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Lot Essay
Born in 1948, Qiu Deshu founded Grass Group in 1979, where he unleashed his creative energies. Six years later, Qiu traveled to Tufts University as a visiting scholar, and began experimenting with propylene glycol to enrich the visual effects of traditional ink art - an element that the latter is widely considered deficient in.
In the making of "fissuring," Qiu wetted the Rice paper, and tore i t into pieces with a sharp instrument. The result is the deckle edge - generated by the distinctive, tensile texture of the Rice paper. On the bottom-layer Rice paper, serving as the foundation for colouring, Qiu etched and grinded layers of torn Rice paper on top to ensure a greater variance of transparency and shades. In Fissuring - Divine Tree (Lot 48), the artist applied dark gray ink to the background, and fanned out the torn Rice paper in a collage. The valleys are crammed with torn Rice paper of various sizes in abstract, geometrical patterns, vividly bringing to life the great depths of the abyss and the infiniteness of the universe. The visual impact is simply overwhelming.
"Fissuring" also bears a great resemblance to collage, a form of western art, and it invokes images of Analytical Cubism, an art movement widely embraced by Pablo Picasso and George Braque in the early 20th century. The assemblage of irregular geometrical patterns in Qiu's work outlines an archetype with the vestige of Analytical Cubism and Deconstructionism. Nevertheless, Qiu's work successfully reenacts the spirit of "Tao" in Chinese philosophy - an intense interest in the vicissitude of the universe.
Note the coloured plant - the "Divine tree" - on the foreground of the picture. It says in Enjoyment in Untroubled Ease by Zhuangzi that "There was an awe-inspiring great tree in ancient times; for the tree, springtime lasts eight thousand years; and autumn, another eight thousand years." The continuum of time personified by the divine tree, and the infinitude of the spatial background constitute a fascinating contrast of a new dimension. The vibrant colours, in addition to their catchiness, also convey a hopeful longing for life, and they blend seamlessly into Qiu's transcendental expression.
Born in Shanghai in 1948. Qiu Deshu visited Tufts University as a residence artist from 1985 to 1986. In early 1980s he discovered "cracks" during the making of the art work and then started using "fissuring" as his unique artistic language. The exhibitions he has participated include: Fissuring--Qiu Deshu, Goedhuis Contemporary, New York, USA (2003); Fissuring-Qiu Deshu New Works, Changliu Art Museum, Taiwan (2005); International Contemporary Chinese Water-Ink Exhibition, Asian Cultural Center Gallery in New York, USA (2006); Qiu Deshu - Ten years after "Grass Grass Group, Shanghai Duolun Contemporary Art Museum, Shanghai, China (2007); Fissuring -Buildings & Courtyard Latest works from Qiu Deshu Exhibition; New Works by Fission, Shanghai Grand Theater Gallery, Shanghai, China(2011).
In the making of "fissuring," Qiu wetted the Rice paper, and tore i t into pieces with a sharp instrument. The result is the deckle edge - generated by the distinctive, tensile texture of the Rice paper. On the bottom-layer Rice paper, serving as the foundation for colouring, Qiu etched and grinded layers of torn Rice paper on top to ensure a greater variance of transparency and shades. In Fissuring - Divine Tree (Lot 48), the artist applied dark gray ink to the background, and fanned out the torn Rice paper in a collage. The valleys are crammed with torn Rice paper of various sizes in abstract, geometrical patterns, vividly bringing to life the great depths of the abyss and the infiniteness of the universe. The visual impact is simply overwhelming.
"Fissuring" also bears a great resemblance to collage, a form of western art, and it invokes images of Analytical Cubism, an art movement widely embraced by Pablo Picasso and George Braque in the early 20th century. The assemblage of irregular geometrical patterns in Qiu's work outlines an archetype with the vestige of Analytical Cubism and Deconstructionism. Nevertheless, Qiu's work successfully reenacts the spirit of "Tao" in Chinese philosophy - an intense interest in the vicissitude of the universe.
Note the coloured plant - the "Divine tree" - on the foreground of the picture. It says in Enjoyment in Untroubled Ease by Zhuangzi that "There was an awe-inspiring great tree in ancient times; for the tree, springtime lasts eight thousand years; and autumn, another eight thousand years." The continuum of time personified by the divine tree, and the infinitude of the spatial background constitute a fascinating contrast of a new dimension. The vibrant colours, in addition to their catchiness, also convey a hopeful longing for life, and they blend seamlessly into Qiu's transcendental expression.
Born in Shanghai in 1948. Qiu Deshu visited Tufts University as a residence artist from 1985 to 1986. In early 1980s he discovered "cracks" during the making of the art work and then started using "fissuring" as his unique artistic language. The exhibitions he has participated include: Fissuring--Qiu Deshu, Goedhuis Contemporary, New York, USA (2003); Fissuring-Qiu Deshu New Works, Changliu Art Museum, Taiwan (2005); International Contemporary Chinese Water-Ink Exhibition, Asian Cultural Center Gallery in New York, USA (2006); Qiu Deshu - Ten years after "Grass Grass Group, Shanghai Duolun Contemporary Art Museum, Shanghai, China (2007); Fissuring -Buildings & Courtyard Latest works from Qiu Deshu Exhibition; New Works by Fission, Shanghai Grand Theater Gallery, Shanghai, China(2011).