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Zao Wou-Ki (; 1 February 1920 – 9 April 2013) was a Chinese-French
painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
. He was a member of the
Académie des Beaux-Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...
in Paris. Zao Wou-Ki graduated from the
China Academy of Art China Academy of Art (), also translated as China National Academy of Fine Arts, was founded in Hangzhou in 1928 by the government of the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China and the renowned educator Cai Yuanpei. It was the first a ...
in Hangzhou, where he studied under Fang Ganmin and Wu Dayu.


Early years

Zao was born in
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 2 ...
with family roots in
Dantu Dantu District () is one of three districts of Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province, China. A development called Dantu New City was constructed in the district and was underoccupied since around 2005 and criticized as a ghost city by international media. Ho ...
, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province. In his childhood he was brought back to his hometown Dantu where he studied
calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...
and gained acceptance to the Hangzhou School of Fine Arts. From 1935 to 1941, he studied painting at the
China Academy of Art China Academy of Art (), also translated as China National Academy of Fine Arts, was founded in Hangzhou in 1928 by the government of the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China and the renowned educator Cai Yuanpei. It was the first a ...
in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, where he was taught by
Lin Fengmian Lin Fengmian (; November 22, 1900 – August 12, 1991), originally Lin Fengming (), was a Chinese painter and is considered a pioneer of modern Chinese painting for blending Chinese and Western styles, he was one of the earliest Chinese painters ...
, Fang Ganmin and Wu Dayu. In 1948, he went with his wife
Xie Jinglan Xie or Hsieh may refer to: Xie People *Xie of Xia (), legendary king of the Xia Dynasty *Xie of Shang (契), legendary nobleman *Xie, Marquis of Jin (; th century BC), ruler of the State of Jin *King Xie of Zhou (; BC) *Alexandra Kitchin (1864� ...
(謝景蘭), a composer, to Paris to live on the same block in
Montparnasse Montparnasse () is an area in the south of Paris, France, on the left bank of the river Seine, centred at the crossroads of the Boulevard du Montparnasse and the Rue de Rennes, between the Rue de Rennes and boulevard Raspail. Montparnasse has be ...
where the classes of
Émile Othon Friesz Achille-Émile Othon Friesz (6 February 1879 – 10 January 1949), who later called himself Othon Friesz, a native of Le Havre, was a French artist of the Fauvist movement. Biography Othon Friesz was born in Le Havre, the son of a long line of s ...
took place. His earliest exhibitions in France were met with praise from Joan Miró and Picasso.


Personal life

Zao and his wife Lalan (
Xie Jinglan Xie or Hsieh may refer to: Xie People *Xie of Xia (), legendary king of the Xia Dynasty *Xie of Shang (契), legendary nobleman *Xie, Marquis of Jin (; th century BC), ruler of the State of Jin *King Xie of Zhou (; BC) *Alexandra Kitchin (1864� ...
) pursued their own careers, their son having stayed in China with Zao's parents. In the mid-1950s, they were divorced. In 1957, Zao decided to visit the United States where his younger brother Chao Wu-Wai was living in
Montclair, New Jersey Montclair () is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a wealthy and diverse commuter town and suburb of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. ...
, close to the art scene of New York City. He wanted to learn more about "pop art". While in the US, he painted seven canvases at his brother's house. There are relatively few items dating from that year (1957). Years later, the largest canvas was given by his brother, Chao Wu-Wai, to the Detroit Institute of Arts. He left the U.S. after a six-week stay, traveling to Tokyo and then to Hong Kong, where he met his second wife Chan May-Kan (陈美琴, May Zao), a film actress who had two children from her first marriage. Under the influence of Zao, she became a successful sculptor. In 1972, she committed suicide at age 41 due to mental illness. In 1972, he also visited his family in China who he had not seen since 1948. In 1997, he married his third wife Françoise Marquet, who now serves as president of the Zao Wou-Ki Foundation.


Career

Zao's works, influenced by
Paul Klee Paul Klee (; 18 December 1879 – 29 June 1940) was a Swiss-born German artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented wi ...
, are orientated to
abstraction Abstraction in its main sense is a conceptual process wherein general rules and concepts are derived from the usage and classification of specific examples, literal ("real" or "concrete") signifiers, first principles, or other methods. "An abst ...
. He names them with the date in which he finishes them, and in them, masses of colours appear to materialise a creating world, like a
Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
, where light structures the canvas. He worked formats in triptychs and diptychs. While his work was stylistically similar to the
Abstract Expressionists Abstract expressionism is a post–World War II art movement in American painting, developed in New York City in the 1940s. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve international influence and put New York at the center of the ...
whom he met while travelling in New York, he was influenced by Impressionism. Zao Wou-Ki stated that he had been influenced by the works of
Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known primar ...
, Picasso and Cézanne. His meetings with
Henri Michaux Henri Michaux (; 24 May 1899 – 19 October 1984) was a Belgian-born French poet, writer and painter. Michaux is renowned for his strange, highly original poetry and prose, and also for his art: the Paris Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim ...
pushed him to review his Indian ink techniques, always based in Chinese traditional drawings. Zao was a member of the
Académie des beaux-arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...
, and was considered to have been one of the most successful Chinese painters during his lifetime. In 1982, he was invited to paint for the Fragrant Hills Hotel in Beijing, designed by
I. M. Pei Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners
( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...
. I. M. Pei had a fellowship to Europe in the early 1950s and he met Wou-Ki at Galerie Claude Bernard, the gallery that represented Wou-Ki. In 1983, he returned to his alma mater, the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou to give lectures. Former French President
Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as May ...
was offered a painting by Zao Wou-Ki by his ministers during their last meeting. By the end of his life Zao had stopped producing new paintings due to health problems. He died on 9 April 2013 at his home in Switzerland.


Art Auction Results

Between 2009 and 2014, the value of his work tripled, leading to a scarcity of paintings and to prices rising even higher.


2017

* Zao Wou-ki's ''29.01.64'' (1964) was sold for HK$202.6m (US$26m) at
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
in Hong Kong, setting a new auction record for the artist and the world record for an oil painting by any Asian artist. The record for the artist was previously held by ''29.09.64'', another large painting that was sold for HK$153m (US$19.6m) at Christie's Hong Kong in May this year.


2018

* ''Juin-Octobre 1985'', the largest size that Zao Wou-ki ever worked on, was sold for HK$510m after premium, setting the record for the most valuable painting sold in Hong Kong auctions, as well as the auction record for an oil painting by an Asian artist.


References


External links


Zao Wou-Ki: Ink and Watercolor at de Sarthe Gallery, Hong Kong


* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20061023091526/http://home3.inet.tele.dk/mheede/zaowouki.htm Zhao Wuji at Gallery Heede & Moestrup - Copenhagen*
赵无极:在巴黎重新发现中国
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zao, Wou Ki 1920 births 2013 deaths Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery 20th-century Chinese painters 21st-century Chinese painters 20th-century French painters 20th-century French printmakers 20th-century French male artists 21st-century French painters 20th-century French lithographers 21st-century French lithographers 20th-century French engravers 21st-century French engravers 21st-century French male artists French stamp designers French male painters Art Informel and Tachisme painters Members of the Académie des beaux-arts School of Paris Alumni of the Académie de la Grande Chaumière Painters from Beijing Chinese emigrants to France China Academy of Art alumni Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Praemium Imperiale Republic of China painters