Lot 109: Pang Xunqin , 1906-1985 Yunnan Chrysanthemum oil on canvas

signed in Chinese in the lower right signed in Chinese on reverse framed Executed in 1970-1979 oil on canvas

measurements note 47 by 38.5cm.; 18 1/2 by 15 1/4in.

Born at the turn of the 20υth century, Pang Xunqin studied in France in the 1920s and was thoroughly entranced by the prevalent art movements of the time. The bright colors of Fauvism and the intricate brushwork of Impressionism inspired him greatly. Pang Xunqin's earlier works demonstrated influences of Cubism, Purism, Futurism and other Western art movements. Although his styles underwent dramatic changes due to social and political flux post-1949, vestiges of his art education in Europe remained in his later work. The path that Pang Xunqin chose in his reinterpretation of Chinese art was an endeavour that many western-trained artists including Lin Fengmian, Ni Yide, Wu Dayu and several others undertook in their quest to rejuvenate Chinese art through adapting styles and elements of Western art. As one of the principle founders of the Storm Society, the earliest modernist art group in the 1930s, Pang Xunqin devoted his early years to promoting western modernism and using it to deal with subjects of concurrent social issues. Son of Earth, for example, painted in 1934, depicts the devastating consequences of a famine in Jiangsu Province. By using the typical colours of Purism and by accurately adapting the format of pieta, Pang captures the heartbreaking emotion of a couple mourning the loss of their son. Mostly executed in oil on canvas with expressive brushwork and vivid colours, flower paintings were the most representative genre of Pang's late style. Graceful, passionate and delicate, Yannan Chrysanthemum in this auction is such an example, revealing a synergy of his early education of modernism and his search for a "Chineseness" in oil painting in his later years. In this work, the background and the vase have been painted with quick brushstrokes typical of Impressionism, while the flowers themselves have been carefully outlined, retaining characteristics of traditional Chinese flower painting. This combination of Western and Eastern art painting techniques can only be found in works of an artist who has both a solid training in Western oil painting and a profound understanding of Chinese art. During the Anti-Japanese war, Pang was relocated to the southwest of China. In Kunming, he was recommended by Liang Sicheng to join the preparation committee of the Central Museum. It was there that Pang was exposed to and developed a passion for the beauty of classical Chinese art. The emphasis on outlines and the effect of ink washes in this painting were very likely influenced by traditional Chinese art.