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"Coup de coeur" by Zao Wou Ki
« Signes en mouvement » - Juin 2021
Avant 1953, l’oeuvre gravé de Zao Wou-KI nous offre une figuration mise à distance, une figuration où s’invitent le soleil, la lune, les animaux, un monde en apesanteur, esquissé en petits traits simples et graciles. Mais la découverte de Paul Klee en 1951 vient tout chambouler : « De ces petits signes tracés sur un fond aux multiples espaces surgissait un monde qui m’éblouissait…Je traversais des moments de grande confusion ».
- Abandonner la description pour aller chercher le signe à sa source - Zao Wou-Ki aborde ce défi au cours de l’année 1954, jusqu’à l’abandon définitif d’éléments figuratifs en 1955. Cette transition est marquée par le surgissement de petits signes qui bientôt se déploieront en une gestuelle ample et mouvante dans des espaces imaginaires sans limites.
Cette eau-forte, « Signes en mouvement », est particulièrement représentative de cette période charnière. Elle fait suite au premier séjour de l’artiste à New York, en 1957. Il y rencontre Franz Kline, Hans Hoffman, Marca-Relli, Philipp Gottlieb, et l’énergie si spontanée, farouche, de leurs œuvres le marque définitivement.
Stamp by Zao Wou Ki
The publication of a postal stamp is often a homage paid by a nation to a place, an event, a remarkable cause or a character which count. The painters and other artists do not escape from this rule. Some are however "forgotten" of postal art. Here, gathered below (French or foreign), emitted stamps (206) or simple studies of stamp (224) in homage to the artists represented on our website. The first French stamp was emitted in 1849, England preceded us by ten years. There is often a share of voyage in this small form of shape paper. The stamp circulates, sails, flies away, it makes dream, then dream a little. M.C.
When the stamp is really emitted, the artist name is preceded of an asterisk (*).
It is certain that we do not know each stamp emitted for such or such artist; do not hesitate with us to make known them!
Discover all the stampsA short artist's message
Michelle Champetier Collection / This document is not for sale
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A tribute to Zao Wou Ki
Atteint de la maladie d'Alzheimer, le peintre français d'origine chinoise Zao Wou Ki s’est éteint à Nyons en Suisse, au bord du lac Léman, le 9 avril 2013 ; il avait 92 ans. Celui qui fut l'un des maîtres de l’abstraction lyrique repose désormais au cimetière du Montparnasse où il a été enterré quelques jours plus tard (le 16). En son hommage, avec respect, cette rose.
"Picasso m'avait appris à dessiner comme Picasso, mais Cézanne m'avait appris à regarder la nature chinoise. " - Zao Wou Ki
"La couleur éclatante, comme ignée de sa gestuelle procède des cheminements de sa méditation, dans la solitude de l'atelier." - Daniel Marchesseau
"Un grand peintre qui poursuit dans son œuvre une dizaine au moins de grands siècles de l'art chinois, et qui est un des meilleurs peintres modernes de l'Occident." - Claude Roy
"Peindre, peindre, toujours peindre, encore peindre, le mieux possible, le vide et le plein, le léger et le dense, le vivant et le souffle." - Zao Wou Ki
"Le pinceau sert à faire sortir les choses du chaos." - Zao Wou Ki
"Il ne fait jamais nuit. " - Zao Wou Ki
Notes of biography
Zao Wou Ki was born in Pekin in 1921 and grew up in an important Chinese family. At 10 years old, he was interested in Literature and History and began at the same time drawing and painting. Between 1935 and 1941, he studied to the Art college of Hangzhou. Once he finished his studies, he was an assistant professor there.
In 1941, he organized his first exhibition. He was influenced by European painters, Picasso, Matisse, or Cezanne. In 1946, he organized the first exhibition of the Chinese modern paintings (Museum of Tchoung-King). His first personal exhibition was held in Shanghai in 1947.
He came to Paris in 1948, learnt French very easily. As soon as he arrived in France, he spendt the whole afternoon in the Louvre! He went to Othon Friesz atelier, met Michaux. He travelled in Europe. In 1951, he visited Venise which visit had a big effect on his evolution from representational period to the abstraction. The same year, while he exposed his etching work in Switzerland (Swiss), he discovered Paul Klee's work and was very upset. He exposed regularly in Paris (Gallery Pierre).Then at the beginning of the 50s, in the United States (Chicago, New York, Washington), in Switzerland (Swiss, Basel, Lausanne) and in London. A big change happened in the art of the painter-etcher from year 1953, the writing of his works becoming then imaginary. His already important graphic work was presented the year after in the Museum of Fine Arts of Cincinnati (United States) within the framework of a restrospective.
He traveled in 1957-1958 and did the tour of the world together with Pierre Soulages, meeting of the painters who became friends, was attracted by the newness and the spontaneity of the New School of New York. Zao Wou Ki exposed regularly in New York (Kootz Gallery), as in Paris (Gallery of France). He got public orders. In 1964, he got the French citizenship.
During years 1965-75 he was mainly focused on his etching work, stopping painting during 2 years (1971-1973) following the disease then the death of his second wife. A room of the Centre Pompidou was reserved for him in 1976, for his exhibition "Accrochage III". Whether it is in museums or galleries, in France or abroad, numerous exhibitions of this artist, honorings, restrospectives, follow and are still organized today; the last one, exhibition of paintings, took place in Biarritz in the year 2005.
The painter Zao Wou Ki died in Nyons (Switzerland) in April 2013.
Artists on display
The art and the artists display: proclamations, galleries, museums, personal or collective exhibitions. On walls or in shop windows, wise or rebels, posters warn, argue, show. Some were specially conceived by an artist for such or such event, other, colder, have only the letter.
Some were created in lithographic technic, most are simple offset reproductions. They are many those who like collecting these rectangles of paper, monochrome or in games of colours, in matt paper or brilliant, with many words or almost dumb.
We are happy also to be able to greet, by this pages, mythical galleries as those of Denise René, Louis Carré, Claude Bernard, Berheim Jeune, Maeght, Pierre Loeb and others.
Complete work(s)
Complete work(s)
Bibliographic track and more
To read about the artist :
- « Zao Wou-Ki », J. Leymarie et F. Cheng, Grand Palais, Paris, 1981
- « Zao Wou-Ki », J. Leymarie, Cercle d’Art, Paris, 1986
- « Zao Wou-Ki », Claude Roy, Les grands peintres, Ed. Cercle d'Art, 1989
- « Estampes et livres illustrés », Céline Chicha, Ed. B.N.F., Paris, 1998
- « Zao Wou-Ki », Y. Bonnefoy & G. de Cortanze, La Différence, Paris, 1999
- « Zao Wou-Ki », Bernard Noël, Ed. Atelier des Brisants, 2001
- « Zao Wou-Ki, rétrospective », D. Abadie, Gal. du Jeu de Paume, Paris, 2003
- « Works, Writings, Interviews », P. Schneider et M. Ragon, Ed. Poligrafa, 2008
- « Zao Wou-Ki », Pierre Daix, Ed. Ides et Calendes, Neuchâtel, 2013
- « Zao Wou-Ki », Dominique de Villepin, Ed. Flammarion, Paris, 2017
To read from the artist :
- « Autoportrait », Ed. Fayard, Paris, 1988
- « Couleurs et mots », entretiens, Cherche-Midi, Paris, 1999
Website :
www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/zao_wou-kiMore :
Stamp by Zao Wou Ki
The publication of a postal stamp is often a homage paid by a nation to a place, an event, a remarkable cause or a character which count. The painters and other artists do not escape from this rule. Some are however "forgotten" of postal art. Here, gathered below (French or foreign), emitted stamps (206) or simple studies of stamp (224) in homage to the artists represented on our website. The first French stamp was emitted in 1849, England preceded us by ten years. There is often a share of voyage in this small form of shape paper. The stamp circulates, sails, flies away, it makes dream, then dream a little. M.C.
When the stamp is really emitted, the artist name is preceded of an asterisk (*).
It is certain that we do not know each stamp emitted for such or such artist; do not hesitate with us to make known them!
Discover all the stampsA short artist's message
Michelle Champetier Collection / This document is not for sale
Listen
Watch
A tribute to Zao Wou Ki
Atteint de la maladie d'Alzheimer, le peintre français d'origine chinoise Zao Wou Ki s’est éteint à Nyons en Suisse, au bord du lac Léman, le 9 avril 2013 ; il avait 92 ans. Celui qui fut l'un des maîtres de l’abstraction lyrique repose désormais au cimetière du Montparnasse où il a été enterré quelques jours plus tard (le 16). En son hommage, avec respect, cette rose.
"Picasso m'avait appris à dessiner comme Picasso, mais Cézanne m'avait appris à regarder la nature chinoise. " - Zao Wou Ki
"La couleur éclatante, comme ignée de sa gestuelle procède des cheminements de sa méditation, dans la solitude de l'atelier." - Daniel Marchesseau
"Un grand peintre qui poursuit dans son œuvre une dizaine au moins de grands siècles de l'art chinois, et qui est un des meilleurs peintres modernes de l'Occident." - Claude Roy
"Peindre, peindre, toujours peindre, encore peindre, le mieux possible, le vide et le plein, le léger et le dense, le vivant et le souffle." - Zao Wou Ki
"Le pinceau sert à faire sortir les choses du chaos." - Zao Wou Ki
"Il ne fait jamais nuit. " - Zao Wou Ki
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Beyond works currently in stock, it seemed to me useful to combine business with pleasure by letting you discover others works by artists in my gallery. These artworks, now sold or removed from our website, have been in our stock in the past.
These pages will undoubtedly make it possible for some of you to associate an image with its title or the other way round, for others it will be a good time to discover more on such and such artist. For the sake of confidentiality – the pieces being no longer available – we won't display neither their numbering or their price. For whatever reason, make sure to visit this amazing art database with to date 6441 online works just for your pleasure! Michelle Champetier