In early 1950s, Zao Wou-Ki travelled throughout post-war Europe to exhibit in various countries. His observations during these journeys led to a whole new chapter of artistic expression. In a departure from the aesthetics of traditional Chinese painting, Zao set out in search of creative freedom. While the principles of three-dimensional perspective gradually disappeared, only certain silhouettes from the landscapes remained. The artist began to incorporate classical Chinese cultural symbols such as ancient Yin and Shang dynasty oracle bone scripts, Han dynasty stone tablets and bronze inscriptions in seal script in his works, as his Oracle Bone period began to take shape. CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55 (Lot 1018) presented in the upcoming Spring sale is a fine example from this period, bearing witness to the artist’s achievements in breaking free from the constraints of traditions while embarking on a new creative journey.
In CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55, a thick, rich brownish yellow sky covers the earth, as a quiet greenish-blue forest broke through the sky. White mist lingers on the mountain ranges, transformed into faint, scarlet points of lights like the stars, evoking a scene at dusk. In the centre of the composition, mysterious lines vibrate, at t.mes s emerging, at t.mes s unseen, transforming into short symbols of words, radiating outward, suspended, to effect a solemn arising Eastern atmosphere. Incendie, completed in the same year and currently in the Pompidou collects ion, features a similar, although further developed, composition, in which oracle bone-like symbols rise upward in a ring-like formation. Incendie marks the beginning of an inexorable new stage for the artist, firming establishing the present work’s central position in the artist’s 1950s creative phase.
The works from Zao’s Oracle Bone period are often abstract in composition and frequently incorporate poetic, figurative titles, prompting the viewer to consider the process between the images and words. For instance, the desolate atmosphere of a windy environment comes to mind when viewing Vent, a work currently in the Pompidou collects ion and a landmark piece for Zao’s abstract art. Quand il fait beau is bathed in the grand beauty of sunshine. When viewing Ville engloutie, the precipitation of t.mes is felt. In Jardin de mon père, a search of the artist’s spiritual safe haven is taking place. Similarly, in CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55, the spirit of history and ancient civilisations abound. These titles serve a function that goes beyond summarising the images; untethered from the subject, they express an internal language of the artist in a shivering, emotionally-effecting condition. As subjective will and images recede from CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55, here comes an emergence of a greater passion, a space for ideas and words, a sudden rush of life, creating a wedge between wilderness and nature and evoking emotions that linger for a long t.mes .
Quand il fait beau, presented in Replica Shoes ’s Hong Kong 2018 Spring sale, was completed in the same year as CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55 and sold for HK$44.6 million. The rustic and solemn brownish-yellow colour, the lingering, romantic white mist and the symbols flying in the sky follow the same developmental pathway as those in the present work. Ville engloutie, completed around the same years and of similar dimensions, appeared in Replica Shoes ’s Hong Kong’s Autumn sale in 2019. The symbols are arranged in a similar ring shape, representing imageries of figurative cities and revealing the life energy and philosophy of nature. The work was sold for HK$1.4 million and entered the collects ion of Bridgestone Museum in Japan, evidencing its academic value. In the upcoming Spring sale, CHÂTEAU - 07.52-05.06.55 offers a whole new interpretation of Eastern culture, offering profound insights into the artist’s 1950s works, as well as their significance on the development of modern art.
「欲露還掩、似斷還連，線條隨興遊走，描繪出遐思的脈動，這是趙無極喜歡的。驀然間，畫面躍動著一片中國城鎮鄉村特有的喜氣，又是歡騰愉悅，又是滑稽突梯，在一團符號中。」
1950年代初，趙無極在戰後的歐洲四處遊歷，期間輾轉各國舉辦展覽，旅不停歇的過程中，沿途眼之所見成就了藝術家創作表達的全新篇章。起初，他試圖從東方傳統中分離而找尋自由創作的靈感，立體透視原則逐漸隱沒，風景褪剩至輪廓，交雜的線條如同裂紋般在玄暗的光線中若隱若現，而正是這種對內在釋放的追尋引導他回歸東方文化的沉澱，藝術家開始在作品中融入殷商甲骨文、漢代拓片及青銅篆刻等中國古典文化圖騰，正如米修1952年為趙無極於紐約布奇畫廊展覽所寫之序言，「符號」這一概念，在藝術家的作品中首次被提及，預示「甲骨文時期」的降臨。蘇富比是次春拍呈獻的《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》（拍品編號1018）即為成就於「甲骨文時期」之精彩傑作，見證藝術家從傳統桎梏中突圍，開啟藝術新階段之重要轉折。
《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》中，刻畫風景的線條被逐漸引向以東方文字符號為基本元素、進而探索事物本質的抽象空間：濃郁的褐黃色天空籠罩大地，藍綠色幽靜森林衝破天空，白色雲霧在山巒凝聚，轉化為星點的朱紅色微光，如同黎明破曉；線條在畫面中心若隱若現地玄動，隨時間推移幻化成短促的文字符號，向四周散開，呈環形狀懸浮於畫面，滿載東方之肅穆。而類似構圖在法國龐畢度中心典藏、與本畫同年誕生之鉅作《火》中得到進一步傳承和發展，甲骨文字符號呈現包圍狀縈繞中空，升騰而起，標誌著一個不可逆轉的新階段之初始，同時映證本畫在50年代創作過程中的樞紐地位。
縱觀趙無極「甲骨文時期」的作品，畫面以抽象構圖的同時，常結合富有詩意的具象標題，賦予觀者畫文之間聯動的思路，譬如觀看龐畢度中心典藏、抽像風格開篇之作《風》時，感受風之蕭索；欣賞《晴空萬里》時，沐浴艷陽之壯麗；在《淹沒的城市》中，體會時光之沉澱；在《父親的花園》中，找尋藝術家寄託心靈的避風港……一如觀賞《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》時，讓人領略歷史文明之古樸神韻。這些標題與其說是總結畫面的主題，更似一種不受題材限制的語言，以渲染和顫動的狀態，匯聚藝術家內心的情感氛圍。當主觀意志和形象從《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》中退卻、消散，取而代之以更高的熱情、思想和文字的空間，並著眼於物質的斡旋和原始的嘈雜，驟然間生命的力量湧現，樹立山野和大自然的楔形間，久久不能釋懷。
趙無極此時期的創作不僅開闢了華人抽象藝術的新視野，亦代表藝術家抽象創作歷程之起點，具有極高的前瞻性。2018年香港蘇富比春拍中，與《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》同年完成的《晴空萬里》以44,619,500港幣成交，畫面古樸而肅穆的褐黃色調、浪漫縈繞的白霧與漫天飛舞的字符與本畫一脈相承；另一幅年份、尺幅亦與本畫相近之《淹沒的城市》，於蘇富比香港2019年秋拍亮相，畫面同樣採用字符環狀分佈之構圖，將具象城市之意象羅布其間，體現大自然的生命能量與哲理，最終以31,375,000港幣為日本石橋美術館納入館藏，映證本畫的學術價值。對於彼時的趙無極而言，曾經無限嚮往西方繪畫、醉心巴黎，但在遊遍歐洲之後，反而開始回顧其藝術本源——中國符號，《莊園 - 07.52-05.06.55》登陸是次春拍，恰好提供了藝術家對於東方文化的一種全新解讀，將引領藏家深刻體會其50年代作品的價值及對現代藝術發展的貢獻意義。