Landscape / Seven-character Calligraphic Couplet in Running Script

Details

XIE ZHILIU (1910-1997) / CHEN PEIQIU (1922-2020)
Landscape / Seven-character Calligraphic Couplet in Running Script
A set of three scrolls, mounted and framed, ink and colour / ink on paper
Landscape measures 87.5 x 34.2 cm. (34 ½ x 13 ½ in.)
(3)Inscribed and signed by Xie Zhiliu, with two seals
Seven-character Calligraphic Couplet in Running Script each scroll measures
87.5 x 14.7 cm. (34 ½ x 5 ¾ in.)
Signed by Chen Peiqiu, with two seals

Further Details

THE FOH COLLECTION OF CHINESE PAINTINGS

Assembled by Singapore-based collectors Mr Foh Kim Hong and his wife, Ms Chan Siew Fong, the Foh Collection celebrates five decades of life and partnership. Mr Foh was born in Malaysia, and upon graduating from Taiwan Normal University in music, he settled in Singapore and became a professional cellist for the newly formed Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Ms Chan grew up in Singapore and studied design at the prestigious art college Central Saint Martin’s in London. In the 1960s, she met and befriended renowned Singaporean artist Cheong Soo Pieng in London and also encountered artists such as Zao Wou-ki, Chu Te-Chun and Sanyu when she travelled to Paris.
The couple began collecting Chinese contemporary art in the late 1960s. Their different backgrounds and personalities have resulted in an impressively curated, diverse collection of Chinese paintings from the late Qing Dynasty to the late 1990s, showcasing masterpieces across the spectrum, from traditional literati pieces to bolder, more modern and abstract works. Subsequently, in the early 1990s, the Fohs founded Yuen Gallery, after Mr Foh had completed his time with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. The gallery was welcomed by Chinese painting connoisseurs in Singapore, Southeast Asia and beyond, and the Fohs have been advising many new and seasoned collectors with Mr Foh’s encyclopedic knowledge of Chinese art and provenance. Yuen Gallery organized many exhibitions featuring modern and contemporary ink artists such as Wu Guanzhong, Hong Yi, Li Keran, Lu Yanshao, Wu Zuoren, Zhu Qizhan, and Wang Jiqian. Mr Foh met Zhao Shao’ang on his visit to Hong Kong in the spring of 1992, which led to their collaboration on Zhao’s solo show at Yuen Gallery in 1995, Zhao Shao’ang – A Sixty-Year Retrospective.
Since Mr and Mrs Foh’s retirement in the last few years, their son, Foh Kai Lik has taken an active role in managing and shaping the future of the collection. In May 2023, the Foh family collaborated with Christie’s to present an exhibition of their cherished collection. Just as art has given light and joy to their lives, the family would like to see the collection supporting those who find it challenging to appreciate the world in all its beauty, particularly children with autism and special needs and elderly living with cognitive decline. The Foh family will donate all sale proceeds to support these causes.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Carmen Shek Cerne (石嘉雯) Vice President, Head of Department, Chinese Paintings

cshek@christies.com +852 2978 9981

Lot Essay

Note:
Xie Zhiliu inscribed that he employed the Northern Song technique to paint the present work and drew inspiration from Fan Kuan’s towering peaks, steep mountains, and dense forests on the mountaintops with cascading waterfalls in between. However, he chose to use the long brushstrokes of Dong Yuan instead of Fan Kuan’s scratching iron strokes to delineate the textures of the mountains. A light green hue was fittingly used to depict the softer soil of the southern mountain range, adding a sense of translucency and calmness to the towering grandeur. This visual harmony reflects the natural scenery the artist often saw and appreciated in Shanghai. Xie Zhiliu’s unique talent lies in his ability to study and draw inspiration from ancient techniques without being bound by them.

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