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Lot Essay
'Painting navigates deftly between two worlds: that of the visible, and that of thoughts. Ideal painting would bring them together, striving towards total expression'. 1. Interview with T'ang Haywen, by Jean-Paul Desroches. This interview was first published in the catalogue from the T'ang Haywen exhibition, first shown in 1983 at the Musée des Beaux arts de Quimper, and then in 1984 at the Musée du Château de Vitré in France.
Chinese artist T'ang Haywen played significant role in revolution of Chinese ink painting during his stay in France. He explored the full potential of the expressiveness of ink medium, elevating it into a universal language. T'ang Haywen saw Chinese ink painting as a mode of free expression. This diptych format became emblematic of T'ang's work and constitutes nothing less than an avant-garde breakthrough. It was a challenge to create every time different compositions within the restrictions of a unique format, but also a liberation of the painter's concern about the format of his next painting. T'ang did not bind the two sheets of paper while he was painting. Instead he allowed the brush to run across the surface of the paper even when the sheets were not perfectly aligned. T'ang pursued instantaneity, his works are expressions of his sub-consciousness. Free brushstrokes and curves found in three Untitled works (Lot 574, Lot 575 and Lot 576) are the elements of his private world which he communicates to the world outside. Brief and hasty brushstrokes display the chaos, while lines capture the silence. T 'ang's paintings are the territory of mysterious profundity showing the essence of Chinese philosophy – heaven and man are one, nature and man come together, and heart and mind unite. Most of the portraiture painted by T 'ang are his personal friends, for instance Man and Woman (Lot 577). T'ang embraced the world around him, never stopped travelling, searching for the unknown and meeting new friends. His sensitivity allowed him to depict the spirituality of the figures.
Chinese artist T'ang Haywen played significant role in revolution of Chinese ink painting during his stay in France. He explored the full potential of the expressiveness of ink medium, elevating it into a universal language. T'ang Haywen saw Chinese ink painting as a mode of free expression. This diptych format became emblematic of T'ang's work and constitutes nothing less than an avant-garde breakthrough. It was a challenge to create every time different compositions within the restrictions of a unique format, but also a liberation of the painter's concern about the format of his next painting. T'ang did not bind the two sheets of paper while he was painting. Instead he allowed the brush to run across the surface of the paper even when the sheets were not perfectly aligned. T'ang pursued instantaneity, his works are expressions of his sub-consciousness. Free brushstrokes and curves found in three Untitled works (Lot 574, Lot 575 and Lot 576) are the elements of his private world which he communicates to the world outside. Brief and hasty brushstrokes display the chaos, while lines capture the silence. T 'ang's paintings are the territory of mysterious profundity showing the essence of Chinese philosophy – heaven and man are one, nature and man come together, and heart and mind unite. Most of the portraiture painted by T 'ang are his personal friends, for instance Man and Woman (Lot 577). T'ang embraced the world around him, never stopped travelling, searching for the unknown and meeting new friends. His sensitivity allowed him to depict the spirituality of the figures.