Lot 660: LI MEI SHU

LI MEI SHU
(1902-1983)
Sunset
signed and titled 'Mei Shu; River Sunset' in Pinyin & Chinese (lower right & on reverse)
oil on canvas
39 x 29.5 cm. (15 1/4 x 11 1/2 in.)

Artist Publishing Co., Taiwan Fine Art Series 5 - Li Mei Shu, Taipei, Taiwan, 1992, p. 220. (illustrated)
Unique Art International Co., Paintings of Li Mei Shu, Taipei , Taiwan, 1997, p. 37. (illustrated)
Society of Tainan Art Collection, 2000 Taiwan Art - Part II, Tainan, Taiwan, 2000, p. 24. (illustrated)

The themes of Li Meishu's work are largely drawn from his native home of Taiwan, and frequently reveal the deep feeling of the artist close observation of the land. Li's early work shows him absorbing Western techniques for use in his painting of local scenes, along with a gradual shift from a European academic approach and toward a more post-Impressionist style. After the 1950s, Li's work transitioned toward a more directly realist approach in which both portraits and landscape paintings emphasized the depiction of natural outdoor light. In Sunset (Lot 660), Li borrows the color palette of the Impressionists for his depiction of sunset behind the mountains. The painting's composition is generally stable, while the arcing line of figures in brightly colored clothing that decorate the foreground attracts the eye of the viewer, pulling it toward the center of the painting.
The scene presented by Li Meishu in Sunset has a specific historical background, as well as being a faithful representation of scenery in the Sanxia area of northern Taiwan. Taiwan in the 1950s and '60s, like elsewhere, modernism was having a strong impact on the art scene, but while other artists were working to develop abstract styles, Li Meishu kept his distance from the crowd and stubbornly adhered
to the presentation of real, natural subjects. This partly grew out of the artist's rich feeling for his home country, but in addition, Li's leading role in the renovation of the Sanxia Qing Shui Temple brought him into closer acquaintance with Taiwan's folk arts and traditional culture. Sunset is thus a work in which Li, on the one hand, engages in a naturalistic portrayal of the visual elements of the scene, but in addition, it shows him moving toward greater realism, reflecting on true features of the life around him in an exploration of the inner spirit of the land and people.