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Introduction
Brume d’automne from 1949 provides valuable insight into Zao Wou-Ki’s development at the end of the forties, and showcases an emerging style in its earliest iteration, where one detects a melding of Chinese ink traditions and European avant-garde: the former he received in-depth training in since at a tender age; the latter he encountered when he first arrived in Paris one year before the present work was executed.
Though the subject matter portrayed in Brume d’automne is not unique (for landscape is a mode long established in both Chinese and European art history), Zao’s rendering and method of execution are innovative. In the present piece, we see a pared down landscape reproduced in earthly tones of greens and browns; fractal patterns of trees line the background as a trio of horses in the foreground whiny and gallop next to the outlines of a house or a well, surrounded loosely by white picket fences as a cluster of birds fly overhead. The painting epitomises pastoral bliss, and yet this effect has been realised through gentle allusions to forms, achieved through deft use of lines and colour. Even the idyllic nature of the scene and particularly the titular Autumn mist is hinted at using a formless coloured haze that has descended onto the work.
Paul Klee, Glance of a Landscape, 1929
Collection of Philadelphia Museum of ArtOne can detect a hint of Paul Klee’s landscapes in this work, and in its skeletal evocation of forms, it is clear that Zao was under the influence of the Swiss master’s interpretation of the world. The work is also reminiscent of another French-Chinese émigré artist and Zao’s contemporary, Sanyu, whose boldly executed scenes of bucolic bliss, sensual nudes, or vivid still-life paintings represented the height of avant-garde at the time. Both artists alluded to Chinese landscapes and painterly methods while undeniably departing from its traditions: Zao famously remarked that it was only upon his arrival in France that he rediscovers his Chinese roots, and with the gift of distance was able to capture important stylistic aesthetics.
Sanyu, Galloping Horses, 2017
Collection of the National Museum of History, Taiwan"Wou-ki rediscovers that reduction, so clear in Chinese painting, of the narrative aspect of landscape which is generally present to act as a springboard into the infinity of the world."
— Pierre DaixBrume d’automne also coincides with a rare and short period of early watercolour painting and subsequent dry-point etching and lithography that the artist creates soon after he arrives in Paris. One of the most significant bodies of works he produces in this style is a collection to accompany his friend and poet Henri Michaux’s poetry, Lecture par Henri Michaux de huit lithographies de Zao Wou-Ki (A Reading by Henri Michaux of eight lithographs by Zao Wou-Ki, 1950). One can detect the overlaps of this style and period within Brume d’Automne: its subject matter notwithstanding, the almost-hieroglyphic, simplified forms fill the dry-point pieces at this time as Zao sought to capture the scenes described in Michaux’s texts.
Lecture II, 1949
Lithography in three colours
© 2021, ProLitteris, Zurich“What milk surrounds the dead star,
what whiteness spreads in the sky!
At the bottom the meeting took place
The arms made to take each other are caught
…
Space is silence
…
This silence is black
In essence
There is nothing left..”
— Excerpt from Henri Michaux’s LectureA Limitless Legacy
The formidable oeuvre of Zao Wou-Ki ('Boundless') rings true to his namesake: Zao was an artist whose inexorable fervour for creation was truly limitless, and in his lifetime he produced a body of works that encompassed such media as canvas, works on paper, scrolls, ceramics, amongst others. The artist seamlessly weaved together the divergent cultural strands that made up his being, effortlessly marrying Eastern philosophy with an otherwise Western medium, to create an inimitable legacy of works housed in the most prestigious institutions across the world. Born the son of a successful banker in Beijing, Zao settled in Paris in April 1948 after a 36 day voyage by boat in hopes of honing his artistic capabilities. This supposed short sojourn became a permanent residency in France, where Zao plunged himself into the epicentre of the Parisian art scene. Like many of his artistic peers who identified with multiple cultures, in many ways his works perched on a threshold: inhabiting the liminal space or ‘in-betweenness’ of both his Chinese heritage as well as the post-war school of painting in Paris.
Provenance
Galerie Charpentier, Paris
Private Collection, United Kingdom
Private Collection, United Kingdom (acquired in 2018)Exhibited
Paris, Salon des Tuileries, 1949
Literature
Françoise Marquet and Yann Hendgen, ed., Zao Wou-Ki: Catalogue Raisonné des Peintures, Volume I 1935-1958, Paris, 2019, no. P-0083, pp. 78, 274 (illustrated)
Property from an Important British Collection
26
Brume d’automne
signed and dated 'Wou-Ki [in Chinese] ZAO 1949/9' lower right; further signed, titled, inscribed and dated 'No. 7 ZAO WOU-KI 51 Bis, RUE DU MOuLIN vert 14e ""BRUME d'AUTOMNE""' on the reverse
oil on masonite
64.5 x 53.8 cm. (25 3/8 x 21 1/8 in.)
Painted in 1949, this work is registered in the archives of the Fondation Zao Wou-Ki under archive number P-0083, and will be accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by the Fondation Zao Wou-Ki.
Estimate
HK$4,500,000 - 7,500,000
€514,000-857,000
$577,000-962,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
Charlotte Raybaud
Head of Evening Sale, 20th Century & Contemporary Art
+852 2318 2026
CharlotteRaybaud@phillips.com
20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale in Association with Poly Auction
Hong Kong Auction 30 November 2021
1
Cinga Samson
Ivory V
Estimate HK$250,000 - 350,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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2
Salman Toor
East Village Iqbal Bano
Estimate HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Sold for HK$4,536,000
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3
Nina Chanel Abney
Untitled (IXI Black)
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$3,024,000
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4
Jamian Juliano-Villani
Clear Cough from Your Schedule
Estimate HK$200,000 - 400,000
Sold for HK$781,200
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5
Mr.
Yume—Breath of the Earth
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
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6
Julie Curtiss
Escargot
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,449,000
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7
Javier Calleja
30 works: Untitled
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$12,108,000
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8
Javier Calleja
You Me
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 4,000,000
Sold for HK$7,026,000
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9
Aya Takano
In the Lab (the Birth of Jelly)
Estimate HK$200,000 - 300,000
Sold for HK$441,000
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10
Hernan Bas
Minimalism (cracking the code)
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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11
Joel Mesler
Untitled (Night Out)
Estimate HK$500,000 - 700,000
Sold for HK$1,512,000
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12
Shara Hughes
Magic Island
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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13
Scott Kahn
Cadman Plaza
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$7,510,000
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14
Matthew Wong
Nature’s Church
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$9,204,000
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15
Matthew Wong
Far Away Eyes
Estimate HK$8,000,000 - 12,000,000
Sold for HK$21,183,000
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16
Gerhard Richter
Kerzenschein (Candle-light)
Estimate HK$55,000,000 - 75,000,000
Sold for HK$101,970,000
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17
This lot is no longer available.
18
Yayoi Kusama
INFINITY-NETS (OPRT)
Estimate HK$15,000,000 - 25,000,000
Sold for HK$22,635,000
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19
Yayoi Kusama
Repetition
Estimate HK$15,000,000 - 20,000,000
Sold for HK$19,005,000
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20
Nicolas Party
Still Life
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 9,400,000
Sold for HK$17,190,000
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21
David Hockney
Bridlington Violets
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$12,350,000
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22
Léonard-Tsuguharu Foujita
Self-Portrait with a Cat
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$5,292,000
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23
This lot is no longer available.
24
Sanyu
Paysage Aux Hirondelles
Estimate HK$26,000,000 - 46,000,000
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25
Zao Wou-Ki
Sans titre ("Notre Dame")
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$10,051,000
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26
Zao Wou-Ki
Brume d’automne
Estimate HK$4,500,000 - 7,500,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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27
Auguste Rodin
Le Baiser, 1ère réduction dite aussi "réduction n°1"
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$11,745,000
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28
Zao Wou-Ki
20.3.64.
Estimate HK$20,000,000 - 30,000,000
Sold for HK$22,030,000
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29
This lot is no longer available.
30
Alexander Calder
Two Red Petals in the Air
Estimate HK$16,000,000 - 20,000,000
Sold for HK$20,820,000
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31
Claude Monet
Pavots dans un vase de Chine
Estimate HK$9,500,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$13,560,000
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32
Georges Mathieu
Saxifrage
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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33
This lot is no longer available.
34
Huang Yuxing
Floating Bubbles
Estimate HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Sold for HK$2,772,000
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35
Zhou Chunya
Smell the Flowers
Estimate HK$5,000,000 - 7,000,000
Sold for HK$6,905,000
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36
This lot is no longer available.
37
Liu Ye
Flagship No. 2
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$5,922,000
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38
Wang Xingwei
Untitled (Heart-Shaped Dance)
Estimate HK$2,800,000 - 4,800,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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39
Liu Ye
Untitled
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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40
Liu Wei
You Like Smoking?
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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41
Izumi Kato
Untitled
Estimate HK$4,500,000 - 7,500,000
Sold for HK$11,745,000
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42
Yoshitomo Nara
Pandora's Box
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$13,560,000
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43
George Condo
The Dreamer
Estimate HK$4,600,000 - 6,200,000
Sold for HK$11,140,000
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44
George Condo
Entangled Figures
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 9,200,000
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45
This lot is no longer available.
46
KAWS
NEW YORK
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$5,040,000
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47
KAWS
FINAL DAYS
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 8,200,000
Sold for HK$8,115,000
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48
Raymond Pettibon
Untitled (Force makes nature...)
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$3,906,000
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49
Robert Nava
Angel Shark
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for HK$4,410,000
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50
Susumu Kamijo
Marching To The Sun
Estimate HK$450,000 - 650,000
Sold for HK$2,142,000
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51
Jadé Fadojutimi
Fishing For Steps
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 2,200,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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52
Mickalene Thomas
Looking Up from the She Works Hard For the Money Pin-Up series
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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53
Billie Zangewa
Cirque d'hiver
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$567,000
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54
Godwin Champs Namuyimba
The Connector
Estimate HK$200,000 - 400,000
Sold for HK$1,323,000
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55
Tunji Adeniyi-Jones
Blue Ancestor
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,071,000
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56
Tomoo Gokita
Final Confrontation
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 2,200,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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57
Ewa Juszkiewicz
Appropriation
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,890,000
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58
Lucas Arruda
Untitled from the series Deserto-Modelo
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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