After the autumn auction last year, Phillips and Poly once again joined forces to launch the 2021 Spring Dual-City Auction, bringing the “20th Century and Contemporary Art and Design” auction to Poly Beijing today and tomorrow (June 7-8). Through live streaming, collectors from Hong Kong and Beijing can bid across regions, with this auction featuring works by six internationally renowned female artists.
//1. Yayoi Kusama//
One of the most iconic elements of the famous Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama’s work is the “polka dot,” the dizzying visual effect is actually her way of presenting illusions and overcoming inner fears through painting. The pumpkin covered with dots is a pattern that often appears in her works, whether in paintings, sculptures, or other art installations, the presence of pumpkins can always be found.
The auction also brought the work “Pumpkin” painted by the “Polka Dot Queen” in 1990, which was an important period in her creative career. The year before, she held her first New York retrospective exhibition at an international contemporary art center and became the first Japanese artist to be featured on the cover of an American art magazine.
Yayoi Kusama’s immersive art experience created with “Infinity Nets” can also be found in this auction piece, “Nets Obsession.” Created in 2004, this artwork combines midnight blue and white on a swirling pattern, with its lines bringing out an impression of repetitive yet vibrant energy. The white mixed with the background also visually creates a sense of movement, and when viewed from above, it resembles patches of blue coral reefs.
//2. Cecily Brown//
Contemporary British female artist Cecily Brown obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in London, and has studied as an exchange student at the New York Studio School. She later moved to New York, where she was influenced by Abstract Expressionism and Analytical Cubism, leading her to explore the possibilities of oil paint and sensation in art. Known for her exceptional insight, her work is dynamic and she skillfully transitions between abstraction and figuration, imbued with a sense of mystery.
The works auctioned in “20th Century and Contemporary Art and Design” include Cecily Brown’s “The End” created in 2006. Cecily Brown explores themes of life, death, and desire through fantastical imagery. In this gorgeously depicted piece, the scene of a lively banquet aftermath with scattered dishes and departing guests is portrayed. Under the tablecloth, the feet of a woman in high heels are revealed, hinting at a depiction of desire. It is worth noting the color treatment in the work, such as Cecily Brown intentionally using ochre to depict the originally pristine white tablecloth, evoking a sense of filth.
//3、Emily Mae Smith//
Artist Emily Mae Smith’s work focuses on surrealism and popular culture, with her paintings being both imaginative and carrying a satirical symbolic meaning. For example, her 2014 work “Broom Life” is inspired by the dancing brooms in Disney’s Fantasia, with “it” sitting on an ice block sipping a cocktail, portraying a carefree and relaxed demeanor intentionally created by the artist to liberate the character from physical labor.
//4、Maria Farrar//
Born in the Philippines and raised in Japan, Maria Farrar moved to London at the age of 15. Inspired by a multicultural lifestyle, her work combines Eastern and Western influences in both style and technique. Skilled at creating cartoon-like characters, she pieces together everyday life scenes, with elements of nature often appearing in her artwork. Her paintings focus on the use of color to not only set the mood but also as a way to express emotions. The unique composition and body language of the characters in her paintings create a sense of detachment within the vivid colors.
In the work “Sailor,” you can appreciate her style of integrating manga, calligraphy images, and oil painting pigments, the picture is light and lively, and the composition in the painting is both concrete and dynamic, yet elusive, just like the inherent characteristics of her work.
//5、Tschabalala Self//
Young female artist Tschabalala Self was born in New York and grew up knowing many African American artists. In 2012, she studied art in upstate New York, where she was inspired by the differences in gender roles between black and white women. This led her to create avant-garde paintings of black women. In addition to celebrating women and exploring racial issues in her art, her work also incorporates many pop culture symbols, and her expressive style makes the figures in her paintings stand out vividly.
Her work “KLK” depicts a bearded, stylishly dressed man, who despite his avant-garde appearance, is gentle and passive. In addition, this piece is composed of acrylic, fabric, and painted canvas, using colored threads to sew various materials onto the work, creating a unique artistic style through texture.
//6、Jadé Fadojutimi//
London-based artist Jadé Fadojutimi is a rising star in the art world in recent years, at the age of 28, she has held exhibitions in various institutions, and her works are even collected by the renowned Tate Museum in London. As a female abstract artist, her works are filled with metaphors disguised as concrete objects, and she handles pigments in a stylized manner, coupled with expressive brushstrokes and narrative techniques, making the images vibrant.
The debut of “Concealment: An essential generated by the lack of shade” in “20th Century and Contemporary Art and Design” is Jadé Fadojutimi’s first work at an Asian auction, showcasing her unique creative technique. She constructs colors on the canvas through brushing, pushing, and smearing, then scrapes off the colors to create a multi-layered surface, guiding viewers to delve into the themes of self and identity for an artistic dialogue.
資料及圖片來源：phillips, web photo, instagram@yayoikusama_, polyauctionhk
