Circa 1956, watercolor on paper, five pears painted in skillful watercolor strokes, ladybug on top leaf of one, signed to lower left corner, presented loose.



8 3/4 x 11 3/4 in.

Acquired directly from the artist in the 1950s, the artist and consigner were close friends and worked together in I.M. Pei's office.

Chen Chi-kwan was born in 1921 in Beijing. His father instructed his early study of calligraphy where he learned seal, clerical, regular, running, and cursive scripts to further strengthen his foundation in traditional studies. Due to the war, his family ended up moving from place to place, finally settling in Chongqing, Sichuan Province, where he studied architecture at Central University. In 1948, he traveled to the United States to continue his studies and was invited by the famous Bauhaus architect Walter Gropius to work for his architectural firm, also being recommended to teach part-time at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Three years later, in 1954, Chen was asked by the architect I.M. Pei to go to Taiwan and work on designing the campus of Tunghai University. In September of 1960 he would return to settle in Taiwan on a permanent basis, setting up the Department of Architecture at Tunghai University and single-handedly overseeing the design of its Luce Memorial Chapel. From then on his life was inseparable from Taiwan, and he went on to great achievements in architecture and painting.

Chen Chi-kwan’s style has been described as playful, mystical, architectural, and representing a pure world beyond time and space. He employed his “mind’s eye” to view the world resulting in his paintings having a pure and fresh quality, a unique style all his own.


Small staple holes to upper left corner; some scattered areas of discoloration; one larger area of discoloration to lower right corner; some vertical creases; edges with mat burn; overall toning to paper.

$1,500 - 3,000