Christie's presents the pioneering work of Zhang Xiaogang: Bloodline: Big Family No.2 (estimated 5/6 million dollars) as the highlight of the Hong Kong Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sale on 2 December 2020.
A work of art of monumental significance:
Bloodline: Big Family No. 2 is one of the most important paintings in the history of contemporary Chinese art. It was first publicly exhibited during the 46th Venice Biennale in 1995, where he created a stir in the global art scene by heralding the rise of a new wave of Chinese art. The work marked a milestone not only in the artist's career but also in the global history of contemporary art.
The work is a masterful example of the artist's Bloodline series: Big Family, Zhang's most iconic corpus. Inspired by old family photographs, the series is defined by a distinctive painting style inspired by old photographs, capturing the nuanced emotions, family ties and collective memories of an important era in China's history.
Zhang Xiaogang completed only five monumental works of this size (180 x 230 cm.) in his mature period, during which time he produced the most mature and sought-after examples of his Bloodline series.
Of the five paintings of this size, only two depict “one-child families”: the present work and Bloodline: Big Family No. 3, which holds the artist's current auction world record.
A rare example of a large one-child family format, a reference to China's historic one-child policy. The painting also includes a depiction of an “intellectual youth” (zhiqing), reflecting the artist's personal history as well as an important era in China's modern era.
This painting was featured on the cover of the international edition of Lu Peng's A History of Art in 20th-Century China in 2013, emphasizing the art historical significance of the work.
The painting has been featured in several major international exhibitions, including the 46th Venice Biennale, and Inside Out: New Chinese Art, one of the first exhibitions dedicated to contemporary Chinese art presented in North America, which debuted at MoMA PS1 in New York and then traveled to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art from 1998 to 1999.
