Lot 103: Li Meishu , 1902-1983 Sansia Mansion Old Street oil on canvas

signed BAI in the lower right, framed Executed in 1930 oil on canvas

measurements note 39 by 69cm.; 15 7/8 by 27 1/4in.

The precursory artists' materpieces of Taiwan, Taiwan, June 1996, p.10.

Li Meishu belonged to the first generation of Taiwan artists who went to study art in Japan. He studied at the Tokyo Art School. Upon returning to Taiwan in the 1930s, along with Chen Chengbo and Liao Jichun, he attracted the attention of the art world. Contrary to the post-Impressionist styles of Chen Chengbo and Liao Jichun, Li Meishu's paintings are more subdued and academic. In Street behind Sanxiao Gongguan, he uses warmer palette of colors and a tighter brushwork. Black outlines are emphasized. In his art, figures, landscapes and scenery have a Gauguinesque aesthetic of primitivism while juxtaposing seriousness with a naiveté.