Pictures that seem trivial but are worth hundreds of billions

A rustic girl, a faucet, a dirty old tool, is often the main subject in the works of painter Leng Quan (China). Because the subject is often simple and nostalgic, many people have made a mistake when looking at the works of Lanh Quan.

In the spring auction called “Contemporary Art Night” by China Guardian on May 20, 2021, the work “Mona Lisa – Design of a Smile” was auctioned for the amount of 80.5 million yuan. currency (about 290 billion VND).

Mona Lisa – Smile design, the most expensive painting of Lanh Quan so far.

The oil painting was painted by Lanh Quan in 2004, with the size 125×45 cm. On a black background, he depicts a smiling oriental woman. Each hair, skin, and clothing of the woman in the picture looks like a photograph, strongly affecting the viewer’s vision.

Lanh Quan’s extremely realistic painting style caused misunderstanding because many viewers mistook the paintings for photographs. If it’s just photos, the works are almost too ordinary in the eyes of the viewer.

Besides, the painting “Mona Lisa – smile design” is also one of Lanh Quan’s recognizable works. This Chinese painter has created many works with much simpler and more confusing content.

For example, the painting “Faucet II” was also controversial when it sold for up to 1.15 million USD (about 4 billion VND) in 2018. The oil painting of a rusty faucet was beaten by many people. prices are ugly, boring and confusing.

The picture “Faucet II” when zoomed in and observed will realize its special.

The composition of the picture is also very simple with the only subject being a rusty faucet on an old white wall. But when magnifying the picture about 5 times, people realize the special hidden in it.

If you look closely at the faucet, you will see it depicted in a lifelike way. Viewers can clearly see rust or friction marks on the screw head or faucet valve… The old iron and steel material is also shown in a wonderful way.

In addition to “Faucet II”, the paintings “Pointing Towards” or “Third Century Landscape” also have a similar surreal style.

Lanh Quan’s “Fingerprint” was also sold for nearly 4 billion VND.

Leng Quan was born in 1963 in Sichuan, graduated from the Faculty of Arts, Wuhan Normal University in 1984. He is currently vice president of Wuhan Academy of Fine Arts. He is considered the symbol of Chinese surrealist painting. Each of his works takes anywhere from six months to a year to complete. In addition to the artistry, the value of Lanh Quan’s paintings lies in their high authenticity that no one can copy.