EVENT DESCRIPTION
To mark its 10th anniversary in Asia, Phillips will present a series of specially curated programmes. As one of the highlights of the celebration, PhillipsX, a selling exhibition platform operated by the global Private Sales team at Phillips, is delighted to present Liu Dan: Morphogenesis, taking place from 22 April to 12 May at Phillips’ galleries in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District.
Liu Dan is a prominent figure in contemporary Chinese ink art, and the selling exhibition features 26 important works, marking his most extensive solo presentation to date. The show spans themes such as dictionaries, flowers, rocks, and his iconic ‘Grand Landscape’ series from recent years. It systematically traces his artistic journey over four decades, revealing how ink art transcends the boundaries between Eastern and Western aesthetics to construct a contemporary spiritual vision that defies time and space. Select works on display will be available for purchase through Phillips’ private sales.
This exhibition showcases a series of the latest creations by the artist, including the monumental Primal Vibrancy, which measures 527 centimetres wide. This groundbreaking work redefines the contemporary possibilities of Shan Shui (landscape) as a vessel for Eastern spirituality through scientific inquiry and cross-cultural perspectives. The painting’s exquisitely elegant composition transcends mere representation of rock formations, transforming physical forms into ineffable visions that establish a new order beyond materiality, free from narrative constraints. Another leading highlight, Sunflower, employs traditional Chinese ink-on-paper techniques with a drawing-like approach to depict a floral subject. The magnified sunflower pulses with silent yet monumental vitality on Xuan paper, where the rhythmic breath of Eastern ink brushwork seamlessly merges with contemporary visual syntax. Also created in 2025, Rock from Studio “Xiao Gu Shan” I depicts a scholar’s stone with the artist’s signature meticulous brushwork. Viewed from afar, the composition evokes the grandeur of towering peaks and undulating mountain ranges. The upper section of the painting features ‘Record of Artificial Mountains,’ a text by the late Ming-early Qing dynasty monk Dokushō Shōeki (独立性易), exemplifying ‘painting with words’ while elevating garden aesthetics to a cosmological dimension.
