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Lot Essay
'...there exists a similar paradox between the magnified reality of these often twice-lifesize figures and the material presence of the surfaceK The presence is very physical, a landscape quality almost, monoliths against the sea or sky.' - Nick Wadley
Chen Yifei was born in Zhejiang, China in 1946. As a young, talented artist, he was rigorously trained in Academic Realism at the Shanghai College of Art. Chen was not afraid to draw inspiration from unconventional sources, such as popular illustrated books and film-Russian and Polish films were available in Shanghai at the time. At the onset of the Cultural Revolution Chen was frequently sent to Beijing to paint major public propaganda works. These were met with wide acclaim, but were also criticized for their interpretive colours that were viewed as 'impressionistic' and 'capitalistic.' Chen would later refer to this period as the toughest in his life, both physiologically and physically. But the end of the cultural revolution brought with it artistic liberation and a new influx of western influences. In the early 1980's Chen moved to New York where he immersed himself in Western Art while he worked towards a Master's degree at Hunter College. The photorealist movement taking place in the US at the time provided a fertile ground for Chen's stylistic development. Artists such as Gerhard Richter advocated utilizing realist techniques and photographic phenomena in painting, challenging the boundaries of perception and reality. Chen had a series of solo exhibitions at Hammer Galleries, New York, beginning in 1983, where his elegant portraits and alluring Water Canal paintings were exceedingly well received. Merging realism and photographic phenomena with the values of beauty, mood and spirituality from Chinese art, Chen Yifei developed what the New York Times and Art News called 'Romantic Realism' in their reviews of his 1984 solo exhibition.
In the late 1980s and early 1990's Chen began to spend more time in Asia, continuing to expand his oeuvre in both subject matter and medium. His visit to Tibet prompted his first series of paintings inspired by what he perceived as the profundity and spirituality of life on the Tibetan plateau. He painted the first version of Father and Son (Tibet) (Fig. 1) during this time. The two figures in this painting are rendered in painstaking detail with vibrant colour and polished surface in a modern, photorealistic image. It was also during this time that Chen made his first foray into film with Old Dreams at Sea, an autobiographical documentary. 1995 was a momentous year for Chen, during which his second film, Evening Liaison, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, receiving international recognition. He also signed a contract with Marlborough Fine Art and began preparing for what would be his first solo exhibition in China, aptly titled 'The Homecoming of Chen Yifei.' To do so, he returned to Tibet, and in this year, painted the present lot, Father and Son (Tibet) (1995) (Lot 38). The monumental scale, limited palette, dynamic composition, and new brush techniques in this work demonstrate the innovations that the medium of filmography and the subject of the human spirit brought to his oeuvre.
To encounter Father and Son (Tibet) (1995) is to encounter its churning textures, earthy palette and dramatic chiaroscuro, all of which are amplified in impact by the large cinematic scale of the work. The viewer's eye is immediately drawn to the brightest point in the image, the father's face, which is illuminated by a golden glow that accentuates the furrows in his brow and the wrinkles around his eyes. The thick impasto is rendered with rhythmic brush strokes, bringing the surface to life with an earth-like texture. The impressionistic brushstrokes give the father's skin a coarse, weather-worn appearance while the brushstrokes in the background lend a materiality to the negative space. The dramatic chiaroscuro in this image creates an air of heroism or otherworldliness, recalling the use of light in Renaissance paintings once used to illuminate divine or historically significant scenes. Perhaps more pertinent is the use of chiaroscuro as a lighting technique in cinematography. Nighttime scenes from Chen's Evening Liaison, in which the intimate relationship between the two protagonists plays out, are similarly illuminated by a single light source against a dark backdrop (Fig. 2).
In Father and Son, the father's gaze is not on his son but over him in the distance, as if he is on the lookout. The son's gaze is cast on the ground in front of him, his face half shrouded in shadow, disconnected from his surroundings and his father. The stoic dynamic between the two figures portrays the unspoken power of the father-son bond. As Armand Hammer wrote, '[Chen Yifei] was impressed with the strength and extraordinary vitality of the Tibetan people and with the warm protectiveness of their attitude toward their children. While stressing the human feeling of the Tibetans on the one hand, he has also painted the stark reality of their world.' Comparing the present lot with Chen's earlier version of Father and Son, it is clear that artist has reduced the image to its most important elements, and magnified them in scale. The space between the two figures is eliminated, the palette reduced, the background emptied and the dramatic lighting illuminates only the faces and the loosely rendered fur on the father's coat. Utilizing cinematographic techniques such as cropped framing and a close-up perspective, the two figures are pulled together in a tighter, square composition that frames and intensifies their interaction. These elements combine to elevate the emotion and relationship between the two subjects. The present lot is representative of what Armand Hammer described as Chen's 'strong, new Realism,' which 'alludes to a higher reality that goes beyond the appearances of his subjects to their spirit.'
The root searching movement (xungen) in the late 1980s and 1990s prompted many artists and writers to portray the lives of ethnic minorities in their work, sharing a common desire to reconstruct the national identity through what was perceived as the pure, untarnished ideals of cultures unmarred by history and modernity. The important work by director Chen Kaige and cinematographer Zhang Yimou, Yellow (1984) (Fig. 5), is representative of the nostalgic root searching sentiment in the realm of film. This inward gazing movement was also an important moment in Chinese Realism, spawning Luo Zhongli's historic work, Father (1980) (Fig. 3), Chen Danqing's Tibetan Series (Fig. 4), as well as the ethnic minority paintings of Ai Xuan, He Duoling and Cheng Conglin. In Chen Yifei's Tibetan Series, images of kinship and emotional bonds are modeled with solidity and substance. Where Chen Yifei distinguished himself was his commitment to always move forward, even whilst looking back in time. Most evident in his images of the Tibetan life is his innovation to combine his classical influences with the use of techniques from modern cinematography to portray the atavistic and unmodernised. Karl Ruhrberg wrote of Chen's personal style as 'Ka monumentalised form of impressionism, allied to the format of cinemascope.' Chen bridged contradictions: he merged the classical and modern, found heroism and skillfully captured photorealism with the gestural brush of artistic impulse.
Father and Son (Tibet), 1995, is a historic work- it has represented China and exhibited in XLVII Venice Biennale, China Pavilion. The painting is the cover of the exhibition catalogue (Fig. 6). With its profound humanism and romanticism, this painting is an iconic work from Chen Yifei's Tibetan Series, wherein the universality and sanctity of the parent-and-child bonds are captured with dynamism on a monumental scale. Christie's is thrilled to present Father and Son (Tibet) in this Evening Sale, a work that is undoubtedly representative of the innovation and idealism that fuelled Chen Yifei's fruitful career.
Chen Yifei was born in Zhejiang, China in 1946. As a young, talented artist, he was rigorously trained in Academic Realism at the Shanghai College of Art. Chen was not afraid to draw inspiration from unconventional sources, such as popular illustrated books and film-Russian and Polish films were available in Shanghai at the time. At the onset of the Cultural Revolution Chen was frequently sent to Beijing to paint major public propaganda works. These were met with wide acclaim, but were also criticized for their interpretive colours that were viewed as 'impressionistic' and 'capitalistic.' Chen would later refer to this period as the toughest in his life, both physiologically and physically. But the end of the cultural revolution brought with it artistic liberation and a new influx of western influences. In the early 1980's Chen moved to New York where he immersed himself in Western Art while he worked towards a Master's degree at Hunter College. The photorealist movement taking place in the US at the time provided a fertile ground for Chen's stylistic development. Artists such as Gerhard Richter advocated utilizing realist techniques and photographic phenomena in painting, challenging the boundaries of perception and reality. Chen had a series of solo exhibitions at Hammer Galleries, New York, beginning in 1983, where his elegant portraits and alluring Water Canal paintings were exceedingly well received. Merging realism and photographic phenomena with the values of beauty, mood and spirituality from Chinese art, Chen Yifei developed what the New York Times and Art News called 'Romantic Realism' in their reviews of his 1984 solo exhibition.
In the late 1980s and early 1990's Chen began to spend more time in Asia, continuing to expand his oeuvre in both subject matter and medium. His visit to Tibet prompted his first series of paintings inspired by what he perceived as the profundity and spirituality of life on the Tibetan plateau. He painted the first version of Father and Son (Tibet) (Fig. 1) during this time. The two figures in this painting are rendered in painstaking detail with vibrant colour and polished surface in a modern, photorealistic image. It was also during this time that Chen made his first foray into film with Old Dreams at Sea, an autobiographical documentary. 1995 was a momentous year for Chen, during which his second film, Evening Liaison, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, receiving international recognition. He also signed a contract with Marlborough Fine Art and began preparing for what would be his first solo exhibition in China, aptly titled 'The Homecoming of Chen Yifei.' To do so, he returned to Tibet, and in this year, painted the present lot, Father and Son (Tibet) (1995) (Lot 38). The monumental scale, limited palette, dynamic composition, and new brush techniques in this work demonstrate the innovations that the medium of filmography and the subject of the human spirit brought to his oeuvre.
To encounter Father and Son (Tibet) (1995) is to encounter its churning textures, earthy palette and dramatic chiaroscuro, all of which are amplified in impact by the large cinematic scale of the work. The viewer's eye is immediately drawn to the brightest point in the image, the father's face, which is illuminated by a golden glow that accentuates the furrows in his brow and the wrinkles around his eyes. The thick impasto is rendered with rhythmic brush strokes, bringing the surface to life with an earth-like texture. The impressionistic brushstrokes give the father's skin a coarse, weather-worn appearance while the brushstrokes in the background lend a materiality to the negative space. The dramatic chiaroscuro in this image creates an air of heroism or otherworldliness, recalling the use of light in Renaissance paintings once used to illuminate divine or historically significant scenes. Perhaps more pertinent is the use of chiaroscuro as a lighting technique in cinematography. Nighttime scenes from Chen's Evening Liaison, in which the intimate relationship between the two protagonists plays out, are similarly illuminated by a single light source against a dark backdrop (Fig. 2).
In Father and Son, the father's gaze is not on his son but over him in the distance, as if he is on the lookout. The son's gaze is cast on the ground in front of him, his face half shrouded in shadow, disconnected from his surroundings and his father. The stoic dynamic between the two figures portrays the unspoken power of the father-son bond. As Armand Hammer wrote, '[Chen Yifei] was impressed with the strength and extraordinary vitality of the Tibetan people and with the warm protectiveness of their attitude toward their children. While stressing the human feeling of the Tibetans on the one hand, he has also painted the stark reality of their world.' Comparing the present lot with Chen's earlier version of Father and Son, it is clear that artist has reduced the image to its most important elements, and magnified them in scale. The space between the two figures is eliminated, the palette reduced, the background emptied and the dramatic lighting illuminates only the faces and the loosely rendered fur on the father's coat. Utilizing cinematographic techniques such as cropped framing and a close-up perspective, the two figures are pulled together in a tighter, square composition that frames and intensifies their interaction. These elements combine to elevate the emotion and relationship between the two subjects. The present lot is representative of what Armand Hammer described as Chen's 'strong, new Realism,' which 'alludes to a higher reality that goes beyond the appearances of his subjects to their spirit.'
The root searching movement (xungen) in the late 1980s and 1990s prompted many artists and writers to portray the lives of ethnic minorities in their work, sharing a common desire to reconstruct the national identity through what was perceived as the pure, untarnished ideals of cultures unmarred by history and modernity. The important work by director Chen Kaige and cinematographer Zhang Yimou, Yellow (1984) (Fig. 5), is representative of the nostalgic root searching sentiment in the realm of film. This inward gazing movement was also an important moment in Chinese Realism, spawning Luo Zhongli's historic work, Father (1980) (Fig. 3), Chen Danqing's Tibetan Series (Fig. 4), as well as the ethnic minority paintings of Ai Xuan, He Duoling and Cheng Conglin. In Chen Yifei's Tibetan Series, images of kinship and emotional bonds are modeled with solidity and substance. Where Chen Yifei distinguished himself was his commitment to always move forward, even whilst looking back in time. Most evident in his images of the Tibetan life is his innovation to combine his classical influences with the use of techniques from modern cinematography to portray the atavistic and unmodernised. Karl Ruhrberg wrote of Chen's personal style as 'Ka monumentalised form of impressionism, allied to the format of cinemascope.' Chen bridged contradictions: he merged the classical and modern, found heroism and skillfully captured photorealism with the gestural brush of artistic impulse.
Father and Son (Tibet), 1995, is a historic work- it has represented China and exhibited in XLVII Venice Biennale, China Pavilion. The painting is the cover of the exhibition catalogue (Fig. 6). With its profound humanism and romanticism, this painting is an iconic work from Chen Yifei's Tibetan Series, wherein the universality and sanctity of the parent-and-child bonds are captured with dynamism on a monumental scale. Christie's is thrilled to present Father and Son (Tibet) in this Evening Sale, a work that is undoubtedly representative of the innovation and idealism that fuelled Chen Yifei's fruitful career.