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THE FOH COLLECTION OF CHINESE PAINTINGS (LOTS 1104-1123)
XU BEIHONG (1895-1953)
Two Ducks
Details
XU BEIHONG (1895-1953)
Two Ducks
Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper
109.5 x 48.2 cm. (43 1⁄8 x 19 in.)
Entitled, inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist
Dated summer, renshen year (1932)
Dedicated to Tian’en
NOTE:
The dedication refers to Huang Tian’en, the sixth son of Huang Yizhu (1868-1945), a sugar magnate in Indonesia. The Huang family was influential in the early 20th century and supported the establishment of banks and public service institutions in Xiamen. In 1921, Huang Yizhu also founded the China & South Sea Bank.
In 1930, Xu Beihong published an article in The Young Companion magazine: “Upon departing Paris, I stopped by Singapore in the autumn of 1925, where I frequently met with tycoons Chen Jiageng and Huang Tian’en.” Xu also gifted a painting titled Honeymoon to Huang Tian’en and his wife; the painting is now in the collection at the Xu Beihong Memorial Museum in Beijing.
- Collector’s note
Two Ducks
Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper
109.5 x 48.2 cm. (43 1⁄8 x 19 in.)
Entitled, inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist
Dated summer, renshen year (1932)
Dedicated to Tian’en
NOTE:
The dedication refers to Huang Tian’en, the sixth son of Huang Yizhu (1868-1945), a sugar magnate in Indonesia. The Huang family was influential in the early 20th century and supported the establishment of banks and public service institutions in Xiamen. In 1921, Huang Yizhu also founded the China & South Sea Bank.
In 1930, Xu Beihong published an article in The Young Companion magazine: “Upon departing Paris, I stopped by Singapore in the autumn of 1925, where I frequently met with tycoons Chen Jiageng and Huang Tian’en.” Xu also gifted a painting titled Honeymoon to Huang Tian’en and his wife; the painting is now in the collection at the Xu Beihong Memorial Museum in Beijing.
- Collector’s note
Provenance
Previously from a Singaporean private collector.
Christie’s Hong Kong, Fine Chinese Modern Paintings, 28 May 2007, lot 1106.
Christie’s Hong Kong, Fine Chinese Modern Paintings, 28 May 2007, lot 1106.
Literature
Xu Beihong in Nanyang, Singapore Art Museum, April 2008, p.303, pl.69.
Exhibited
Singapore Art Museum, Xu Beihong in Nanyang, 5 April-13 July, 2008.
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.
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.
Brought to you by
Carmen Shek Cerne (石嘉雯)
Vice President, Head of Department, Chinese Paintings