Wu Dayu's work "A Riot of Flowers"Created around 1960, this work represents a significant turning point in the artist's exploration of figuration and abstraction. It has been exhibited four times and has been published 12 times since the 1990s. Throughout the history of modern Chinese art, its academic value and market attention continue to be recognized and appreciated.Since 2019, "Blooming Flowers" has been used as the cover of the "Painting Book" in the "Ordinary High School Textbook: Fine Arts: Selective Compulsory Course" for high school art textbooks. It has been reprinted many times, and the total circulation of the entire set has exceeded one million copies.

In this set of national general high school art textbooks compiled by the Curriculum Research Institute and the Art Curriculum and Textbook Research and Development Center of the People's Education Press, and edited by Sun Wei and Liu Donghui, the covers of different volumes are all artistic monuments selected by the National Textbook Committee.Among the cover selections for the complete set of seven textbooks, "Blooming Flowers" is listed alongside world-renowned national treasures such as Wang Ximeng's "A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains" and Zhang Xuan's "Lady Guo's Spring Outing," together forming a symbol of national-level art education.This is not only the highest affirmation of Wu Dayu's personal artistic achievements,This also signifies that his "momentum" aesthetics have officially risen to become an aesthetic education standard representing the height of modern Chinese oil painting.

As a high school art textbook that has passed national-level review,The textbook "Art, Selective Compulsory Course 1, Painting" for senior high schools has gone through 9 printings since its first edition in July 2019, and will be reprinted 9 times by the spring of 2026.This means that over an eight-year period, millions of Chinese high school students completed their learning of the basic language and expressive forms of painting through this work.

Even more noteworthy is that this cover extends beyond multi-ethnic language education, appearing on the cover of the People's Education Press Mongolian art textbook. This widespread reach and massive distribution demonstrate its profound influence across the country.By endowing "A Riot of Flowers" with a social and public value that transcends ordinary artworks, Wu Dayu's artistic philosophy is subtly influencing and shaping the visual aesthetics of China's new generation of youth.

Wu Dayu was a pioneering master of abstract painting in 20th-century China.He profoundly fused the modern avant-garde concepts of Western Fauvism and Abstract Expressionism with the spiritual core of traditional Chinese freehand brushwork, thus creating a unique and distinctive style."Situation and momentum"His aesthetic system, employing light, color, brushstrokes, and texture as mediums for emotional expression and philosophical reflection, established a solid theoretical foundation and practical paradigm for Chinese abstract art. His creations transcend mere resemblance, precisely capturing and reproducing the profound spirit of Eastern imagery through the rhythm of color, line, and volume.

Kaipai International 2026 Spring Auction

Lot 003

Wu Dayu: Flowers in Full Bloom

Oil painting on canvas

Worked around 1960

45.5×32.5cm

exhibition:

1. Wu Dayu and His Students from Hangzhou Art Academy Exhibition, Great Future Gallery, Taipei, 1996

2. Wu Dayu Painting Exhibition, National Museum of History, Taipei, 2001

3. Wu Dayu Oil Painting Retrospective Exhibition, Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai, 2003

4. Abstract, Big Future Gallery, Taipei, 2006

publishing:

1. Wu Dayu 1903-1988, Great Future Gallery Art Co., Ltd., Taipei, 1996, Plate 6, p. 35

2. Wu Dayu Painting Exhibition, National Museum of History, Taipei, 2001, p. 76

3. *Shanghai Oil Painting and Sculpture Academy: Wu Dayu*, edited by Qiu Ruimin, Shanghai Education Press, Shanghai, 2003, p. 57.

4. Wu Dayu, Great Future Gallery Art Co., Ltd., Taipei, 2006, p. 30

5. *A Collection of Works by Representative Painters of the Shanghai School over the Past Century*, Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Publishing House, 2013, p. 28.

6. *Collection of Works by Wu Dayu*, edited by Wu Chongli and Shou Chongning, People's Fine Arts Publishing House, Beijing, 2015, p. 86.

7. *A Study of Wu Dayu*, by Huang Wenzhong, Xiamen University Press, 2015, p. 104.

8. *Art Selective Compulsory Course 1: Painting*, edited by Sun Wei and Liu Donghui, People's Education Press, 2019. (Cover image)

9. *Senior High School Textbook: Teacher's Guide - Art - Selective Compulsory Course 1: Painting*, compiled by the Art Curriculum and Textbook Research and Development Center, People's Education Press, 2020, cover.

10. *Soaring Feathers Across the Sky: A Collection of Works by Wu Dayu*, edited by Shou Chongning and Li Dajun, Commercial Press, Beijing, 2020, p. 51.

11. Wu Dayu's Collected Works, edited by Sun Chenxu, China Academy of Art Press, Hangzhou, 2022, p. 150.

12. *Mongolian Edition: Fine Arts (Selective Compulsory Course 1: Painting)*, compiled by the Fine Arts Curriculum and Textbook Research and Development Center, People's Education Press, 2022. (Cover)

Note:The place of settlement for this auction item will be Hong Kong, China.

RMB 7,000,000-9,000,000

Created around 1960, "A Riot of Flowers" uses the collision of color blocks and the bold strokes to conjure a visual realm that is "like flowers but not flowers." In the painting, the fiery warm tones of red, orange, and yellow intertwine with the serene blue and green areas, forming a strong visual tension and color resonance, constructing a highly condensed structure within a small space. The agile form resembling a parrot in the lower left corner further awakens the vitality of the painting. In this work, Wu Dayu uses the rich and heavy layering texture of Western oil painting to carry the freehand brushwork of Chinese painting, successfully elevating the Western still life subject to the spiritual realm of Eastern "momentum."The "flowers" in the painting have been transformed into an abstract representation of vigorous vitality and abundant energy. They are not only the splendid bloom of natural life, but also a clear reflection of the artist's vast spiritual world.

Kaipai International 2026 Spring Auction

A detail from Wu Dayu's "Flowers in Full Bloom"

Within the grand context of the history of modern Chinese art, Wu Dayu's artistic achievements and aesthetic ideas are not only expanding their influence in the public sphere, but their academic value and market position are also receiving more full affirmation. As a rare and representative work of Wu Dayu's typical style, "Blooming Flowers" perfectly interprets the internalization and rebirth of the spirit of Chinese and Western art in the process of fusion through its color tension and rhythmic cadence.

Kaipai International 2026 Spring Auction

CUPPAR 2026 SPRING AUCTION

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