Wu Dayu

Lot Description WU DAYU (Chinese, 1903-1988) Rhythm - 34 oil on canvas 52.9 x 37.5 cm. (20 7/8 x 14 3/4 in.) Provenance Lin & Keng Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan Acquired from the above by the present owner Literature National Museum of History, Exhibition of Wu Da-yu's Paintings, Taipei, Taiwan, 2001 (illustrated, p. 41). Lin & Keng Gallery, Inc., Wu Dayu, Taipei, Taiwan, 2006 (illustrated, p. 90). Exhibited Taipei, Taiwan, National Museum of History, Exhibition of Wu Da-yu's Paintings, 9 March-8 April 2001. Beijing, China, Lin & Keng Gallery, Grand Opening Exhibition, 2007. View Lot Notes › In the mid-1920s, Chinese-born Wu Dayu went to France on a work-study program initiated by the Chinese government, making him among the first artists to participate in the exchange. Exposed to Fauvism, Impressionism, Cubism and the Paris School and Nabis in France, and personally greatly influenced by Paul C?zanne, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, Wu returned to China and devoted himself to teaching, reforming and cultivating modern Chinese art together with his students who, like Wu Guanzhong, Zao Wou-Ki and Chu Teh-Chun, would become the second generation of eminent artists notable for synthesizing Chinese and Western aesthetics. Wu's ideal was to liberate the rigid aesthetic traditions of the nation by a fundamental exploration into the nature of art. Despite his seeming rejection of his cultural legacy, he embraced the practice of Confucianism and Daoism, and integrated it successfully with Western philosophy and art making in his endeavour to introduce modern art from the West and develop new school of paintings for China. Wu had a deep, personal response to nature as he believed that "painting is the artist's response to nature and is a fleeting glimpse of the truth of the universe." Observing his environment and nature's mood, Wu transferred them onto his canvas in a stylistically innovative approach to colour aesthetics. Investigating colour theory, the complementary palette, Wu illustrated the feeling of spontaneity and emotional intensity of Abstract Expressionism, consciously grounding himself by pertaining to the theoretical imperative of Cubism by analyzing, re-assembling objects in abstracted form to cultivate his Daoist principles as the foundation of his artistic creation. In this manner, Wu integrated the Western and Asian ideologies. Reflecting on his period in France, Wu stated, "I was studying at the time, and was very interested in all those that came after Impressionism, because everything before that has been concluded by others. As for post-Impressionism, things are still under development. One must maintain one's art in a drifting state, and constantly develop it. I admire Picasso, Matisse. They were ceaseless in their creation. They never enjoy remaining at their own standard, they are the springboard for their followers." While Rhythm 34 (Lot 2121) reveals Wu's upholding of the Eastern way of living and cosmology, he adopted Picasso's aesthetic view in which he compressed the objects and natural forms and divided them into simple geometrical shapes. Under his rich brushwork, enlivened lines and interwoven colour patches, the upper portion of Rhythm 34 seems to have hidden a person's face. As with French artist, Fernand Leger's Naked Model in the Workshop (Fig 1), the female nude is represented by geometrical shapes of colour surfaces, and thick black lines. Wu was courageous enough to study the topic of colour, an area that is not commonly discussed within Chinese traditional ink art. In Chinese paintings, there is a theory of the five basic colours of ink. Within an ink painting, even though only a single ink colour was applied, changes in colours can still be created to perfectly represent the objects. "Ink in five basic colours" stands for "dry, wet, dense, light and charred". If we add in "white", there are already six shades of colour. Wu merged the traditional Chinese way of applying ink with the Western colour theory. Western artists treat colours as elements that can express independent qualities. For example, Wassily Kandinsky has once said, "Colours directly touched the human soul." Western paints were used in Rhythm 34 , yet the way the paint has been applied carried the force commonly used in Chinese ink painting. The artist brushes across the surface with large paintbrush, allowing the paint to present different layers and texture such as thick, thin, heavy and light. Although the work uses black, white and blue as his dominant palette, different shades of blue are produced that includes greyish, vivid and light blue tones. The effect is unpredictable between the scattered brushstrokes and the dense overlay, creating a spatial setting that is akin to having a foreground, background and main body. Wu deliberately added in the "white" mentioned in the six shades of colour. At first, it has the implication of "leaving blank", yet Wu added in heavy layers of white colour patches. As he left different areas of white around the painting, he creates gradation in light and shades within the painting. Wu Dayu in a pioneering position unique in the field, for he set forth his quest for pure colour aesthetic in beauty and abstraction before the epoch would allow, and his works, with their marks of modernism, and aestheticism, echoed remotely with the Western waves of Fauvism and Abstract Expressionism, laying, by means of guidance, a solid foundation for the development of a distinctly Chinese Modern art.

WU DAYU (Chinese, 1903-1988) Untitled seven crayon on paper each: 14.5 x 10 cm. (5 3/4 x 3 7/8 in.) (7) (7) Lin & Keng Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan Acquired from the above by the present owner Lin & Keng Gallery, Inc., Wu Da-Yu - Works on Paper I, Taipei, Taiwan, 2010 (illustrated, p. 30, 93, 224, 225 & 308). Lin & Keng Gallery, Inc., Wu Da-Yu - Works on Paper II, Taipei, Taiwan, 2010 (illustrated, pp. 81-82).

LOT 633 WU DAYU 1903-1988 RHYMES OF BEIJING OPERA NO. 52 oil on canvas, mounted on board 1,800,000—2,500,000 HKD 52.6 by 37.6 cm.; 20 5/8 by 14 7/8 in. PROVENANCE Private Asian Collection EXHIBITED Taipei, National Museum of History, Exhibition of Wu Dayu'sPaintings, March-April, 2001 LITERATURE AND REFERENCES Exhibition of Wu Dayu's Paintings, Taipei, 2001, National Museumof History, p.106The Master of China's New Painting, Taipei, 1996, Lin and KengGallery Publication, p.126 CATALOGUE NOTE Wu Dayu's contribution to the development of abstract paintingin China is remarkable. During his tenure as Head of the WesternArt Department at the Hangzhou Academy of Art, he promoted a newand inspirational style of teaching, alongside his colleague LinFengmian. He emphasized the importance of individual personalexpression through the use of brilliant colour and semi-figurative,abstract painting styles, inspiring countless followers. Of thelimited number of paintings by Wu Dayu that have survived, theColour Rhymes Series and Rhymes of Beijing Opera Series are themost important of Wu's oeuvre. Rhymes of Beijing Opera No.25 (Lot633) is a classic work from the latter series. In this piece, Wu'sbrushstrokes are powerful and filled with feeling. His agile andfree use of his favoured Prussian blue, yellow and black colours isbrought to life with the subtle incorporation of a red-browncolour, providing the finishing touch to this masterpiece. Throughthe flowing cadence of this painting, the artist has successfullyconveyed the lively character and movement of Beijing Operafigures. Wu has achieved Zheng Banqiao's artistic vision: "Paintwith all your spirit, then even that without form will holdemotion". This painting was included in the Exhibition of Wu Dayu'sPaintings at the National Museum of History in Taipei in 2001 andits presence on the market provides a rare opportunity forcollectors of Wu Dayu's work. Wu Dayu's contribution to the development of abstract paintingin China is remarkable. During his tenure as Head of the WesternArt Department at the Hangzhou Academy of Art, he promoted a newand inspirational style of teaching, alongside his colleague LinFengmian. He emphasized the importance of individual personalexpression through the use of brilliant colour and semi-figurative,abstract painting styles, inspiring countless followers. Of thelimited number of paintings by Wu Dayu that have survived, theColour Rhymes Series and Rhymes of Beijing Opera Series are themost important of Wu's oeuvre. Rhymes of Beijing Opera No.25 (Lot633) is a classic work from the latter series. In this piece, Wu'sbrushstrokes are powerful and filled with feeling. His agile andfree use of his favoured Prussian blue, yellow and black colours isbrought to life with the subtle incorporation of a red-browncolour, providing the finishing touch to this masterpiece. Throughthe flowing cadence of this painting, the artist has successfullyconveyed the lively character and movement of Beijing Operafigures. Wu has achieved Zheng Banqiao's artistic vision: "Paintwith all your spirit, then even that without form will holdemotion". This painting was included in the Exhibition of Wu Dayu'sPaintings at the National Museum of History in Taipei in 2001 andits presence on the market provides a rare opportunity forcollectors of Wu Dayu's work.

WU DAYU (1903-1988) Colour Rhymes - 29 oil on canvas, laid on wood panel 53 x 38 cm. (20 7/8 x 15 in.) 吳大羽 采韻 - 29 油彩 畫布 裱於木板 來源 2000年4月23日 佳士得台北 編號10 現藏者購自上述拍賣 展覽 2001年3月9日-4月8日「吳大羽畫展」國立歷史博物館 台北 台灣 出版 1996年《吳大羽》大未來畫廊藝術有限公司 台北 台灣 (圖版，第80-81頁) 2001年《吳大羽畫展》國立歷史博物館 台北 台灣 (圖版，第124頁) 2003年《上海油畫雕塑院—吳大羽》上海教育出版社 上海 中國 (圖版，第113頁) 2006年《吳大羽》大未來畫廊藝術有限公司 台北 台灣 (圖版，第95頁) 吳大羽擅長觀察周遭環境與自然事物的情緒，藉著色彩美學的探索，將那股性情轉移到畫布之上，並融合他對顏色美學的探索。 透過色彩學理論的研究及對比色的對立和協調，吳氏的繪畫展示出一種自發的情感，彷彿滲著抽象表現主義的憂鬱。他亦刻意參考立體派理論的規則， 將事物分析重組成抽象的形體，在畫布上培育出道家思想中人生和宇宙的智慧。 《釆韻29》(Lot 1067)的表現手法驟眼看來有點難以理解，其實它融合了布拉克(Georges Braque)與康丁斯基(Wassily Kandinsky)的繪畫手法，將既有的形體拆散，投放於色彩斑爛的迷人詩意裡， 呈現出一份簡樸莊嚴的美。吳大羽喜用普魯士藍與帝黃，兩種色彩洶湧澎湃地於畫面相交重疊，構成豐富的質感，即興的筆跡散發出奇異的生命力。 在中國文化裡，黃色與藍色代表永恆、天地、更新、生機和中庸，藝術家選用它們是對其中國文化根源及所追隨的哲學理論。 雖然是刻意地抽象讓觀眾主觀閱讀，那些流轉的曲線和縱橫交錯的筆跡，卻完全保留了吳大羽作品的一體性和個性， 我們可窺探到他是如何意識明確地追尋著存在主義的真理與內在美。《釆韻29》右側那些相對整齊的線條，與左邊的複雜動態形成對比， 讓眼睛於色調濃郁的藍與橙、冷與暖、明與暗之間獲得一息喘氣空間。畫面裡兩種形體的並存和質感對比，隨著色彩與形狀的收縮、伸展，彼此間的糾纏、 推撞和包圍，加上從強韌無畏的黑藍筆跡間溢出的閃爍的黃，讓眼睛停不下來，就像將自然中繁茂、短暫的現象放大了。 層層白色乾筆觸與濃厚的實色互相平衡，為這片抽象景致注入了戲劇性和情緒，上演著原始力量世界與自然的奧秘。 吳大羽與天地自然之間有一份深刻的交流，他相信「繪畫即是畫家對自然的感受，亦是宇宙間一剎那的真實。」 他專注於思想感情的培養以鞏固其創作信念，藉著透徹的自我了解釐清其藝術觀點，反映出道家思想的精髓─人有了覺醒便會得道，悟出宇宙的智慧。 Christie's Taipei, 23 April 2000, Lot 10 Acquired from the above by the present owner Lin & Keng Gallery, Wu Dayu-Master of Modern Chinese Painting, Taipei, Taiwan, 1996 (illustrated, pp. 80-81). National Museum of History, Exhibition of Wu Dayu Paintings, exh. cat., Taipei, Taiwan, 2001 (illustrated, p. 124). Shanghai Education Press, Shanghai Oil & Sculpture Academy-Wu Dayu, Shanghai, China, 2003 (illustrated, p. 113). Lin & Keng Gallery Inc., Wu Dayu, Taipei, Taiwan, 2006 (illustrated, p.95). Taipei, Taiwan, National Museum of History, Exhibition of Wu Dayu Paintings, 9 March-8 April 2001. Observing mood of his environment and the nature, Wu Dayu transferred its temperament to his canvas and interweaved it with his exploration on color aesthetics. Investigating on color theory, the complementary palette and the juxtaposition of it, Wu illustrated the feeling of spontaneity and suffused the melancholia of Abstract Expressionism, willfully referencing to the theoretical imperative of Cubism by analyzing, re-assembling objects in abstracted form to ultimately, cultivate his Taoist principles for humanity and the cosmos. Ambiguous in its representation, Colour Rhymes-29 (Lot 1067) cites a synthesis of Georges Braque and Wassily Kandinsky, an effect that is austerely beautiful in its loose and deconstructed form in wistful, colourful poetics. Brushstrokes are curiously vitalizing in its spontaneity with textural interpolation conducted in surging colours of Prussian blue and imperial yellow which often appear in Wu's canvases. An apt reverberation of Wu's cultural roots and the philosophy he sought after, yellow and blue are colours of immortality, nature, renewal, vitality and neutrality. While decidedly abstract for subjective reading, Wu firmly maintained his integrity and identity within the swirling waves and horizontal and vertical strokes; an act that reflects his conscious, absolute and clear search for existential truth and inner beauty. The effects of orderly lines on the right side of Colour Rhymes-29 spares the eye for a momentary pictorial break from the bustling activity of rich contrasts of light and shade, cool and warm hues of orange and blue on the left. The coexistence of these two forms and the textural opposition in one space amplifies the exuberance and ephemeral phenomena of nature as the colours and shapes contract, sprawl, tussle, thrust and swathe with one another, destabilizing our vision with flashes of yellow emerging between the rapid and intrepid brush strokes of black and blue. The balance of dry wispy layers of white and concentrated mass of solid hues load the abstract landscape with drama and emotion, theatrically representing the world of elemental forces and the wonders of nature. Wu Dayu had a deep, personal response to nature as he considered "painting is the artist's response to nature and is a fleeting glimpse of the truth of the universe". He cultivated his mind and emotion as the foundation of his creation, believing that it is the absolute understanding of one self that clarifies and determines the aesthetic vision, reflecting on Taoist principles that through the awareness of himself, the man gains knowledge of the Universe.

WU DAYU (1903-1988) Untitled No. 21 oil on canvas, mounted on paper board 52.7 x 37.4 cm. (20 3/4 x 14 3/4 in.) Private Collection, Asia Lin & Keng Gallery Inc., Wu Dayu, Taipei, Taiwan, 2006(illustrated, p. 119). In the mid-1920s, Chinese-born Wu Dayu went to France on awork-study program initiated by the Chinese government, making himamong the first artist to participate in the exchange. Exposed toFauvism, Impressionism, Cubism and the Paris School and Nabis inFrance, and greatly influenced by Cezanne, Picasso and Matisse, Wureturned to China and devoted himself to teaching, reforming andcultivating modern Chinese art together with his students who, likeWu Guanzhong, Zao Wou-Ki and Chu Teh-Chun, would become the secondgeneration of eminent artists notable for synthesizing Chinese andWestern aesthetics. Wu idealized to liberate the rigid country withart by breaking traditional ideological limitations and stressingon exploring the fundamental nature of art. Nevertheless, heembraced the practice of Confucianism and Daoism and integrated itwith Western philosophy in his endeavour to introduce modern artfrom the West and develop new school of paintings for China. Wu had a deep, personal response to nature as he believed that"painting is the artist's response to nature and is a fleetingglimpse of the truth of the universe.". Observing his environmentand nature's mood, Wu transferred them onto his canvas in stylisticinnovation of colour aesthetics. Investigating colour theory, thecomplementary palette and the juxtaposition of it, Wu illustratedthe feeling of spontaneity and emotional intensity of AbstractExpressionism, consciously grounding himself by pertaining to thetheoretical imperative of Cubism (Fig. 1) by analyzing,re-assembling objects in abstracted form to cultivate his Daoistprinciples as the foundation of his artistic creation. Untitled No. 21 (Lot 1023) and Untitled No. 23 's (Lot 1024)foundation palette are of earthy tones, perhaps indicative of theirsimilar period of production. These warm and grounded hues promptour sensory experience into differentiating the aesthetics of thetwo paintings, the colour combination and the level of its depthand appliance. The complexity of the paint and imagery inducelayers of Wu's personal philosophy but also simultaneously liberatethe canvas for the viewer's subjective interpretation but stillimposing on the initial emotion and mood of the painting. Althoughdevoid of narrative content, his works are formed in unexpected butcalculated simplicity with his balance in extracting the essence ofthe subject and relaxing its contours to match the vitality andcharacter of it. Wu utilizes his deepest and most universal humanemotions to respond to a subject, characterizing them in hisunfettered brushwork and focused on portraying the soul of thesubjects over its figurative shape, a quality that emulates Chineseink paintings - shui mo hua. He utilized Western medium butcontrolled his brush with Chinese ink painting's force by varyingits tonalities from sparsely applied paint to immenselyconcentrated areas of thick paint to create a sense of spatialdimension of foreground, background and centre; every brush strokeis applied with meaning and purpose. An artist with firm selfbelief and deep intellect, Wu cultivates his mind and emotion asthe foundation of his creation; it is the absolute understanding ofhimself that clears and determines his aesthetic vision in hisdeliberate analogy to Daoist ideas that through awareness of oneself, man gains knowledge of the universe. Continuing to meditateon its principles, hidden aspects of the effortless effort,naturalness, vitality, spontaneity and receptiveness are integratedunder the comparable facade of Western abstraction. Whilst retaining the Eastern philosophy for humanity and thecosmos, the artist aesthetically quotes from Georges Braque bycompressing and breaking up the natural forms into geometricalsimplifications; and from Wassily Kandinsky (Fig. 2) for hiswistful poetry in colour as "colour is a means of exerting a directinfluence upon the soul." Wu's synthesis of East and West, andstrong senses for colours combined with bold, vigorous brushworksheighten the drama and emotion of the paintings, theatricallyrepresenting the world of elemental forces and the wonders ofnature. Untitled No. 21, presumably painted before Untitled No. 23,is permeated with fiercely dragged brush strokes and colour focusedin the middle. Structural composition is clear with featheredtextures of blue surrounding edges of the canvas to climax into arich lode of dark hues of navy blue, black and orange. Theaccumulation of pigment surfaces in whirlwind motion, its cursivestrokes and casual angles together with eventful interactions ofcolours evoking a sense of constant visual shift in zig-zag,backwards and forwards motion. The warmth of orange appears livelyyet agitated, flashing erratically along the middle, shaking theoverall temper of the canvas. The yellow is cornered with a strongcontrast of black blocking its dispersion, but the glimpse ofyellow subtly seeps through the dominating shades of black andblue. Here, the pool of yellow in the corner is a crucial functionin liberating Untitled No. 21; this unpredictable colour placementopens up the canvas space, breaking what could have been a staticcomposition of solid mass of colours in the centre with mundaneframing of dry and wispy blue brushstrokes. In Untitled No. 23 Wuinstills his canvas background with balance of densely encrustedbrown and deep Prussian blue, clearly distinguishing foreground andbackground but in different mannerism than of Untitled No. 21 . IfUntitled No. 21 's compositional arrangement was clear withcommanding form in front against a comparably empty background,Untitled No. 23 is infused with solid colours in both itsforeground and background, deliberately exploring the coexistenceand interaction between the cool degree of white against the warmthof the soil brown; an outcome that is beautifully daring andbreathtaking, exemplifying Wu's poise for uncontrolled freedom andconscious control over his paintings. Both pictures echoearnestness, crowding the surface with complex textures andinterweaving of paint, symbolic of the contemplative andquestioning nature of the artist. Throughout his life Wu Dayu sought tirelessly the experience of anexpression of beauty. His creation displays an enlightenedunderstanding extending from the exterior surface to its inneressence. In retrospect, in tracing the development of Chinesemodern art, we are obliged to find Wu Dayu in a pioneering positionunique in the field, for he set forth his quest for pure colouraesthetic in beauty and abstraction before the epoch would allow,and his works, with their marks of modernism, and aestheticism,echoed remotely with the Western waves of Fauvism and AbstractExpressionism, laying, by means of guidance, a solid foundation forthe development of Chinese Modern art.