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Lot Essay
As a sub-series of the Ethereal Cloud, Radiance is a sculptural set that materializes the spectacle of sunlight upon a boundless horizon, where the magnificence of nature is presented as invaluable and ephemeral. The depiction of light has been a popular subject in the history of painting, yet in the canon of sculpture, the presentation of such natural phenomenon has been neglected over the portrayal of figures. Hence, Li Chen’s Ethereal Cloud series is not only a reimagination of Eastern imagery, but also a breakthrough in the expression of sculptural art.
Radiance: Chiliadal Blossom (I) is inspired by an instance of hiking atop a mountain. Li Chen described the scene as “being devoured between the endless skyline of monumental mountains and surging clouds, the sun dissolves into radiant hues of melted gold.” Physically, he found himself immersed in a sea of swelling clouds, bathed soothingly by the mild refraction of sunlight, as if he were suspended in a spiritual world without shadows. Without any figurative representation, the presence of the sun is alluded through its blazing radiance, where the sculpture form of such incorporeal force leaves us both enthralled and curious of the collective brilliance between nature and man.
Radiance: Chiliadal Blossom (I) is inspired by an instance of hiking atop a mountain. Li Chen described the scene as “being devoured between the endless skyline of monumental mountains and surging clouds, the sun dissolves into radiant hues of melted gold.” Physically, he found himself immersed in a sea of swelling clouds, bathed soothingly by the mild refraction of sunlight, as if he were suspended in a spiritual world without shadows. Without any figurative representation, the presence of the sun is alluded through its blazing radiance, where the sculpture form of such incorporeal force leaves us both enthralled and curious of the collective brilliance between nature and man.