Embodying vitality, tradition and power, Lion Dance Mask (Lot 1034) by Georgette Chen is a singularly significant work in Chen’s admired oeuvre. It is the only known oil painting completed by the artist of this symbolic subject. Celebrating the long-loved tradition of the lion dance in Chinese culture, the present lot is a colorful depiction of the iconic mask or head of the lion, used by performers who mimic the lion’s movements in a two-person act. The dance is known to bring good fortune and chase away evil spirits and is performed during Lunar New Year, auspicious occasions, launches for businesses, and to honor special guests. The lion simultaneously symbolizes power, wisdom and superiority.

Chen embraces her roots as a Chinese-born artist, by studiously bringing to life the energy and bravado of a tradition so iconic to and ingrained in Chinese culture. Chen was born into a wealthy family of business and cultural elites in Zhejiang, China. Her father Zhang Jingjian (1877-1950) was an influential political veteran of the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist Party) during China's Republican era and a successful businessman. Chen was married to Eugene Chen, an internationally recognized figure known as the "Iron-fisted Diplomat" for wrestling back the cities of Hankou and Jiujiang from the British in 1927. After receiving her art education in Paris, New York and Shanghai, Chen moved to Southeast Asia in her late 40s, settling in Singapore in 1953 where she taught at the Nanyang Academy of Replica Handbags s (NAFA) for over 20 years until her retirement in 1980.

Unlike her peers at the academy, Chen never quite took to traditional Chinese ink painting despite an early introduction to the art form. Instead, Chen favored the styles and techniques of the Western Impressionists, citing Cezanne and Van Gogh amongst early influences on her personal practice. One of the most distinctive characters of her work is the precision and claritys of her brushstrokes, believing in the absolute control and rationality of painting. Lion Dance Mask displays Chen’s distinct brushwork and the vibrant color palette that she favored during the later part of her career, after moving to Malaya. The generous use of bright crimson, pinks, yellows and greens reflect not only Chen’s sensitivity to the light and warmth of the tropics, but also her understanding of the celebratory function of the subject itself.

The present work captures a cropped frontal view of the lion head, stylized to as a ferocious mythical creature and decorated with fur trimming, colorful patterns, pom-poms. The lion’s mouth is wide open, revealing the teeth and tongue of the animal, but never revealing the identity of its masked performer under the cost.mes . Chen’s strokes are lively and dynamic throughout the composition, lending a frenzied energy suited to the subject. As we view the creature’s almost ostentatious presence on the canvas, we can almost sense and imagine the loud drums, symbols and gongs that accompanied the acrobatic movements of the lion dance. Lion Dance Mask is an exceptionally rare and uniquely symbolic work by Chen that poignantly reflects her ability to celebrate her unique identity.

《舞獅》（拍品編號1034）洋溢活力，富含傳統文化意蘊，是張荔英不可多得的重要作品。觀乎張氏作品，刻畫此類型題材而又以油彩繪成的絕無僅有。本作以中華文化中歷史悠久、深受喜愛的舞獅傳統為主題，採用鮮豔的顏色描繪標誌性的舞獅面具（或稱獅頭）。獅子由兩位表演者舞動，模仿獅子跳、轉、騰、撲等動作。獅子象徵著力量、智慧和卓越，故舞獅被認為可以帶來好運和驅逐邪靈，常在農曆新年、喜慶場合、開張或迎賓時表演。張荔英珍視自我身份中的中國根源，用心展示中華文化的精髓及其生生不息的活力。張氏生於浙江，家世顯赫，家族俱是縱橫商界和文化界的名流之士。父親張靜江（1877–1950）是民國時期的國民黨政治元老和商業鉅子，地位舉足輕重。而丈夫陳友仁素有「鐵腕外交家」之稱，1927年成功以強硬手段從英人手中收復漢口和九江。張荔英曾於巴黎、紐約和上海接受藝術教育，在四十多歲時移居東南亞，並於1953年定居新加坡。她在在南洋藝術學院（NAFA）任教逾20年，直至1980年退休。

與學院中的同儕不同，張荔英雖然很早已接觸傳統中國水墨畫，但這種藝術形式並未引起她很深的興趣。相反，她更偏愛西方印象派的風格和技巧，早期畫風深受塞尚和梵谷的影響。她的作品以精練疏朗的筆觸著稱，崇尚理性使筆，節制有度。《舞獅》展現張荔英獨特、精細的筆觸風格，以及移居馬來亞後所鍾愛的鮮豔色彩。畫中大量運用深紅、粉紅、黃色和綠色等明亮色調，不僅反映了張氏對熱帶光線和氣溫的敏銳觸覺，也反映了她對節慶主題的理解。

本作呈現了經裁剪的舞獅正面圖，獅子被描繪成兇猛雄壯的神獸，飾有鬃毛花邊、彩繪圖紋和絨球。獅口大張，露出了牙齒和舌頭，卻未揭露舞獅面具下表演者的身份。整幅畫面筆觸活潑靈動，令獅子更添狂熱力量。當我們看到畫布上這頭招搖鋪張的野獸，響亮的鑼鼓聲猶在耳畔。《舞獅》是張荔英極具象徵意義的珍罕作例，深刻反映了她對自身身份的理解和珍視。