A rare 11th-century Chinese ink painting was sold for $59.2 million at one of Christie's sales in Hong Kong on Monday, making it one of the most expensive classic Chinese painting and calligraphy work sold at an auction.
The work in question is entitled "Wood and Rock" which is said to be made by Su Shi (1037-1101), a pre-eminent scholar, artist and statesman of the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Su's aesthetic views ushered Chinese art and culture into a new era. He was also known for his poems and his work on medicine and gastronomy. Su lived in political exile for most of the second half of his life, until he was pardoned by the court a year before his death.
Christie's confirmed that "a Chinese buyer" bought Wood and Rock. However, extra details about the client's location or identity are not released.
Wood and Rock depicts only three subjects: a withered tree, a strange stone and a few stalks of bamboo. They were all done in quick, sketchy brush strokes to showcase tranquility.
Experts expressed that Su's work reflects an expression of classic Chinese paintings as it reflects the five shades of ink and how it blends together in harmony.
Critics also say Su imbued the tree and the stone with a spiritual sense, providing a glimpse into his state of mind as he entered the autumn of his life. His expressive style also assisted the development of literary paintings in China.
The painting is part of a scroll that includes four handwritten commentaries in traditional calligraphy that lengthens it to 186 cm. The other comment was written by Mi Fu, one of the best calligraphers from the Song Dynasty.
Some of Su's works are currently located in various museum collections and private holdings, but only a few have been identified as his actual work. One of them is the one located at the National Art Museum of China in Beijing.
The Wood and Rock piece attracted huge attention once it was announced by Christie's that it will be auctioned off for their autumn sale.
Wood and Rock was acquired around 1937 by Fusajiro Abe, a famed Japanese collector of classic Chinese art, and had remained in his family until last year when they approached Kim Yu, the head of the Chinese paintings department for Christie's.
"It was placed in a plain box," Yu said, recalling the first moment he saw the painting in Japan earlier this year. "As the painting was unfolded slowly on a blanket, (I realized) it was the piece of work by Su Shi mentioned in art history."
