Lot 305 , Goon T. Chan also known as Shek Kwan Chan (1893-1951). A bronze bust of a young Sun Yat-sen,
Goon T. Chan also known as Shek Kwan Chan (1893-1951). A bronze bust of a young Sun Yat-sen, the figure wearing a mandarin jacket, signed lower right in the bronze, width 43cm height 71cm, together with a wood panel carved with the flags of the Republic of China and Formosa/Taiwan
Estimate £5,000-8,000
Sun Yat-sen (1866 – 1925) was a Chinese physician, writer, philosopher, calligrapher and revolutionary, the first president and founding father of the Republic of China. As the foremost pioneer and first leader of a Republican China, Sun is referred to as the "Father of the Nation" in the Republic of China (ROC) and the "forerunner of democratic revolution" in the People's Republic of China (PRC). Sun played an instrumental role in the overthrow of the Qing dynasty (the last imperial dynasty of China) during the years leading up to the Xinhai Revolution. He was appointed to serve as Provisional President of the Republic of China when it was founded in 1912. He later co-founded the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party of China), serving as its first leader. Sun was a uniting figure in post-Imperial China, and he remains unique among 20th-century Chinese politicians for being widely revered amongst the people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
The artist Goon T. Chan was born in Taishan in 1893 and left China in 1906 to go to Montreal for English schooling, he studied art at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston from 1917-1928 learning sculpture under Charles Grafly. In 1928 he attended the Academie De La Choumiere in Paris and then on to Florence Academy from 1929-30 and in 1930 he held a show of his work at the Miles Standish Gallery and Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. From 1937 to 1941 he was commissioned to sculpt the bronze bust of the Governor of Hong Kong, Professors of the University of Hong Kong and many noted people of the day in Hong Kong including Sir Robert Kotewall, Sir G. Northcote and Major McFadyen, he also did another version of a memorial bust of Dr Sun Yat Sen.
It is possible that this bronze bust is the prize winning sculpture which Chan submitted to the 1934 Nanking competition.
Occasional tiny patches of verdigris to the surface otherwise in good condition with no cracks, some minor casting imperfections in manufacture and some areas of dirt around the right eyer of the figure and around his ears.
Please note the wood panel carved with the flags of the Republic of China and Formosa is no longer in this lot, it is just the bronze bust of Sun Yat-sen.
Provenance: The gentleman who owns the piece bought it in Hong Kong in the 1980's from a scrap yard where it was about to be melted down.
Descriptions provided in both printed and on-line catalogue formats do not include condition reports. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging. Interested bidders are strongly encouraged to request a condition report on any lots upon which they intend to bid, prior to placing a bid. All transactions are governed by Gorringes Conditions of Sale.
Sold for £29,000