Lin Fengmian (1900-1991) ‘Still life with chrysanthemums and pears’, 20th century

Ink and pigments on paper.

It shows a beautiful still life, presided over by the central image of a glass vase filled with white and yellow chrysanthemums in bloom, which creates a compositional triangle with the two fruit bowls arranged on either side, containing appetizing pears and apples of vibrant yellow. The background, created with a palette of cool dark colours, purples, blues and greys, gives greater prominence to the vivid flowers and fruit, directing the viewer's gaze towards them.  The chromatic palette used, together with the loose brushstrokes and the elements without contours, have clear fauvist influences, which inevitably evoke the blue period of Pablo Picasso, among others. Likewise, the work shows a strong and undoubtedly personal character, visible in the outline of the petals, the morphology of the fruits, and the multiple lines arranged in the background, which reveal Fengmian's calligraphic discipline during his training, thus creating a unique fusion between traditional Chinese aesthetics and European pictorial currents.  

Signed and stamped ‘林凤眠’ in the left margin. 

Size painting: 70 x 70 cm; Size with frame: 83 x 84 cm

Attached is a certificate issued by Gerald Markowtz, grandson of the artist.

 Provenance:

- Hong Kong private collection. 1977, Lin Fengmian fled to Hong Kong where he gave the work to a friend, in whose collection it remained for generations until its final sale.

- Current private Spanish collection (to the present day).   

References: 

- Christie's. Fine Chinese Modern and Contemporary Ink Paintings. Lot 1084: Lin Fengmian ‘Dahlia’. 02 Dec. 2022. 

- Sotheby's. Beyond Legends: Modern Art Evening Sale. Lot 1044: Lin Fengmian ‘Still life’ April 18, 2021

- The MET. Asian Art Collection. Accession Number: 1986.267.375 ‘Gladioli’. 

Catalogue note:

Lin Fengmian was born in Guandong province in the year 1900, and has a childhood marked by a traumatic event, the sale of his own mother into slavery. Shortly afterwards, a fortuitous chance event changed his life completely, as his lottery ticket won; with it, he travelled to Shanghai and later to France, thus receiving a complete artistic education, which marked his personal style. 

Over the years, and thanks to his constant work and undoubted talent for painting, he managed to make a name for himself on the international art scene, which was cut short during the Sino-Japanese war and the Cultural Revolution, for which he had to destroy a large part of his work and suffer a period of imprisonment. All the vicissitudes he suffered did not put an end to his passion for art, and that is why he left China in 1977 to settle with his family in Hong Kong, where his production did not cease, even attempting, on occasions, to recreate the first paintings he had to destroy. Lin Fengmian died in 1991 in Hong Kong at the age of 90. 

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