{"status":true,"msg":{"data":{"id":47365,"auction_id":95,"set_id":125,"lot_number":"118","artist":"Brian Uhing (b. 1975)","title":"Don Quixote","starting_price":1600000,"signed_dated":"signed (lower left)","medium":"oil on canvas","size":"17\" x 13\" (43 cm x 33 cm)","property":null,"coa":"Accompanied by a certificate signed by the artist confirming the authenticity of this lot","provenance":"Sotheby's, Contemporary Discoveries, Hong Kong, September 12, 2023, Lot 5537","exhibited":"Art Verité Gallery, Procession of the Slightly Mad (Joint Exhibition with S-Ann Ch'i),<br /> Bonifacio Global  City, Taguig, May 6 - May 15, 2021","literature":null,"write_up":"“When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams — this may be madness. Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!” ? Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quixote<br /><br />Don Quixote peers from inside the canvas, fixing his soulful gaze on the audience. On his head, in lieu of a hat, is an upside-down box with the word 'fragile' embossed on the side. He is dressed in tattered cardboard boxes. On his hand is a bright red pinwheel; behind him is a window looking over a winding rural road with the mountains on the horizon.<br /><br />In a masterful move, contemporary artist Brian Uhing evokes the classical masters while simultaneously subverting the uptight stereotype that comes with a traditional art style by injecting his signature humor. Growing up in an environment that nurtured his artistic inclinations, the influence of artists like René Magritte, Marcel Duchamp, and Balthus is highly evident in his works.<br /><br />\"If I could marry the richness of Titian's work with the humor of Magritte, that would be something I wouldn't mind seeing,\" he once told ANCX. One look into Uhing's oeuvre is proof enough that he manages to combine this unlikely pairing, as evidenced in his work Don Quixote.<br /><br />Don Quixote, the titular character in Miguel Cervantes's 17th-century novel, is a middle-aged nobleman obsessed with knighthood and chivalry. Armed with a vivid imagination, he sets out to become a knight to protect the helpless, perceiving his ordinary rural scenery as grandiose medieval adventures. Although his delusions often lead him to comical misunderstandings, Don Quixote is an image of idealism, courage, and chivalry.<br /><br />Uhing's work is a visual treat brimming with symbolism and humor. In Don Quixote, the character's \"armor\" is actually made of flimsy cardboard, symbolizing his delusions of being a chivalrous knight when, in fact, he is a middle-aged man in the province. The window behind him depicts a pastoral scenery, clearly devoid of the grandiose castles that often plague his fantasies.<br /><br />However, on his hand is a pinwheel, bright red amidst the cool tones. A pinwheel is a visual representation of a carefree childhood, of youthful energy in a cycle of stopping and starting. Don Quixote may be a man in the throes of his delusions, but his genuine desire to protect the helpless remains his driving force. In this masterful work, Uhing utilizes his classical art style, vivacious humor, and brilliant symbolism to strike this delicate balance. (Hannah Valiente)","lot_group":"Painting","lot_details_html":null,"alias":null,"hp":1600000,"bp":0.2016,"isWithdrawn":0,"accounting_hp":1600000,"userBid":5926,"isPaid":0,"userId":22,"lot_status":"SOLD","isDone":1,"bid_history_id":null,"reserve_price":null,"hammer_price":1922560,"fav":0},"image":[{"id":47057,"img_url":"https://leongallery.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/v2/auction/95/125/lot/118.jpg","isFeatured":1}]},"increment":[900000,1000000,1100000,1200000,1300000,1400000,1500000,1600000,1700000,1800000,1900000,2000000,2200000,2400000,2600000,2800000,3000000,3200000,3400000,3600000,3800000,4000000,4200000,4400000,4600000,4800000,5000000,5500000,6000000,6500000,7000000,7500000,8000000,8500000,9000000,9500000,10000000,11000000,12000000,13000000,14000000,15000000,16000000,17000000,18000000,19000000,20000000],"prev":117,"next":119,"count_bid":0,"bid_history":[],"tokenExpired":1}