Zao Wou-Ki, Beauregard (Frontispiece)

Etching/Aquatint, 1981

Limited Edition of 40 (31/40)

Publisher: Maeght (Paris)

Printer: Atelier Lacourière et Frélaut (Paris)

Catalogue: Agerup 307

38.00 cm × 28.00 cm (sheet size)

25.00 cm × 18.00 cm (image size)

Signed in pencil

Certificate of authenticity included

Condition: Excellent

About the Artwork

"Beauregard (Frontispice)" is a work steeped in quiet lyricism, where Zao Wou-Ki explored the fusion of poetry and printmaking.

"Frontispice" refers to the frontispiece or introductory image placed at the beginning of a book, and this work was created as a visual entryway to guide viewers into the world of a literary piece.

The canvas does not contain any clear landscape depictions.

However, through soft tones and delicate, layered etched lines, something like misty paths, rock formations, or hints of light quietly appears and vanishes.

Zao Wou-Ki sought to express the "sensation before seeing" and the "echoes of memory" rather than depicting specific objects.

In this work, space is not a fixed place, but an inner landscape that constantly changes with perspective and emotion.

Furthermore, his work is deeply imbued with the Eastern philosophy of negative space.

Undrawn areas are not mere blanks, but crucial elements that evoke light, air, and silence.

As such, this piece possesses a profound sense of breath that drifts within the silence.

The delicate gradations achieved through etching and aquatint are also incredibly beautiful, conveying a lightness and transparency reminiscent of ink wash paintings, despite being a print.

In the 1980s, Zao Wou-Ki further matured his abstract expression into a spiritual and poetic realm, and this work reflects that refined worldview.

"Beauregard (Frontispice)" is a work rich in Zao Wou-Ki's characteristic lyricism, where nature, poetry, memory, and silence quietly intersect.

Title Explanation

Beauregard

is French for:

• "beautiful view"
• "beautiful landscape"

.

Also,

Frontispice

means:

• "frontispiece"
• "headpiece"
• "introductory image"

.

Therefore, the title of this work is:

"Beauregard (Beautiful View) Frontispiece"