Bidspirit auction | Chen Yin-Hui (Taiwanese 1931-2024)

Chen Yin-Hui (Taiwanese 1931-2024) - CHEN YIN-HUI (TAIWANESE 1931-2024) 1968 OIL ON CANVAS. Chen Yin-Hui (Taiwanese 1931-2024) The City Gate 1968 This noteworthy and atypical oil with mixed-media on canvas by the important Taiwanese artist Chen Yin-Hui is signed and dated lower right front. The title is confirmed by a paper gallery intake label of the period attached verso; and by the artist's inscription backside of the canvas. The City Gate is a textbook example of the experimentation that was taking place in the studios of Taipei during the late 1960s. Throughout this post-war period, Chen Yin-hui and his fellow artists, many of them co-founders of the Mind Image Art Group , closely followed Western developments in the modern movement of abstract art. Constantly seeking to further abstraction and modernize the oil medium in Taiwan, Yin-Hui took things a step further in the present work by including mixed media elements in a collage-like manner. In this oil, he has incorporated two strips of paper decorated in Daoist stylized cloud bands reminiscent of festival banners, placing them in the blue square upper right. Below that, he added an orange paper 'window' that glows in a dark tunnel. Additionally, rather than working in a purely non-objective style, Chen deconstructs physical and cultural landmarks, such as historical architecture and traditional motifs into the composition. This painting, with its raw, tactile - almost frantic brushwork, a trademark of the Mind Image Art Group. The artist also makes subtle reference to the painting's title City Gate with a dark archway near the base of the canvas. Historically a city gate through fortress walls regulated trade, security, and daily life throughout China. Towns were built with four primary gates matching the cardinal directions: North, South, East, West. Each gate was associated with a specific celestial protector and passing through the city gate was a highly ritualized event with potential to cleanse or bless those entering. Chen Yin-Hui often sought to deconstruct real-world landmarks-like old temples, historic city gates or natural landscapes-and rebuild them as emotional images of the mind through abstract painting. This work comes from the private family collection of the founders of International Art Gallery , a gallery that operated in Taiwan's art scene of the 1960s. It was purchased in the late 1960s as part of a small group of Mr. Chen's works produced between 1967 and 1969. The family brought their collection to the United States shortly afterward in the early 1970s. International Art Gallery in Taipei was patronized by many Americans during the Vietnam War and exhibited works that were created at a time when modern art was emerging at the forefront of Taiwan's art scene. For more than a millennium, Chinese painting was traditionally associated with ink on paper. However, the introduction of mixed media, oil on canvas, and Abstract Expressionism expanded artistic boundaries and creative possibilities in Asia, led in part by Chen Yin-Hui and other groundbreaking Taiwanese artists. This work has been hidden from view protected from any exposure the consignor's family came to the United States in the early 1970s. A placeholder sort of frame was just recently added to protect the work and enable display for auction. Canvas measures 31.75 x 39.5 with a framed size of 32.75 x 40.75 inches. Without proof of exemption, be aware that internet sales tax applies to all Internet transactions and local sales tax may apply to local pick-up transactions. We happily provide seamless in-house packing and shipping services on nearly everything we sell. Until further notice, we cannot offer international shipping in-house. Dimensions Canvas measures 31.75 x 39.5 with a framed size of 32.75 x 40.75 inches. Condition Excellent original untouched condition. There are no issues of scratches, losses, repairs, in-painting or touch-up of any type to any degree. A placeholder frame has been recently added.