Lot 900
  • 900

Zhang Xiaogang

Estimate
3,200,000 - 4,000,000 HKD
bidding is closed

Description

  • Zhang Xiaogang
  • Red Baby
  • signed in Chinese and Pinyin and dated 2000
  • oil on canvas
  • 39 by 31 1/2 in. 99.1 by 78.7 cm.
signed in Chinese and Pinyin and dated 2000

Provenance

Private Collection, USA

Condition

This work is generally in good condition. There is pinpoint accretion on the surface. Please note that it was not examined under ultraviolet light.
"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

“Zhang Xiaogang increasingly looked to the specific familial relationships between parent and child, husband and wife, brother and sister, sister and brother. The colour of these paintings is soft and harmonious. The forms are hypnotically uniform, and the dark eyes ruefully haunting. Imbued with a liquid film of moisture, so glassy are these big, round, penetrating eye that, up close, viewers almost expect to find their reflection there. In what was a subtle shift, the details of clothings, neckerchiefs and collars became secondary to the faces of the individuals who wore them, as their expressions
occupied the pictorial space with a compelling intensity. Zhang Xiaogang did not abandon the familiar style of Cultural Revolution dress. That continues to be a necessary element in fixing his issues to a complex and reprehensible period of
history, as the attempts to fathom the nature of its impact upon the family circumstances of his childhood.”

- Except from Karen Smith, Nine Lives: The Birth of Avant-Garde
Art in New China: The Updated Edition