Lot 066
Chia Yu Chian
b. Johor, 1936 - d. Kuala Lumpur, 1991
Untitled (Scenery)
signed (lower left)
oil on canvas
66 x 42cm
PROVENANCE
Private collection, Singapore
ESTIMATE RM 25,000 – 50,000
PRICE REALISED RM 28,000.00
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Time was when it was a golden blessings to own a house by the seaside, surrounded by vegetation and a stream or two beside, for good measure. It was deemed a status symbol to be able to afford such a sanctuary, far from the madding crowd. So it must have been, during Chia Yu Chian’s lifetime and when he painted this idyllic seaside scene. The dream seaside bungalow is a splendid retreat for the weary city-dwellers and a blessed retirement home for those who have made a tidy pile in their younger days. One could feel the serenity, the calm and peaceful mood that this artwork brings.
Chia Yu Chian, French chic and pipe-smoking et al, is an auction darling. He boasts of strong career-path credentials. He received a French Government grant, the first in the Straits Settlement, to study at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts in Paris in 1959. He was to study at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), but only had informal art tutelage under Chen Wen Hsi. In Paris, he was accepted for exhibitions a record 15 times, with a few with honorary mentions (Salon des Independents and the Societe des Artistes Francaise). Apart from solos in Paris, at the Galerie de Villiers and the Salon de Paris, he also exhibited in London (Britain) and Hanover (West Germany) in 1960. All 110 paintings in his first solo celebrating his homecoming at the British Council in Penang in 1962 were sold out! He did a mural titled Life In Malaysia for the Malaysian Embassy in Paris. He was given Memorial exhibitions by The Art Gallery Penang (1997), the National Art Gallery Malaysia (2002), and NAFA called Chia Yu Chian In Nanyang (2009). Ilham Gallery presented a good exhibition on Chia Yu Chian too, probably the best show among all. |
