ZAO WOU-KI - Garden At Night (Signed and Framed), 1954

ZAO WOU-KI

(1921-2013)

Garden At Night

Lithograph printed in 5 colours on Japan paper

signed by the artist (lower right); inscribed “épreuve d'artiste" 

Executed in 1954, this work is one of the three extremely rare artist proofs on Japan paper, outside of an edition of 95 on Rives paper.

44 by 57 cm. (17 5/16 by 22 7/16 in.)

趙無極

b. 1921

夜晚的花園

石版畫，日本紙

1954年作，此作為極鮮見的三幅藝術家自留版（製作於日本紙）之一

款識：無極ZAO (右下)，épreuve d'artiste 

《夜晚的花園》創作於1954年，是趙無極於「甲骨文時期」（1954-1962年）所作的石版畫作品，此作特別之處在於它是印於日本紙上、共只有3版的藝術家自留版之一，因而極度珍罕。在1953至1954年間，趙無極逐漸擺脫如靜物、花卉等具象的形式，也不再描繪敘事性的景物。因同年大量甲骨文被發掘，他轉而把目光放回祖國古老的文化根源，從商周時期的銅制禮器、金石、銘文等等掌握到這些遠古語言符號的抽象意義，並以此創作一系列神秘深邃、帶有絲絲宗教色彩的抽象作品。如藝術家本人所言：「符號成了形體，背景形成空間」，在當時形成了一種非常大膽創新的抽象表現方式。

Garden At Night is a lithograph work by Zao Wou-ki in 1954 during his "Oracle-Bone Period" (1954-1962). The most important characteristic of this work is that it is executed on Japan paper from a rare edition of 3 artist proofs outside of the edition of 95 on Rives paper. Between 1953 and 1954, Zao Wou-ki gradually got rid of figurative forms such as still life and flowers, neither did he continue to depict the narrative scenery. Due to the excavation of a large number of oracle bone inscriptions in the same year, he turned his attention back to the ancient cultural roots of his motherland, China, grasping the abstract meaning of these ancient linguistic symbols from the bronze ceremonial vessels, inscriptions, and inscriptions of the Shang and Zhou dynasties to create a series of mysterious and profound abstract works largely related to an ancient Chinese religion. As the artist himself said: "These motifs took on shapes, while their backgrounds began to take on spatial depth." Indeed, it was a very bold and innovative way of abstract expression in the historical context of the art world then.