ZHU Wei (Né en 1966) Festival no. 11 Technique mixte sur papier Sceau de l'artiste "Zhu Wei Shu Hua / les peintures de Zhu Wei" et signé "Zhu Wei Luo Kuan" en bas droite h: 33,30 w: 32,60 cm Provenance : Plum Blossoms Gallery, Honk Kong (acquis auprès de cette dernière par l'actuel propriétaire) Commentaire : Mixed media on paper; artist's seal and signed lower right Estimation 1 200 - 1 500 €
ZHU WEI (B. 1966) /The Story of //Xiulian//, No. 3/ signed, titled, inscribed and dated in Chinese (to the edges); stamped with the artist’s stamp in Chinese (to the vertical edges) ink, gouache and watercolour on paper 52 1 ⁄8 x 51 3 ⁄4 in. (132.5 x 131.5cm.) Executed in 1995
ZHU WEI (B. 1966) /Sweet Life, No. 36/ signed and stamped with the artist’s stamp in Chinese (left edge); titled, inscribed and stamped three times with the artist’s stamp in Chinese (right edge) ink, gouache and watercolour on paper 78 1 ⁄2 x 105 1 ⁄2 in. (199.5 x 268cm.) Executed /circa /2000
ZHU WEI (B. 1966) /China Diary, No. 40/ signed and stamped with the artist’s stamp in Chinese (right edge); inscribed ‘1998’ (lower centre) ink, gouache and graphite on paper 70 1 ⁄4 x 67 1 ⁄8 in. (178.5 x 170.5cm.) Executed /circa /1998
Zhu Wei (born 1966) China Diary 'Star' Bronze, star-shaped sculpture with leiwen (thunder) pattern. 20 1/2 x 20 1/2 x 11in (52 x 52 x 28cm) For further information on this lot please visit the Bonhams website
Zhu Wei (b. 1966) China China each: signed in Chinese and numbered ‘7/12 (on the left shoe) painted fiberglass, covered with dirt, in two parts (i) 79.5 x 40 x 46 cm. (ii) 83 x 43 x 50 cm. Executed circa…
Zhu Wei (b. 1966) Untitled signed in Chinese and stamped with artist’s seal (upper left) ink and watercolour on paper laid on Japanese silk paper 81 x 146cm.
ZHU WEI (CHINA, B. 1966) CHINA CHINA lacquer paint, sand and aluminium sculpture figure 1: 122 x 53 x 43 cm. (48 x 20 7/8 x 16 7/8 in.) figure 2: 122 x 65 x 44 cm. (48 x 25 5/8 x 17 3/8 in.) base: 2.5 x 112 x 81.5 cm. (1 x 44 1/8 x 32 1/8 in.)
incised in Chinese, executed in 2008,aluminium and lacquer paint,(i) 118 (H) by 58 by 63.3 cm.; 46 1/2 (H) by 22 7/8 by 24 7/8 in.(ii) 118 (H) by 47 by 54 cm.; 46 1/2 (H) by 18 1/2 by 21 1/4 in.(stand) 2.5 (H) by 81.3 by 111.7 cm.; 1 (H) by 32 by 44 in.
Wei Zhu (Chinese, B. 1966) China, China signed in Chinese; numbered '3/12' (base of each) bronze sculpture on wooden base overall with base: 75 x 50 x 76 cm. (30 x 19 3/4 x 30 in.) edition 3/12
ZHU WEI (Chinese, B. 1966) Supreme Treatise on Moral Retribution No. 13 signed in Chinese (middle right); inscribed (upper left) ink and colour on paper 84.5 x 72.4 cm. (33 1/4 x 28 1/2 in.) four seals of the artist
ZHU WEI (Chinese, B. 1966) Untitled signed in Chinese (lower right) ink and colour on paper image size: 128.8 x 131 cm. (50 3/4 x 51 1/2 in.) paper size: 153 x 155 cm. (60 1/4 x 61 in.) one seal of the artist
ZHU WEI B. 1966 CHINA DIARY NO. 51 signed and titled in Chinese, inscribed The Year of Xin Si (2001) with seven seals of the artist, framed ink and colour on paper 195 by 262.5 cm.; 76 3/4 by 103 1/4 in.
ZHU, WEI (Beijing 1966) Deng. 2006. Lithograph. Signed, dated and numbered in the lower centre: 2006 83/89. 75 x 53 cm. ZHU, WEI (Beijing 1966) Deng. 2006. Litografie. Unten mittig signiert, datiert und nummeriert: 2006 83/89. 75 x 53 cm.
ZHU WEI B. 1966 CHINA DIARY NO. 54 signed in Chinese with four seals of the artists executed in 2001 ink and colour on paper, framed 193 by 192 cm.; 76 by 75 5/8 in.
ZHU WEI B. 1966 SPRING HERALD NO. 6 signed in Chinese with five seals of the artist executed in 2007 ink and colour on paper, framed 113 by 90.5 cm.; 44 1/2 by 35 3/4 in.
Zhu Wei (Chinese, b. 1966) Great Water No. 3, 2000; Ink and gouache on paper (framed); Signed; 13 1/2'' x 13 1/2'' (sheet); Literature: Stephen McGuinness ed., zhuweidiary, Hong Kong, 2000, No. 3 (illustrated in color); Provenance: Plum Blossoms, Hong Kong; Private Collection, Pennsylvania
Zhu Wei (Chinese, b. 1966) Sunflower No. 36, 2000; Ink and gouache on paper (framed); Signed; 25 3/4'' x 25 3/4'' (sheet); Literature: Stephen McGuinness ed., zhuweidiary, Hong Kong, 2000, No. 36 (illustrated in color); Provenance: Plum Blossoms, Hong Kong; Private Collection, Pennsylvania
B. 1966 VERNAL EQUINOX, NO. 2 56 3/4 by 47 7/8 in. 144 by 121.5 cm. signed in Chinese with thirteen seals of the artist in Chinese: two of Shi You Ba Jiu, two of Zhu Wei Yin Jian, two of Zhu Wei Zhen Ji, two of artist's website, Da Wan, Zhu Wei Yin Xin, Zhu Wei Shui Mo Hua Bao, Yu Shi Ju Jin and Zhu Wei Shu Hua ink and color on paper Executed in 2006. EXHIBITED Nanjing Art Museum, Chinese Ink Painting Document Exhibition (1976-2006), 2006
B. 1966 SPRING HERALD NO. 1, SPRING HERALD NO. 3 no. 1: 40 by 25 1/2 in. 101.5 by 64.7 cm. no. 3: 47 1/8 by 39 7/8 in. 120 by 101.2 cm. No. 1: signed in Chinese with nine seals of the artist in Chinese: two of Shi You Ba Jiu, artist's website, Zhu Wei Shu Hua, Da Wan, Zhu Wei Shui Mo Hua Bao, Zhu Wei Yin Xin, Zhu Wei, and Zhu Wei Yin Jian; titled in Chinese and English and dated 2003 on the reverse No. 3: signed in Chinese with ten seals of the artist in Chinese: two of artist's website, two of Zhu Wei Yin Xin, two of Zhu Wei Shu Hua, Shi You Ba Jiu, Zhu Wei Zhen Ji, Da Wan, and Zhu Wei Yin Jian; titled in Chinese and English and dated 2003 on the reverse ink and color on paper EXHIBITED Nanjing Art Museum, Chinese Ink Painting Document Exhibition (1976-2006), 2006
B. 1966 CHINA CHINA figure 1: 74 by 34 by 22 in. 187.9 by 86.3 by 55.8 cm. figure 2: 66 by 30 by 18 1/2 in. 167.6 by 76.2 by 46.9 cm. platform: 16 by 43 1/4 by 80 5/8 in. 40.6 by 109.8 by 204.6 cm. each signed in Chinese and numbered 2/12 hand painted fiberglass Executed in 1998-2000. PROVENANCE Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong Private Collection, Europe EXHIBITED Other examples exhibited: Beijing, Red Gate Gallery, Zhu Wei Works Exhibition, April, 2006 New York, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Corporate Corporeality: Chinese Artists Re-examining the Body in the Age of Global Capitalism, April, 2004 Hong Kong, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Zhu Wei - Another Perspective, May, 2004 Paris, Espace Cardin, Paris-Pékin, October, 2002, p. 271, illustrated in color Hong Kong and Singapore, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Zhu Wei Diary, 2000, pp. 384-387, illustrated in color LITERATURE Zhu Wei, Beijing, 2004, p.111, similar example illustrated in color; Asian Art News, "A Week of Surprise," vol.16, number 1, January/February, 2004, p.66, similar example illustrated in color; Insider's Guide to Beijing, Shantou, "The Road Home - Interview with Artist Zhu Wei," April, 2004, p.176, similar example illustrated in color
B. 1966 BEIJING TIME #3 21 1/4 by 19 5/8 in. 53.9 by 49.8 cm. signed in Chinese, with one seal of the artist in Chinese: Zhu Wei Zhen Ji ink and color on paper Executed in 1995. PROVENANCE Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong Acquired by the present owner from the above EXHIBITED Hong Kong and Singapore, Plum Blossoms Gallery, China Diary, 1996 LITERATURE Stephen McGuiness ed., Zhu Wei Diary, Hong Kong, 2000, p. 68, illustrated in color
B. 1966 SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW 26 3/8 by 23 1/2 in. 66.9 by 59.6 cm. signed Zhu Wei, with fourteen seals of the artist in Chinese: Shen Pin, Website, Wan Yu Tang Jian Shang Zhu Wei Zhen Ji, Zhu Wei Yin Xin, two of Zhu Wei Zhen ji, A Wei, two of pictorial seals and three of Zhu Wei Shu Hua ink and color on paper Executed in 1995. PROVENANCE Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong Acquired by the present owner from the above EXHIBITED Hong Kong and Singapore, Plum Blossoms Gallery, China Diary, 1996 LITERATURE Stephen McGuinness ed., Zhu Wei Diary, Hong Kong, 2000, p. 67, illustrated in color
B. 1966 SWEET LIFE NO. 21 70 1/4 by 67 1/2 in. 178.5 by 171.5 cm. signed and titled in Chinese with three seals of the artist in Chinese: Zhu Wei Zhen Ji, Shi You Da Jiu, and Wan Yu Tang Jian Shang Zhu Wei Zhen Ji ink and color on paper, mounted on silk and canvas Executed in 1998. PROVENANCE Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong Acquired by the present owner from the above LITERATURE Stephen McGuiness ed., Zhu Wei Diary, Hong Kong, 2000, p. 129, illustrated in color NOTE "Many people have asked me which foreign masters had influenced my creation. I can't say, for in fact there aren't any. However, Fan Kuan (Song Dynasty), Shi Tao (late Ming Dynasty) and Badashanren (early Qing Dynasty) have greatly influenced me. They are like my friends, my frames of reference, and objects that I want to challenge and surpass."υ[i] Zhu Wei was born in Beijing in 1966 and joined the People's Liberation Army at age 16, where he was trained in traditional painting techniques at the PLA Art College (1985-89). Unlike many of his contemporaries, Zhu has remained devoted to traditional styles, seeking to perpetuate and expand native cultural traditions. Sotheby's spring sale offers a window onto Zhu Wei's technical, conceptual and stylistic development since 1995. Beginning with early series of the mid 90s, which juxtapose classical and modern elements, through his monumental sculpture of 2000, three-dimensional representations of his exaggerated caricatures, this section concludes with his most recent work. Lots 41 to 46 present a visual diary of Zhu Wei's practice, one that presents the artist's own experience yet speaks for the common man of contemporary China. Somewhere Over the Rainbow (1995, Lot 42) bridges the gap between traditional China and modernity with an intriguing combination of dramatis personae. Traditional China is represented in the form of a scholar, who looks out of the image toward the viewer's left, while three iconic PLA soldiers march off this stage illuminated by streetlamps towards the right. As is characteristic of his early works, Zhu uses muddy colors to create the dreamlike atmosphere of this intriguing work - one that seems to reference the box-like perspectives of Western Renaissance painting and whose army men seem to have taken their military training from Jacques Louis-David's oath-taking Horatii brothers! But this mock seriousness is leavened by Zhu's characteristic wit: the Chinese characters on the building in the background at left read "Men's Bathroom," suggesting a commonality between past and present and that China's long history is, in fact, one of the common man. An intimate evening scene in a close-cropped private interior is the subject of Beijing Time No. 3 (1995, Lot 43), a touching example from a series of a dozen ink and wash works conceived from 1995-96. Here, a pair of lovers stares longingly into space, apparently in anticipation of the military man's pending departure. Again the military hero is presented as individual, expressing the artist's view that all people experience similar feelings, in this case love, or perhaps longing. Typical of Zhu's works from this period are the expressive color language, small scale, and dense composition in which the figures are the central focus of the pictorial composition. Sweet Life No. 21 (1998, Lot 41) is part of a slightly later series of portraits that depict a "fat-headed" figure that bears a striking resemblance to the artist himself. Growing up, Zhu Wei was often teased by classmates and reminded by his grandmother that his head was too big, so it is possible the series presents a form of self-portraiture. It is indeed a sweet image, as its title implies, setting the bald "fat head" in a lilac-colored Mao jacket against a watery background replete with small fish, two of which appear to gaze comically at the human figure as though he has invaded their aquarium. With pronounced references to traditional ink and wash painting and a beautiful, rhythmic application of color that indicates the waves of the water, Sweet Life is an exemplary expression of the light-hearted joy that often appears in the artist's work. The version of Zhu's most celebrated sculptural series China China offered here (Lot 44) was executed from 1998-2000. A pair of faceless, larger-than-life, hand-painted fiberglass figures are positioned one after the other, as though preparing to kowtow in military formation. Han dynasty terracotta figurines were the source of inspiration for the China China series, of which editions also exist in bronze, in other sizes, and in upright position, as though standing at attention. The artist simulates the dusty, excavated surfaces of the original objects to create contemporary figures clad in the "Mao" Suit," their facial features effaced. The caricatured figures, imposing symbols of China's faceless masses, seem excavated from an archaeological site in the hinterlands of the Chinese psyche, where memories of the Qin Dynasty's grandeur and the Cultural Revolution's collectivism are equally present. As such they express the questioning stance regarding the past and the future that is so prevalent among artists of Zhu's generation. In 2003, Zhu painted a small number of touching, portraits for his "Spring Herald" series, of which Spring Herald No. 1 and No. 3 (Lot 45) are offered together here. Tinged with pensive self-reflection, some of the figures in the series again border on self-portraiture; the subjects are imposing and contemplative, generally dominating the composition, while the works on the whole feature the appearance of traditional Chinese paintings, with areas of empty space and numerous seals of the artist (among which one is actually the artist's website). Meticulously rendered with warm, earthy colors, these intimate works suggest the fragility of humanity. The No. 3 is particularly telling in this respect: the bald figure seems to have traveled through time and space from a Renaissance profile portrait only to arrive amidst the SARS epidemic of 2003, during which time surgical masks of the kind the figure wears were common. Inspired by the "hundred-boys-playing" motif on porcelain objects in his home, Zhu Wei began his most recent, ongoing series entitled Vernal Equinox in 2006, of which No. 3 (2006, Lot 46) is an example. The "hundred-boys-playing" motif is an auspicious symbol and central decorative element used in traditional Chinese works of art to wish for peace and harmony, a good harvest and prosperity for the country. The artist updates the ancient motif by transforming the imagery of playful and smiling rotund baby boys into ordinary modern-day men with serious expressions. Moving away from exaggerated portraiture towards miniature caricatures and more spacious compositions, Zhu Wei's "bubble-headed" figures float amongst strategically placed leaves and peonies, another traditional motif, creating an unconventional sense of balance and harmony in which the dense application of enlarged seals also play an important role. The combination of traditional motifs with contemporary imagery creates a bizarre, mysterious atmosphere yet continues to resonate with the formal and thematic interest Zhu Wei has long pursued. "I paint my own world, my own experiences," the artist stated in 1996. "I was in the army for ten years. That was a big chunk of my life and naturally left a deep impression. But you only have to open your eyes on the street in Beijing, read the papers, watch TV, to see that I'm not painting anything that isn't there for those who choose to see it."υ[ii] Initially coming to prominence through the Plum Blossoms gallery in Hong Kong, it was not until 2006 that Zhu Wei held his first solo exhibition in China at Beijing's Red Gate Gallery. Now well recognized internationally, Zhu Wei's consistent interest in combining traditional methods and motifs with his unique take on contemporaneity suggests a fertile career in the future. υ[i] "Art Needs Sedimentation: A conversation between Li Xiaoshan and Zhu Wei," August 2004. υ[ii] Asian Art News, Volume 6, Number 5, September/October 1996.
B. 1966 NEW PICTURES OF THE STRIKINGLY BIZARRE #4 overall: 109 by 113 in. 276.9 by 287 cm. signed in Chinese, numered A.P, 4/4, 104 multiple medium print on handmade paper (four sheets): staining, woodcut, lithograph, screenprint, printed from 56 woodblocks, 3 aluminium litho plates and 7 screens Executed in 2004-2005. EXHIBITED Other examples exhibited: Singapore Tyler Print Institute, Zhu Wei: New Pictures of the Strikingly Bizarre, April - May 2005 Hong Kong, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Zhu Wei: New Pictures of the Strikingly Bizarre, April 2005 Hangzhou, Liu He Underground Carbarn, Fable: Contemporary Chinese Art Exhibition, October - November 2005 Beijing, Red Gate Gallery, Zhu Wei Solo Exhibition, April - May 2006 LITERATURE Zhu Wei: New Pictures of the Strikingly Bizarre, Singapore and Hong Kong, 2005, p. 69, illustrated in color Asian Art News, Hong Kong, vol. 15, Number 3, May/June 2005, pp. 50-51, illustrated in color
B. 1966 CHINA CHINA (A PAIR) CHINA CHINA (A PAIR) measurements each body: 74 3/4 by 34 1/4 by 22 3/8 in. 190 by 87 by 57 cm. alternate measurements each base: 19 5/8 by 23 5/8 by 3/8 in. 50 by 60 by 1 cm. signed in Chinese on each body's left foot and numbered 2/12 bronze Executed in 2002. This work is number 2 from an edition of 12. EXHIBITED Other examples exhibited: Beijing, Red Gate Gallery, Zhu Wei Works Exhibition, April, 2006 New York, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Corporate Corporeality: Chinese Artists Re-examing the Body in the Age of Global Capitalism, April, 2004 Hong Kong, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Zhu Wei - Another Perspective, May, 2004 Paris, Espace Cardin, Paris-Pékin Chinese Contemporary Exhibition, October, 2002 LITERATURE Zhu Wei, Beijing, 2005, p. 111, illustrated in color Asian Art News, "A Week of Surprise," vol. 16, number 1, January/February, 2004, p. 66, illustrated in color Insider's Guide to Beijing, Shantou, "The Road Home - Interview with Artist Zhu Wu," April 2004, p. 176, illustrated in color NOTE Zhu Wei was born in 1966 and at the age of 16 joined the People's Liberation Army, where he would remain for a decade and receive a degree from the PLA's Art Academy. Zhu subsequently established a studio in Beijing where he has produced a diverse body of work ranging from prints and paintings in a painstaking traditional process to three-dimensional works, among which the China China series is his most celebrated. The China China series is inspired by Han dynasty terracotta figurines, and in both the hand-painted fibreglass edition of 2000 and the bronze editions of 2002, the artist simulates the dusty, excavated surfaces of the original objects. Positioned one after the other, as though in military formation, Zhu's contemporary figures are clad in the "Mao Suit," and their facial features effaced. In one edition of the sculpture, their forward-leaning stance offers a bow to authority that is both courteous and obeisant. In the work on offer, the characters seem to have resumed their upright posture, although they remain faceless and expressionless, silent but imposing symbols of the faceless masses. Zhu's caricatured figures seem excavated from an archaeological site in the hinterlands of the Chinese psyche, where memories of the Qin Dynasty's grandeur and the Cultural Revolution's collectivism are equally present, suggesting a fundamental ambivalence about the character of the nation. As such they express the questioning stance regarding the past and the future that is so prevalent among artists of Zhu's generation.
