Zeng Fanzhi

signed in Chinese and Pinyin and dated 2004

ShanghART Gallery, Shanghai
Acquired by the present owner from the above

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

Unearthing the Ego

Zeng Fanzhi

 

Zeng Fanzhi’s art shifted through different phases. The notoriety he amassed for expressionism was borne of the uncompromising brushstrokes often found in his earlier works such as the Hospital series, where the fluster of the brush stands in such stark contrast to the apathetic expressions of the doctors portrayed.  Zeng’s Meat series swiftly followed, with its kaleidoscope of dizzying reds, raw lacerations; meat upon flesh, endlessly cascading until they are indistinguishable. This fixation on the human psyche and human form culminated in the Mask series, a sequence of figures with conceit stretched over their faces in the form of pale masks. The characters in this series, with their swollen hands, engorged faces, and bulging eyes, symbolised the decline in human interaction in the cityscape that Zeng now found himself in. Communal pictures ebb into increasingly solitary figures; various nebulous locales give way to bold coloured backgrounds. Any semblance of commonality and interaction is lost as falsity becomes commonplace.  The piece on offer, Untitled (Lot 745), was created in 2005, at a time when the artist had created the extraordinarily successful Mask series, and brought his portraitures to a new level in artistic expression. At the time, Zeng began a new exploration in his luanbi （亂筆）style, where the frantic strokes gave way to immense scenery, as well as began a deeper exploration of human nature through the depiction of his masked figures. Untitled was undoubtedly born during this crucial transition period. This work essentially represents Zeng’s bold experimental step across his own artistic threshold.

When we arrive at the shift from Mask to the Landscapes series, the significance of the removal of the mask represents a willingness to engage with a world without barriers. Yet this relationship with the surrounding world is one that is complicated at best. Though the veil has been stripped off, the blurred paintings are now concealed by a thin layer of grazing. Reality is within reach, but not reached yet.

Zeng mentioned in an interview that his more recent paintings, such as Untitled, unleash ‘what is already embedded in the artistic ego.’¹ There is something undeniably personal under the almost scabrous upper layer of the piece. Untitled depicts a man turned to his left, obscured by feverish strokes. The high point of his forehead and the glimmer in his eye are the only things that are distinct. A muted red lip also peers from behind circular scrapings, as if at once shrouding itself from prying eyes, at once begging for closer inspection.  His elongated face would be immediately reminiscent of Zeng’s earlier Mask works, if it weren’t for the scoring along the visage. The grooves seem momentarily legible, vaguely resembling words, before the eye loses track of its thoughts and the lines meander into confusion. The intersecting lines finally give way to Zeng’s signature to the bottom right hand corner, as if the artist’s name itself has been embedded into the scurrying paint strokes.

The lead up to Untitled is also revealing. Towards the end of his Mask series Zeng revisits communal life. Though still masked, his figures now found themselves against various locations once more. The probe into the landscape around him morphed into a newfound fascination. Canvases expanded, and with this new sense of exploration came frenzied strokes, experimental brushwork that was as unbridled as the wilderness Zeng sought to depict. 

This new era of penmanship, which marked the beginning of free form art for Zeng, was more an extension of rather than a departure from his earlier works. With the metaphorical ‘unmasking’ of his characters, a new quest for identity burgeoned. Zeng began to implement a method of removal, where a palette knife was employed to scrape off layers of paint, creating the somewhat hysterical effect one sees in works such as Untitled. The artist fashions for himself a ‘no time to think, no time to step back’² mentality that dominates his works. The period of luanbi (wild brushstrokes) is uncontrolled, uncurbed, as if engaging in a systematic ensconcing of the works, the scours and scratches as much part of the work as the concealed object itself. The effect of this is at times not unlike that of traditional xieyiguohua (寫意國畫), where Zeng’s elongated strokes and scrapes resemble the whimsical brush movements in the Chinese watercolours. The frantic nature of his works is also highlighted by Zeng’s use of two brushes, a symbol, perhaps of a split psyche. One controlled, one left to slip and splay naturally, the two paintbrushes represent the dual nature of life.

This combination of strokes and masking is an apt summary of all things Zeng Fanzhi. The slashes and rips of Meat find themselves in Untitled in the form of deep scouring strokes; the man hiding behind a mask now hides behind blurred lines. Perhaps the figure could also represent the ‘artistic ego’ that Zeng spoke of, inviting the audience to partake in an excavation of sorts, to look beyond the dawdling marks on the canvas, until we can arrive at no other conclusion aside from the ‘ego’ himself, appearing in the form of some humble, innocuous lettering on the bottom right hand corner, bearing the name of one of the most celebrated Chinese artists of the contemporary art world.

1 Zeng Fanzhi, Interview by Michael Findlay, Zeng Fanzhi, ed. William Acquavella, 2009

2 Richard Shiff, ‘Every Mark Its Mask’, Zeng Fanzhi: Every Mark Its Mask, Hatje Cantz Verlag, 2010