- 11
Zhang Enli
Estimate
800,000 - 1,200,000 HKD
Log in to view results
bidding is closed
Description
- Zhang Enli
- The Trees in Autumn 4
- oil on canvas
signed in Chinese and dated 2013; signed and titled in Chinese and dated 2013 on the reverse
Condition
This work is generally in good condition. There are minor wear around the edges. 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."
"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 Enli was born in Jilin province in 1965. He graduated from Wuxi Technical University, Arts and Design Institute in 1989 and currently lives and works in Shanghai.
The artist’s works often focus on his exploration in humanity and solitude. His early works revolve around the inevitable changes in life, its ensuing disturbances, and the pressures that threaten one’s mental scape. He cites dislocation as a primary condition of life, using it as a constructive backbone for a narrative praxis. Tales of loss and subsequent retrieval are returned to the social and public realms, revealing their potential to define contemporary conditions in the metropolis. Zhang Enli is able to create an existential condition that is situated between comfort and discontentment, at the same time, through depicting the underside of society with his bold and unpretentious brushstrokes, the artist also reveals the absurdity of human civilisation.
Zhang emphasises details of ordinary objects that are often neglected or downplayed in conventional paintings. His brushstrokes are very similar to traditional Chinese ink painting where every stroke on the canvas articulates parts that are significant to the whole.
Zhang Enli uses photography to meticulously document his surrounding environments. The artist then transfers onto the canvas the photographs’ claims on reality, developing an observation of his surroundings, though in a more intuitive and fragmented manner. The circuitous route by which Zhang Enli comes to the image is typical of a methodology based on the experience of memory. It is not the repeated image that is central to each painting, but rather the process of reflecting on the events and objects that led him to it. Accordingly, in his current paintings of trees, only fragments are revealed to the spectator. As in his other work, these paintings come across as ‘unfinished’ because they are semi-transparent and leave some of the white canvas exposed. This can be understood as the emergence of reality in the sphere of art, or, perhaps, vice versa.
The artist’s works often focus on his exploration in humanity and solitude. His early works revolve around the inevitable changes in life, its ensuing disturbances, and the pressures that threaten one’s mental scape. He cites dislocation as a primary condition of life, using it as a constructive backbone for a narrative praxis. Tales of loss and subsequent retrieval are returned to the social and public realms, revealing their potential to define contemporary conditions in the metropolis. Zhang Enli is able to create an existential condition that is situated between comfort and discontentment, at the same time, through depicting the underside of society with his bold and unpretentious brushstrokes, the artist also reveals the absurdity of human civilisation.
Zhang emphasises details of ordinary objects that are often neglected or downplayed in conventional paintings. His brushstrokes are very similar to traditional Chinese ink painting where every stroke on the canvas articulates parts that are significant to the whole.
Zhang Enli uses photography to meticulously document his surrounding environments. The artist then transfers onto the canvas the photographs’ claims on reality, developing an observation of his surroundings, though in a more intuitive and fragmented manner. The circuitous route by which Zhang Enli comes to the image is typical of a methodology based on the experience of memory. It is not the repeated image that is central to each painting, but rather the process of reflecting on the events and objects that led him to it. Accordingly, in his current paintings of trees, only fragments are revealed to the spectator. As in his other work, these paintings come across as ‘unfinished’ because they are semi-transparent and leave some of the white canvas exposed. This can be understood as the emergence of reality in the sphere of art, or, perhaps, vice versa.