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Lot Essay
It is known that Natee Utarit struggles to resolve the dialectic of western classical painting and the progression from it. "I believe in the faith I have toward the ancient Western arts as much as in the suspicion I have toward the source of oneself." (Natee Utarit, Recent Paintings, Numthong Gallery, Bangkok, 2003, p. 2) He is as grateful to western classical painting as he is uncertain about it, questioning what he has understood to be the way of painting. This deliberation is articulated in his paintings where the antithesis has developed to become his guiding artistic concept as he continues to search for the answer through his work.
"Dedicate and homage to the ancient aesthetic, hope and faith in the world of painting." (Natee Utarit, The Last description of the Old Romantic, Numthong Gallery, Bangkok, 2005, exhibition catalogue, p. 2) As a tribute then to the western classical painting ideals, he developed an exhibition sharing the same name as the present lot, The last description of the old romantic. His hallmark still life portraits of flowers all shared the same name as the present work. After all, they were completed in the same likeness of western painting methodology albeit with a contemporary definition. This said contemporary interpretation enlarges the view of the solitary flower and challenges the conventional perceptions of scale. The viewer is brought much closer in inspection of the composition, rather than being distanced from the subject in a manner that is almost idolising. Again he darkens his background in a solid tone which immediately brightens, enlivens and emphasises the subject's colours, composing a very attractive image. The flower, however, whilst obvious is not entirely clear as a thin sheen of oil paint and wood stain is painted over the front of the subject, acting as a veil and a barrier hence to his conclusion of the dialectic.
A similar work produced along the same vein was sold in Christie's, Hong Kong 29 May 2005, lot 81.
"Dedicate and homage to the ancient aesthetic, hope and faith in the world of painting." (Natee Utarit, The Last description of the Old Romantic, Numthong Gallery, Bangkok, 2005, exhibition catalogue, p. 2) As a tribute then to the western classical painting ideals, he developed an exhibition sharing the same name as the present lot, The last description of the old romantic. His hallmark still life portraits of flowers all shared the same name as the present work. After all, they were completed in the same likeness of western painting methodology albeit with a contemporary definition. This said contemporary interpretation enlarges the view of the solitary flower and challenges the conventional perceptions of scale. The viewer is brought much closer in inspection of the composition, rather than being distanced from the subject in a manner that is almost idolising. Again he darkens his background in a solid tone which immediately brightens, enlivens and emphasises the subject's colours, composing a very attractive image. The flower, however, whilst obvious is not entirely clear as a thin sheen of oil paint and wood stain is painted over the front of the subject, acting as a veil and a barrier hence to his conclusion of the dialectic.
A similar work produced along the same vein was sold in Christie's, Hong Kong 29 May 2005, lot 81.