Works Exhibited
About
I have always believed that painting is concerned with visual observation—a process that primarily relies on seeing and feeling rather than on language. I hope that viewers can become aware of this process and that they themselves are able to understand painting through observation, in the process unlocking their own unique perspectives.
—Zeng Fanzhi
While there are many artists that I like, Cézanne, Morandi, and Sanyu have consistently stimulated my love for painting and also helped me to resolve many problems in my own work.
In my opinion, color, form, and subject are tightly intertwined in Cézanne’s work, and this is what separates his perspective from that of his predecessors. Morandi further developed this technique, through his use of both the horizon line and purposefully pale colors to blur the boundaries between the abstract and the figurative, geometry and flesh. Sanyu’s approach to painting is remarkably similar to both Cézanne’s and Morandi’s; however, his method is inherently Eastern—he uses oils to paint the inks in his heart. A fascinating visual trajectory can be traced between these three formidable artists’ works. It not only inspires subsequent artists, but also continually challenges the viewer to interpret painting anew.
我始終相信繪畫只關乎於觀看之道。它更依賴的是眼睛、是感受，而不是語言。我同樣也希望觀眾能意識到這一點，也能通過觀看繪畫來理解繪畫，進而找到自己獨一無二的內心世界。
—曾梵志
我喜歡的藝術家有很多，但這次所展出的這三位總能引起我長久的激動，幫助我想通很多問題。
在我看來，塞尚對色彩、造型和繪畫對象的考慮，是緊密結合在一起的，而這些謹慎的思考是為了體現他不同於前人的觀察視角；莫蘭迪延續了這種方法，用畫面中的水平線和特意減弱的色彩對比關係模糊了抽象和具象的邊界；而常玉對畫面的處理方式跟前兩位非常相似，但他的態度是東方的，更像一名旁觀者，他在用油畫描繪心中的水墨。這三位偉大畫家的作品之間存在著一條有趣的視覺線索，不僅啟發了後來的創作者，也啟發了觀眾用一種新的角度來理解繪畫。
我並非從書本讀到以上觀點，而是從畫面中看到了它們。我希望仍然用視覺的方式而不是依賴語言，把我觀察到的這些細節擺放出來，傳遞給觀眾。我們藝術家常常這樣幹，將眼睛看到的一個微小之處不斷放大，加以消化，再找一天讓它以另一種面貌出現——我認為繪畫就是以這樣的方式發展到了今天。所以在當代繪畫中，創新並不是憑空出現的，現在和未來固然重要，找到跟過往的連結同樣也很重要。
綜上所述，這個展覽可能並不是你想像中的那類展覽，我也不是你想像中的那類策展人。作為一個畫畫的人，我這次是用一個繪畫展覽的形式，來表達我對這三位偉大畫家的一些作品觀後感。
曾梵志 策展
#CezanneMorandiSanyu
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Tour
Cézanne, Morandi, and Sanyu
Friday, April 26, 2019, 6pm
Gagosian, Hong Kong
Gagosian Hong Kong’s managing director Nick Simunovic and senior director Han-I Wang will discuss works by the three modern masters in the exhibition Cézanne, Morandi, and Sanyu at Gagosian, Hong Kong. In this presentation, Zeng Fanzhi examines the ways in which these three major figures set the stage for painting as we know it today, serving as crucial touchstones both for their contemporaries and for countless artists thereafter, including Zeng himself. The tour will discuss the visual relationships between the works and the recurring characteristics of modernism that are present in this show. To attend the free event, RSVP to hktours@gagosian.com. Space is limited.
Sanyu, Basket of Flowers, 1931, courtesy Li Ching Cultural and Educational Foundation
