Ai Xuan

executed in 1987

Hefner Galleries Ins., New York
Sotheby's, Beijing, 5 June 1988, lot 14
Acquired by the present owner from the above sale

USA, California, Santa Ana, The Modern Museum of Art, Contemporary Realist Paintings from the People's Republic of China, 12 December 1987 - 10 March, 1988
China, Beijing, Workers' Cultural Palace, Chinese and Western Contemporary Art and Design exhibition, 27 May - 4 June, 1988

This work is generally in good condition. Having examined the work under ultraviolet light, there appears to be no evidence of restoration. Please note that it was not examined out of its frame.
"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."

1987 marked an important year in Ai Xuan’s creative journey. Ai Xuan was a visiting scholar at the University of Oklahoma, and it was during this time that the artist was inducted into the gates of the international art world with no shortage of fanfare. Not only did his partnership with Hefner Galleries prove to be a commercial success, he brought Chinese native realism, a movement that evoked the mood and circumstance of a specific generation, to American shores. In Ai Xuan’s painting, a solitary figure stands in the distance of a vast landscape, rendered small and insignificant, the overbearing desolation of the scene adding undertones of mystery and emptiness to the mood of estrangement. Chinese native realism, heavily influenced by the style of Andrew Wyeth, evokes the same generational sadness and quality of inner solitude. The movement quickly garnered attention from across the Atlantic, and it was within this context that Lonely Marshland (Lot  32) was born.

Within the painting, a slight figure bundled, bundled in a Tibetan jacket, treads upon the wild marshland. Absent is the image of the Tibetan landscape, solemn and sombre, with snowflakes fluttering in the wind, yet even under the blinding, burning sunlight, one still hears the shrill whistle of harsh, bitter wind across the open plains. The young girl, bent at the waist by the forces of enormous loneliness and quiet, and the bamboo basket, has her back against the blue skies of the heavens. Under the punishing living codes and severe enforcements of social order in the Tibetan region, the young silhouette appears before the viewer, clear, backlit, like a wild flower scattered to the wind.

On June 5, 1988, Sotheby’s hosted a charity auction event at the Forbidden City in Beijing, titled ‘The Return of Marco Polo,” with proceeds going to the benefit of the safeguard of Venice and the Great Wall of China. With this event, Sotheby’s became the first international auction house to host such an event in Mainland China. It was then that Ai Xuan’s Lonely Marshland first appeared in auction alongside the works of Picasso, Rauschenberg, and those of other masters. The next day, The China Daily devoted front-page coverage to the event, garnering the intense interest of readers at home and abroad. A photo of two youths holding up Ai Xuan’s painting has since become a historical symbol in the journey and development of China’s art auction market. China’s native realism has grown from the mud of the era’s sediment. In its attitude of reverence and awe towards reality, the movement gained direction and clarity. After 26 years, Lonely Marshland has returned to Sotheby’s, embodied in it both memories of scars as well as comfort and relief from them. Ai Xuan’s focus on the native land still runs in his poetic blood, a passion towards which the artist will remain ever faithful. It is undeniable that this painting is a critical milestone in the artist’s career, carrying with it special historical significance.