Four Nudes (Quatre Nuss) - Sanyu

Among the first wave of Chinese artists of the Paris School during the 1920s, Sanyu was a modernist master known for his nude studies and calligraphic style. His paintings are highly sought-after by collectors all over the world today, and some even refer to the artist as the “Chinese Matisse.” This was not always the case, however, as Sanyu’s works were largely overlooked during his lifetime.

Born in 1901, Sichuan. Sanyu attended Art College in Shanghai and went to Japan in 1919. In 1921, he went to France as part of the first wave of Chinese artists to study there. Unlike most of his contemporaries, Sanyu decided to remain in Paris. Since 1925, Sanyu exhibited his work regularly at the Paris salons and in local galleries. Before World War II, Sanyu returned to China briefly and then moved on to New York where he lived for two years.   In 1948, the Museum of Modern Art in New York held an exhibition of his work. Since Sanyu's death in Paris in 1966, the National Museum of History in Taipei has held three retrospective exhibitions of his works. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Sanyu, the National Museum of History held a grand exhibition of over 129 oil paintings. In 2004, the Musée National des Arts Asiatiques-Guimet held a restrospective show of Sanyu's 60 works.