Lot 101: NGUYEN PHAN CHANH

NGUYEN PHAN CHANH
1892-1984
LA PETITE CUISINIeRE
Signed, signed with a seal of the artist, inscribed and dated in Chinese upper right
Ink and gouache on silk
63 by 49.5 cm.; 24 3/4 by 19 1/2 in.
Provenance
Agence de L'Indochine, Paris
Former Collection of the artist, Mr Thang Tran Phenh
Exhibited
Seconda Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Coloniale, Napoli, Italy, 1932
S$120000-150000
US$72720-90900

An extremely rare piece from the early 1930's; the present Lot entitled La Petite Cuisiniere is drawn from a series of silk paintings representing the petits metiers (small labours) of North Vietnam.
As the forefather of Vietnamese silk painting the quasi-entirety of Phan Chanh's oeuvre was created on silk, the artist's preferred technique.
Favoring precision drawing and simple form over the much coveted impressionistic style sweeping through the Vietnam of the early 20th century, Phan Chanh remained attached throughout his career to traditional painting; inherited from his classic Sino-Vietnamese training and his more conservative approach to aesthetics in general. Phan Chanh particularly enjoyed picturing the fundaments of rural Vietnamese society, depicting its protagonists and everyday activities with a certain reserve that nevertheless were imbued with serenity.
The following Lot displays, in the finest way, the artist's habitual use of a restrained chromatic palette - an amalgamation of sombre colors and diluted earth tones that he applied in bold patches. A further characteristic is the stillness and almost passive attitude we encounter in the contained expression of his figures. Absorbed by her work and pensive, the young cook here personifies the silence that characterizes Phan Chanh's authentic Vietnamese style.