Lot 25 | 28 March 2021

 

 

 

LOT 25

CHEN WEN HSI

B. China, 1906 – 1991

Three Birds

Signed in Chinese character with seal of the artist on upper right

Chinese ink and watercolour on paper

34 x 44.5 cm

Private Collection, USA

RM 17,000 – RM 30,000

Contact with animals from an early age instilled a great love for pets and animals in Chen Wen Hsi and this love has been brought forward in pieces such as this. Gracefully and thoughtfully painted, the ‘Three Birds’ illustrate them perched on a branch of a tree. These black birds can be commonly found in the farms in Thailand. This painting was probably executed by the artist during one of his trips to Thailand.

Chen infused his prowess in both Western and Chinese paintings with this work. To observe the characteristics and movements of the animals he painted, Chen bought and reared gibbons, fish, birds, squirrels, egrets and peacocks, and he was said to have a “miniature zoo” in his backyard.