BLACK AND WHITE

After graduating from the Shanghai Art Academy, Walasse Ting stayed in Hong Kong briefly before moving to Paris in the early 1950s. In his earlier works, spontaneity and experimentation were two of his core concepts. He arrived New York in 1958 and created the present piece Black and White (Lot 368) in the same year. While the vigor and strength in his brushstroke and the dark colour scheme stem from aesthetics of Chinese calligraphy, the drips, broad strokes and gestural expressions suggest his participation the prevailing Abstract Expressionism in New York. The canvas is bursting with organic liveliness, reminding us of Jackson Pollock's action painting and the artistic vision of Art Informel and CoBrA. In 1959, the Martha Jackson Gallery in New York mounted the first solo exhibition of Walasse Ting in New York and Black and White was among the show, attesting its significance. As one of the most important testing grounds for post-war contemporary art in New York, Martha Jackson Gallery has contributed in promoting many of the great Abstract Expressionists including Willem de Kooning and Sam Francis. They were also one of the first patrons of Japanese Gutai artists such as Kazuo Shiraga. Not only is Black and White an exceptional piece that demonstrates Walasse Ting's abstract philosophy, it testifies the artist's effort in advocating Abstract Expressionism as an active member of the movement.