For many years, we have guided collectors in their purchase of Hu Jundi’s master works and seen the many benefits of their decision.  We have decided to start a series of interviews and articles on Hu Jundi to help our future collectors of his work get a better understanding of the artist and his works.

For our first article of the series is a forward by renowned art critic from China, Zhong Biao.

Late Spring of March - original oil diptych by Hu Jundi

Hu Jundi Profile

Birth date: 1962 in Jilin province.

1984 graduated from Sichan Fine Arts College, Chongqing

Forward by Zhong Biao, Artist, Director, Chonqing Art Museum

I first saw Hu Jundi’s work in the magazine ‘China Oil Painting’. It made a deep impression on me. After a little while, an art exhibition was held in Beijing. I hoped to find this artist in the exhibition, so I went. I was so pleased to see Hu Jun Di’s originals there. Because the published images I had previously seen were small, the originals were a revelation! His work had an incredible impact on the people. He proved the most talented master. His work is full of dense Chinese colors, the lush atmosphere and Sichuan’s warm moisture is floating in the paintings. I was hooked instantly to his canvas melodies.

Nature, original oil by Hu Jundi (胡峻涤油画）

To find out more about him, I decided to go to his hometown, LeShan, in the Sichuan Province. Hu Jundi’s studio was not big, about 12 square meters. In order to concentrate on his art, he gave up his business and sold his house in Beijing, and left the disturbingly noisy place. He came back to his hometown and kept himself quiet to focus on the art. Jundi decided to paint a series subject about the famous novel Liaozhai. It reflects that the Chinese are not satisfied with the social circumstance at that time. He painted the elegant appearance of the Sichuan woman. His brilliance is in the harmonious blend of traditional Chinese brush with the unmatched depth of oils. His paintings are completely Chinese, with colors of the Sichuan environment, harmonious, incomplete borders. They reflect the shadow of the most famous Chinese artist XU BEI HONG. But the oils give it a more universal, lasting appeal. The women are serene and beautiful, the attire is classical Sichuan Chinese, but there seems to be an appeal that goes beyond just Chinese. He does not use models. He paints the character in his mind, searching from a person in his life. He chooses the most wonderful moment in his mind and paints it. Catching a moment, this is the Chinese painting skill. To do it with oil painting, it is the most difficult. It took years of patient trial and error, along with his immense talent to master.

Two Women in Snow, original oil by Hu Jundi （胡峻涤油画）

The works are as much a reflection of his spirit as his cool strength under pressure. As I know in China and probably the world, few artists can do that. In western artists I have seen, only Renoir could capture that style.

China has a very special artist ——- Hu Jun Di.

Fine Art Collecting – A New Form of Investment?

Fine art, continues to be a favorite son of today’s investment market and it is becoming more main stream than ever.  I was a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) and a Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA) in the private sector.  My company managed over 100 million dollars on a cash basis in the financial market for hundreds of clients.  The first thing that we always tell our clients is “past performance is not Indicative of future results”.   Yes, historically investment in fine art has yield better returns than the financial market and yes we see that potential continue to exist.  However, nothing is fool proof, anyone who tells you that there is no risk associated with purchasing fine art as an investment, frankly, does not have your best interests in mind.

As with any investment, there are always risks involved, be that of depreciation of assets or liquidity of the market.  What defines a good investment is one that has reasonable “calculated risk” with good upside potential.  For a short term investment you are also looking at good liquidity, meaning, how easy it is to get out of your investment position.  But a “suitable” investment for one client is not necessarily suitable for another.  During the time that I was a money manager, it was not uncommon that we would turn down a client who was willing to pay for our service. This occurred when we felt the investment profile did not match our client’s risk profile and needs or, that the risk exposure was outside of their means (which I will address later).

Jack Storms Cut Glass Art Sculptures has high value at beginning prices that are very affordable.

We can all see that fine art has traditionally out-performed the S&P 500 as a long term investment and many auction houses continue to make record sales.  However, fine art investing is not typically appropriate for the short term. When compared to traditional investment vehicles such as stocks, options, mutual funds, and commodity and futures market, it is definitely not as liquid.  This is true because the masses have not yet realized collecting art is lucrative.

This incredible black and white fine art photograph by Phil Borges has doubled in price since it was sold out...

With these things said, is fine art a good investment?  Yes.  It has out-performed the financial market historically and we have seen the trend of its continuing appreciation.  An original work of fine art is not something that can be duplicated.  Therefore, there is a value associated with that.  This is particularly true when the artist is being recognized collectively by a broad audience.

Fine Art is the only investment vehicle that I know of that can, through aesthetics changes people’s life, increase the quality of life and even improve productivity.  Many companies have found that by providing their employee with a harmonious and beautifully inspired environment, the productivity of the employees go way up and, if the investment is smart, the value of their art collection also goes up.  Sometimes the art collection in a company is worth more than the value of the company as a business.  It’s kind of like a restaurant’s wine collection is worth many times the value of just the business.  Did you know that the world renowned San Diego Wild Animal Park’s botanical asset is actually worth more than the value of the animal collection that they had?  Further, there are more fine art works in corporate collections than private collections.  Many companies use it as a means to diversify their investment portfolio. If you have a business, consult your accountant about the possibility of writing off or depreciating the cost of the purchase as well for additional tax benefit.  There may also be other tax benefits to owning and investing in art.

Serge Marshennikov's Original Female Oil Portraits have been sold through important art auctions, including famous Christie’s of London and Bonham's in Knightsbridge. His work is in much demand and his prices are constantly rising.

Does fine art investment have risk associated with it?  Absolutely.  You can experience depreciation at times especially if you are trying to sell it quickly. There are a number of factors that come into play, and understanding those component factors are key to success.

Is fine art a suitable investment for me?  Well, this depends on many factors: 1. What is the source of funds that you are using to make this investment?  2. What is your investment time frame? 3.  How liquid are your other assets? 4. Would it devastate you financially if you are not able to liquidate your position?  These factors are actually all inter-related.

Fine art investment is a intermediate to long term investment so please do not use money that you need to pay your bills to make an investment.  Also, in order to liquidate your position (sell your artwork), you would likely go to an auction house or the original dealer, and sometimes even through private sales.  It can sometimes it can take months or even longer to sell the work.   If any of these things would put you at great risk, then it is probably not for you.

So if you are ready to include some fine art in your life to increase the quality of your life and to enjoy the potential benefit of the appreciation, don’t forget to contact your art consultant so that they can guide you through the process of establish your collection that is best suited for your needs and style, be it glass art, original paintings, whether contemporary or traditional, or even sculptures.  We have seen quite a few artists whose works have appreciated consistently over the last few years, if you love art, why shouldn’t you benefit from the appreciation?

Contemporary Chinese artist Hu Jundi's paintings have also been successfully auctioned in China.

In 1992, Palden Gyatso finally escaped his environment after being starved and tortured for nearly his entire adult life. When he escaped, he fled across the Himalayas to India to seek refuge. Fire Under The Snow is his story. The World Premiere film was released at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2008. It will soon be released to audiences world wide. Fire Under The Snow is also a book.

Fire Under The Snow, was first published in Great Britan in 1997 by the Harvill Press. The book has been translated into several languages.

Fire Under The Snow is neither a historical story nor a mystical one. It is simply a story of one man, faced with the inhumanity of a system perpetrated in the name of progress and ideology. It is his testimony to the suffering of the Tibetan nation during the Cultural Revolution.

The forward of Fire Under The Snow, was written by the Dalai Lama.  It reads in part:  “Palden Gyatso evokes the horrific years of the Cultural Revolution with deep compassion for others who suffered with him. It was not the threat of execution that most terrified him, but the inhumanity and cruelty he was forced to witness.”

I had the distinct honor and privledge of meeting Palden Gyatso in September 2008, during his visit to Hallmark Gallery in La Jolla, California.  Hallmark Gallery, located in the center of the Village of La Jolla, on Prospect Street, has for sale the captivating photography of Phil Borges, a world renowned photographer.

Palden Gyatso, a Buddhist monk since childhood, was arrested by the Chinese Communist Army in 1959. He spent the next 33 years in prison for the "crimes" of peaceful demonstration and refusal to denounce his apolitical teacher as an Indian spy. He was tortured, starved and sentenced to hard labor. He watched his nation and culture destroyed, his teachers, friends and family displaced, jailed or killed under Chinese occupation.

Mr. Borges worked with the Dalai Lama on a collection of photographs for his book Tibetan Portrait.  Palden Gyatso is one of the portraits found in Tibetan Portrait .  Hallmark Gallery in La Jolla, also has the photograph of Palden Gyatso for sale, it hangs on our Phil Borges wall.

Palden, black and white fine art photography by photographer Phil Borges

One day, a client of Hallmark Gallery, La Jolla, happened to recognize the black and white photograph taken by Phil Borges, hanging on the wall of the gallery.  He told me, ”hey, that’s Palden Gyatso, he’s a friend of mine”.

That’s how I found out about Fire Under The Snow, the book, and Fire Under The Sun, the film released by the Tribeca Film Festival.  That’s also how I came to meet Palden Gyatso.  Hallmark Gallery’s client told me that next time Palden Gyatso comes to La Jolla, he’ll bring him by Hallmark Gallery for a visit.  And so he did.  Although Palden Gyatso did not have his translator with him during his visit, this simple Tibetan Monk whose smile lights up a room, was able to communicate simply by his presence. There was a lot of sign language and gestures, but little verbal interaction since we did not speak the other’s language.

Wow. What a terrific experience. Thanks to Rob Mitchell, Hallmark Gallery’s owner, for his generosity and being the awesome person he is, and also for being present for Palden Gyatso’s gallery visit.