Zao Wou-Ki Untitled

Lithograph, 1961

Edition: 125

Publisher: L'Oeuvre Gravée (Paris)

Image size: 50.00 × 45.00 cm
Sheet size: 65.00 × 50.00 cm

Signed by the artist in pencil
Artist Proof
With Certificate of Authenticity
Excellent condition

About the Artwork

Created in 1961, this lithograph is a significant work that symbolizes Zao Wou-Ki's pivotal period of transition to abstract expression. The early 1960s were a profoundly creative time for Zao Wou-Ki, during which his unique expression, fusing Western abstract painting with Eastern spirituality, rapidly matured.

In this work, deep colors, primarily green and brown, are intricately layered, giving the canvas a rich texture and dynamism. The color fields have no fixed form, constantly shifting through brushstrokes, bleeding, and rubbing, as if embodying the energy of nature and the breathing of the earth.

Furthermore, the soft tonal expression characteristic of lithography delicately renders variations in color intensity and texture, creating a poetic space that, despite its abstraction, evokes landscapes, rock faces, trees, and mist.

Zao Wou-Ki's works from this period possess the power to convey the essence of nature and the cosmos even without depicting concrete subjects. This piece, too, can be seen as a core representation of his art, striving to depict "qi" and "space" beyond form.