Zeng Fanzhi

signed in Chinese and Pinyin and dated 2006

Private American Collection

This work is generally in good condition. Having examined the work under ultraviolet light, there appears to be no evidence of restoration.
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Among the Twines
Zeng Fanzhi

Zeng Fanzhi, the world renowned “Mask Artist”, is an individual whose prominence needs no introduction. With countless global exhibitions and worldwide acclaim, Zeng’s reputation is unparalleled in the world of Contemporary Chinese Art. From his first sanguineous Hospital and Meat series, to the later famed Mask paintings, Zeng has commanded international attention for his various artworks: at once for their Expressionist allure, as well as for their refined execution. At the turn of the millennium, Zeng looked to new horizons, developing a radical new approach in his art, one which would continue for more than a decade. This shift focused on expression in lines, investigating the notion of fluidity and form. Zeng’s deft amalgamation of Eastern and Western components can be seen in works such as the present Landscape (Lot 1048), where the artist successfully marries the influences of traditional guohua, shanshui hua, and shoujuan hua, with the likes of celebrated American artist Jackson Pollock, culminating in a truly unique, cross-cultural piece that serves as an apt metaphor for Zeng’s international repute. 

When one arrives at the stunning Landscape, one is no longer a mere observer of nature, but at one with it. The work invites its audience to inspect it at close proximity; to feel the full extent of the vivacity of nature itself. At the heart of the piece is a latent sense of hope, as a splash of blue skies peeks out from behind the twisted branches.

Landscape is a radical and uncommon transformation of traditional uses of landscape.  Primarily known for being an Expressionist painter, capable of executing heartrending pieces filled with pathos and solemn characters, Zeng set aside Western techniques in favour of Eastern influences at the beginning of the millennium. Zeng combines many important elements of Chinese landscape painting in his pieces, such as shanshui hua (landscape paintings, literally “mountain and water paintings”) and shoujuan hua (scroll paintings). The length of the present work is particularly reminiscent of the ancient scrolls, along with its subject matter of meandering vines and branches, one is immediately reminded of the shanshui hua convention of depicting streams and mountains.

Furthermore, Landscape is a potent example of Zeng’s This Land so Rich In Beauty series, which was also produced in 2006. Having created these works for just one year, the frantic linear expressions that one sees in works such as Landscape become all the rarer, and can be seen as compelling meditations on the artist’s shifting stylistic language. The position of 2006 works is also at the midpoint of Zeng’s employment of lines, which he investigated in the years 2001 to 2011. As such, works like the present painting look both backwards and forwards at Zeng’s oeuvre; reviewing past works as well as forecasting later ones. In this case, Landscape strongly foreshadows many This Land so Rich In Beauty works, which scenes with varying backgrounds, shifting from snowy lakes to bushes; moving from sombre blues to monochrome.

Particularly in this piece, Zeng also extends the concept of guohua (literally “national painting” or “country painting”), which is a term that is used quite generally to encompass all aspects of Chinese painting. Within this includes Tang and Song Dynasty works that Zeng drew inspiration from. While the Tang Dynasty was dominated by an exploration of monochromatic versus polychromatic works, as well as the significance of lines and textures, the Song Dynasty was best known for its preoccupation with the landscape at large, and its connection to the human condition. In this way, one can read Landscape as a combination of both these dynasties: an investigation of colour and texture, as well as an apt visual representation of the human psyche. Zeng would go on to utilise the styles of these two dynasties heavily in his later works; thus Landscape is an apt example of this usage in its origin.

When one alternatively enquires into the Western influences behind the piece, it is possible to detect an undercurrent of Jackson Pollock. Zeng is no doubt well-known for drawing inspiration from different Western artists, such as Francis Bacon and Anselm Kiefer. However, when Zeng turned towards his line paintings, a new stimulus came in the form of Pollock, whose line and drip paintings have formed the backbone of the West’s Abstract Expressionist movement. Pollock’s revolutionary “drip paintings” from the forties to fifties were influenced by Surrealist styles along with the concept of “psychic automatism”, a physical representation of the unconscious. The new millennium saw Zeng develop a similar approach of trusting in his own intuition and skill, producing works that feature instances of miao wu (“marvellous revelation”) and luan bi. Moreover, Zeng’s development of scouring and scraping his works, using a palette knife to drag and extend wet paint, gives the work a frantic, energetic nature, successfully capturing the vivacity of the vines. Landscape is a fantastic example of this combination; of Zeng’s reinvention of contemporary styles and amalgamating in an exceptional fashion the aesthetics of the East and the West.

Beginning in 2002 with an exhibition at the Pierre Cardin Centre in Paris, Zeng Fanzhi’s artistry has captured the attention of the world beyond the boundaries of China. His line paintings, immediately accessible and much admired by many different audiences, are so appealing perhaps due to their effortless union of Eastern and Western models. Landscape is undoubtedly a valid exploration of art forms both of the present and the past, and is a rare painting that captures the very essence of Zeng’s prowess.