Following his time in Tibet after the Cultural Revolution, Zhou left a socially tumultuous China to obtain his master’s degree at the Gesamthochschule in Kassel, Germany. Of his time in Germany, Zhou claims “the classroom where I really studied was the art museums and galleries of Germany and other European countries.” Exposure to Western artistic movements such as Cubism, Expressionism, Fauvism, and the Neo-Expressionist “Junge Wilde” (Wild Youth) theory expanded Zhou’s aesthetic and stylistically influenced his artistic exploration.

Despite Zhou’s identification with the artistic movements he discovered in Germany, he did not remain there long, returning to his home country in 1989. China has always held certain sway over Zhou, who once stated simply, “I have been deeply influenced by Chinese tradition, which I can never be rid of wherever I am.” It was in pursuit of this Chinese tradition that Zhou developed his Stone series, combining the visual experimentation of the Western modern movements he had discovered in Germany with the traditional elements of Chinese literati painters. While his contemporaries in China were participating in the New Wave, Cynical Realism, and Political Pop movements saturated with social and political commentary, Zhou chose subject matter quintessential to the literati aesthetic, devoid of the contentious activism inherent in the movements around him.

Zhou Chunya’s Stone series specifically addresses the convergence of Eastern and Western aesthetic traditions, utilizing a combination of elements to create a more universal composite. Addressing this series, Zhou explains:

"When I created these ‘stones,’ I had been studying the landscape paintings of the literati. I didn’t, however, perceive them in a way like the Chinese traditional painters. I did not attempt to scrutinize their material properties and patterns and shapes, but to search, according to my own purposes of expression, for those features that all together estrange and amaze me. I have spent much time studying texture, as I tried compulsively to capture and ponder over the deep-rooted factors that affect our visual perception of the stones. Their augmentation and magnification are in essence the form; their visualization is in essence the content, so they require no further explanation or reference. These stones are more astounding and startling than those that are viewed and interpreted from a conceptual and technical perspective."

With each construction, Zhou seeks to utilize the framework established by literati compositions and build upon this foundation with Western Expressionist stylistic elements. Often erotic or sensual, Zhou imbues each Stone configuration with an emotional core, animating each static pillar or landscape composition. With particular attention to the multifaceted surfaces of the stones and surrounding elements, Zhou layers colors and stark contrasts to emphasize the sense of dimension and volume for each piece.

Stone Series presents an arresting example of this series as a whole. Standing starkly against a commanding background of opulent shades of blue, the unusually hued stone rises upward in a pitted, textural column on the right side of the composition. With special attention to the surface and details of each carved and hollowed cavity, Zhou has rendered the static stone with the character and animus of a living organism. Contrasting with the washes of blue along the background, this stone arrests attention, and radiates a sense of deeper visceral emotion. A shadowed tree stands firmly in the foreground, it’s branches curled and twisted upwards with a sinister reach. The gnarled bark reflects the porous surface of the stone, the two elements converging in a surreal expression of landscape structure.

Rare on the market for its size and exploration of colors clearly derived from Western Fauvist influences, the current lot demonstrates a violent, passionate nature inherent in the series. Meticulous attention to subtlety and detail enliven the scene, establishing an arresting composition rife with sensational vibrancy.