.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Chen Yifei was one of the first Chinese artists permitted to move to the United States to study art in 1980, and this, along with the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976, prompted a departure from the Socialist Realist style that won him his position as a respected artist in China's Communist party, painting scenes that glorified Communist values. This transition enabled Chen to explore Western influences and styles such as Impressionism, and create a convergence between the East and the West.
An example of Chen Yifei’s earlier landscape paintings, Water Town · Wavelet (Lot 387) depicts a peaceful river scene in Chen's native Zhejiang province. During a trip to Europe in the summer of 1982, Chen painted the canals of Venice, and was inspired upon his return to paint similar river scenes in his native Zhejiang province. These paintings, including Water Town · Wavelet, allow for interesting comparison of the divergent, yet comparable, landscape and architecture of the East and West, and illustrate the unique amalgam of Eastern and Western influences that can be found in many of Chen's works. Painted four years after Chen's European trip, Water Town · Wavelet differs from earlier paintings of its kind in its realistic quality, illustrating a departure from Chen's earlier impressionistic style and foreshadowing his later Romantic Realism, which can be seen in his cinematic depictions of scenes and people, particularly women. However, a degree of impressionism remains in the painting's visible brushstrokes, which can be seen in the artist's depiction of the irregular tiles on the roofs of the riverside houses. Chen has captured the reflection of light on the tiles through bold dabs of grey paint, creating a sense of three dimensionality and depth, which is also facilitated by Chen's habitual use of oil paint. The painting's muted tones are also characteristic of Chen's landscapes, and contribute towards the placid nature of the scene depicted.
An example of Chen Yifei’s earlier landscape paintings, Water Town · Wavelet (Lot 387) depicts a peaceful river scene in Chen's native Zhejiang province. During a trip to Europe in the summer of 1982, Chen painted the canals of Venice, and was inspired upon his return to paint similar river scenes in his native Zhejiang province. These paintings, including Water Town · Wavelet, allow for interesting comparison of the divergent, yet comparable, landscape and architecture of the East and West, and illustrate the unique amalgam of Eastern and Western influences that can be found in many of Chen's works. Painted four years after Chen's European trip, Water Town · Wavelet differs from earlier paintings of its kind in its realistic quality, illustrating a departure from Chen's earlier impressionistic style and foreshadowing his later Romantic Realism, which can be seen in his cinematic depictions of scenes and people, particularly women. However, a degree of impressionism remains in the painting's visible brushstrokes, which can be seen in the artist's depiction of the irregular tiles on the roofs of the riverside houses. Chen has captured the reflection of light on the tiles through bold dabs of grey paint, creating a sense of three dimensionality and depth, which is also facilitated by Chen's habitual use of oil paint. The painting's muted tones are also characteristic of Chen's landscapes, and contribute towards the placid nature of the scene depicted.