal in his worldwide acclaim. Wu reciprocated by painting A Corner in the Garden which was hung in its Hong Kong office until given as a retirement gift to the current owner in 2005.
Pink Lotus by Zhang Daqian, executed in ink and colour on gold cardboard, equally captures our imagination. It comes from an important private Asian collection with an estimate of HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000.
Other notable paintings include:
• Egrets on Pond by Lin Fengmian, estimated at HK$500,000 - 700,000
• Offering a Peach from the Feng Wen Tang Collection of Qi Baishi Paintings estimated at HK$300,000 - 500,000
• Peacock by Gao Qifeng, estimated at HK$600,000 - 800,000
• Plum Blossoms, an album of twenty-four leaves in ink on paper by Tao Lengyue, master of plum blossoms, for his student Zhou Zhiping (estimate HK$700,000 - 900,000).
SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART
The Southeast Asian art section includes a series of batik paintings by Seah Kim Joo (Singaporean, b.1939) and Chuah Thean Teng (Malaysian, 1914-2008) from a private collection in Athens, Greece, as well as intimately-sized figural and landscape depictions by Vietnamese modern painter Bui Xuan Phai (1920-1988) from the collection of Mr. Conny Michalopoulos and family.
Other highlights include:
• Igorots with Dogs, a 1936 oil on board by Filipino painter Fernando Amorsolo from Mr. Ancil Hiram Bishop, his wife Amelia Bishop and by descent in the Bishop family, with an estimate of HK$180,000 - 280,000.
• Goldfish at Play by Lee Man Fong (Indonesian, 1913-1988) which is amongst the best of this subject matter. A testimony to his mastery of painting on long, vertical Masonite boards, four finely-executed goldfish come to life as they converge at the centre of this picture amongst water plants and rocky masses in the background. The estimate is HK$250,000 - 350,000.
Enquiries:
For further information and images call Louise Oram on +852 6892 1171, or email [email protected] or [email protected].