Fu Baoshi

It was reported in the press (June 2016) that a painting of Fu Baoshi (傅抱石) was auctioned recently in Beijing for a record S$47m - thie highest price paid in the sale. The 1954 work, The God of Cloud and Great Lord, has been kept in Singapore by various collectors since the early 1960s.

Fu Boashi's painting done in 1954

The painting of two fairy gods was inspired by a poem by Warring states poet Qu Yuan more than 2000 years ago. Measuring 114 cm by 315 cm, it is the largest painting of human figures by the late artist available in the market. His other similar size-size work are kept in museums in China.

Art collectors here indicated that the painting was sold by Fu's family to a Singapore collector after his death in 1965, and it remained in Singapore since. They added that the sale of the painting was a great loss to Singapore art.

One retired Chinese art writer commented: "As with many other other Chinese masterpieces owned by the older generation of Singapore collectors, we are losing them probably because present collectors and the museum authorities here do not see their values."

Fu Baoshi

Fu Baoshi had great talents in Chinese painting. After the independence in 1959, he and another artist (Guan Sanyue) were commissioned by Mao Zedong of the Communist government to paint a huge painting for display in the Great Hall of China. The painting depicts sun rise on mountains with clouds and pine trees. This painting entitled "Jiang San Ru Chi Doa Jiao" 江山如此娇。The six Chinese characters were written by Chairman Mao himself after its completion.

It was a great investment by the Singapore collector. In his old age, he is able to reap a fortune for investing in famous artists' works. However, it is a pity that time is against him to dispose of such wealth during his old age.


Write-up of this painting in Mandarin (Source;Baike.com)

《江山如此多娇》画卷堪称为世界上最大一幅用手托起的画卷，它由303块喷制好的画布缝制而成、面积达1.8万平方米。

悬挂在人民大会堂正厅的山水画《江山如此多娇》，是关山月和傅抱石于1959年初创作而成。整个画面气势恢宏，象征着祖国强大和江山美好。
《江山如此多娇》巨幅画卷将由三组画布组成，长度为150米，总宽120米，总面积1.8万平方米，重约9吨，仅画卷上的太阳图案的直径达5米。这幅大画卷在制作的时候，是用了303块喷制好的画布缝制而成，为防撕裂，画布面料为制作降落伞材料。为了防止国庆出现下雨等不利天气，采用防水材料制成。

此图取毛泽东《沁园春》词意，把代表性的四季山水集中、浓缩到一起，运用革命现实主义和浪漫主义相融合的创作方法，表现了祖国河山的雄奇壮美。此图境界恢宏，气魄雄健，淋漓酣畅，豪放洒脱，具有强烈的民族风格和时代感。这张画完成于建国十周年前夕，其不寻常的意义还在于，毛泽东主席亲自在画上题字，而且是唯一的一幅，其价值更是无法估量。