CHU TEH-CHUN (ZHU DEQUN, 1920-2014)
CHU TEH-CHUN (ZHU DEQUN, 1920-2014)
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PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT ASIAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
CHU TEH-CHUN (ZHU DEQUN, 1920-2014)

Accord parfait (Perfect Harmony)

Details
CHU TEH-CHUN (ZHU DEQUN, 1920-2014)
Accord parfait (Perfect Harmony)
signed in Chinese and signed 'CHU TEH-CHUN', dated '07' (lower right); titled 'Accord Parfait', signed in Chinese and signed 'CHU TEH-CHUN', dated '2007' (on the reverse)
oil on canvas
130 x 190 cm. (51 1/8 x 76 3/4 in.)
Painted in 2007
Provenance
Marlborough Gallery, Madrid, Spain
Anon. Sale, Ravenel Taipei, 4 June 2017, Lot 318
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner
The authenticity of the artwork has been confirmed by Fondation Chu Teh-Chun, Geneva. If a certificate has not already been issued, a certificate of authenticity can be requested by the successful buyer.
Literature
Marlborough Gallery, Chu Teh-Chun, exh.cat., Madrid, Spain, 2007 (illustrated, p. 6).
National Museum of History & Thin Chang Corporation, Chu Teh-Chun 88 Retrospective, exh.cat., Taipei, Taiwan, 2008 (illustrated, p. 255).

Brought to you by

Jacky Ho (何善衡)
Jacky Ho (何善衡) Senior Vice President, Deputy Head of Department

Lot Essay

“When I paint, I feel urges that are powerful beyond words, as long as there’s canvas before me, my senses will swell and spill over.”
Chu Teh-Chun

While natural imagery such as streams, starry nights, and forests do appear occasionally in his later works, Chu’s focus at this point in his life was on the harmony of colours, and the delicate strokes in Accord parfait (Perfect Harmony) depict a rhythmic and energetic dance of colours, with the wafers of yellow, orange, and teal commingling to show off their vigour as well as contented joy. By this period, colourful spectrums had replaced the sense of isolation that characterised Chu’s early-mid period, and the elegance on display here reminds one of the sprightly colours of Fauvists and Impressionists like Cézanne (1839-1906) and Renoir (1841-1919), celebrating the artist’s individuality and liberty.

Chu noted that “Kandinsky’s creation of abstract art drew inspiration from Cézanne theories on painting, which in turn came from musical expression.” The musicality of Chu’s work is on full display in Accord parfait (Perfect Harmony) : the sonata of light, shadows, and rhythm on the canvas takes abstract art pioneer Kandinsky’s (1866-1944) reverence for music and takes it to the next level. Much like in the artist’s large scale abstract oil painting Symphonie festive , created for the Shanghai Opera House, Chu’s flowing and rich brushstrokes are married with dynamic cadence in Accord parfait (Perfect Harmony), reflecting his search for the utopian ideal of abstract art.

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