Lot 194: Attributed to Bian Lu (Uighur, Yuan Dynasty, d. 1356), ‘Flowering Tree with Birds,’ ink and watercolor on silk, signed Bian Lu lower right, 77 1/2 inches high x 23 inches wide. Estimate: $20,000- 40,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image.
Flowering Tree with Birds is a magnificent painting on silk created during the Yuan dynasty, depicting a vertical scene of peonies and pheasants. Attributed to and signed Bian Lu (Chinese/Uighur, d. 1356), it is painted in the highly refined tradition of the Song Imperial Painting Academy (lot 194). The meticulously detailed plumage of the birds, the gritty texture of the rocks, and the delicately shaded leaves and flowers are a tour de force.
Equally appealing works in this auction include two rustic scenes by David Teniers the Younger (lots 23 and 24), and a substantial yet whimsical marble sculpture depicting a young girl, seated, by the highly collected English sculptor William Calder Marshall (lot 188). Calder is known as “the most prolific exhibitor of statuary at the Royal Academy in the Victorian age.”
Other important works include a painting of a beautiful French noblewoman surrounded by a highly decorative gilt frame mimicking a bowed ribbon, from the early 19th century, by Francois-Bruno Deshays de Colleville (lot 34). The auction also includes a striking portrait of The Mayoress of Hull by Frans Van Der Myn (lot 33), and a vibrant farm scene by David Davidovich Burliuk, the father of Russian futurism (lot 59).
Contemporary works at the auction include spot prints by Damien Hirst (lots 61, 62 and 63), today’s highest-earning living artist. Also featured is an original watercolor (lot 80) by Diego Rivera. Works by other modern artists included in this auction are by Pablo Picasso (lots 65-68), Robert Rauschenberg (lot 81), Georges Braque (lots 70 and 71), Joan Miro (lots 72, 73 and 74), Marc Chagall (lots 76 and 77) and Paul Jasmin (lot 80).
Another noteworthy highlight of the auction is a monumental triptych (lot 60) by the renowned Chinese activist painter Han Xin. Han Xin, working against the traditional Chinese style, was one of the “youngest artists to be includes in the ‘black paintings’ exhibition, at the National Art Museum in Beijing after the Ministry of Culture determined that a group of artists, who mostly worked in ink painting, were ruining the socialist system.” The featured lot, titled Place de la Concorde – Triptych (Liberté, Egalité, Justice), features the swirling patterns of a cobblestone street, referencing the traditional, and in juxtaposition Han Xin places a sewer grate in the central panel, mixing in the modern world. This work is also featured the cover of his monography, Han Xin: Pushing the Past Away.
Condition reports and shipping estimates will be provided upon request.
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ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE
Lot 194: Attributed to Bian Lu (Uighur, Yuan Dynasty, d. 1356), ‘Flowering Tree with Birds,’ ink and watercolor on silk, signed Bian Lu lower right, 77 1/2 inches high x 23 inches wide. Estimate: $20,000- 40,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image. Lot 62: Damien Hirst (b. 1965), ‘Valium,’ ca. 2000, full-color gloss finish lambda on archive paper, aigned and numbered 155/500, 48 inches x 48 inches. Estimate: $6,000-8,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image. Lot 80: Diego Rivera (1886-1957), ‘Mountain Landscape,’ watercolor and charcoal on paper, signed and dated ’29 in pencil lower left, 6 inches high x 8 1/2 inches wide. Estimate: $ 3,000-5,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image. Lot 59: David Davidovich Burliuk (1882-1967), ‘Farm Scene,’ oil on canvas, signed lower right, 20 inches high x 24 inches wide. Estimate $15,000-20,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image. Lot 60: Han Xin (20th century), ‘Place de la Concorde – Triptych’ (Liberté, Egalité, Justice), 1990, oil on canvas, from the French Revolution Series, 1989, 72 inches high x 216 inches long. Estimate $8,000-10,000. Gray’s Auctioneers image.
