拍品描述：
签名：曾梵志 2000 Zeng Fanzhi（右下）
出版：《艺术展：我的收藏梦》，海天径26-28号画廊，香港，2007年，无页数，彩图
《纬度/态度：少励画廊二十周年展》，少励画廊，香港，2012年，第192页，彩图
《2000年期后：中国当代艺术》，Caroline Ha Thuc着，Mars国际出版，香港，2015年，第144页，彩图
《曾梵志作品全集第一册1984-2004》（英文版），钟嘉贤著，Skira出版，米兰，2019年，第542 - 543页，彩图
《曾梵志作品全集第一册1984-2004》（中文版），钟嘉贤著，Skira出版，米兰，2019年，第190页，彩图
背面贴有少励画廊标签
此作附少励画廊开立之作品保证书
来源：香港少励画廊（得自艺术家本人）
少励家族收藏
展览：「1+1：郭晋与曾梵志」,香港少励画廊，2000年5月4日-6月5日
「艺术展：我的收藏梦」,香港海天径26-28号画廊，2007年7月6日
Zeng Fanzhi—Explorations and Transformations in Mid-to-Late Period Mask Series
Even though the schema and imageries of the Mask Series remained consistent over the span of ten years，Zeng Fanzhi never ceased exploring and evolving this set of works. Significant changes can be found in works from the mid-to-late period (specifically between 1997—2004). Compositions，brushwork，and even the use of colour became much more diverse. All these unprecedented transformations prove to be major breakthroughs in the trajectory of this series.
Works from this particular period feature an elegant and decisive palette. The figures shed their anxiety-ridden countenance from the early period and adopt a self-assured attitude. It is possible that this change corresponds to the psychological shift that Zeng went through in the year 2000. He was no longer the panic-stricken and unknown artist who had just arrived in the unfamiliar capital of Beijing. By this time，he had already completed his first Mask series exhibition in Hong Kong and subsequently showed his works in Chinese contemporary art group exhibitions in Hamburg and Bonn，Germany，Spain，and Singapore. Domestically，he was invited to participate in the critics' choice exhibition at the National Art Museum of China，as well as the 1998 touring exhibitions at the Central Academy of Fine Arts，Courtyard Gallery，and ShanghART Gallery. Publishing catalogues，meeting collectors，and facing criticisms，all these experiences made Zeng more mature and confident. This advancement gave him the stability to develop creatively. As a result，figures in his works also adopted a more spirited appearance. This is most evident in the way that they discarded their previous awkward mannerisms—their hands are now at ease，resting in their waistcoat pockets. The attire of the figures are also noticeably more tailored and crisp. The boldness and eagerness to present themselves in front of others are unmistakable. The anguish and melancholia that dominated Zeng's early works are nowhere to be found. It is often said that the Mask series is autobiographical. As demonstrated in this regard，this set of works echoes the creative mood of the artist at this time.
Other than the imageries of the figures，the most iconic breakthroughs from the mid-to-late period of this series are the brushwork and the use of colour.
The artist had greatly reduced the painterly manners in the brushwork. The massive hands，the creases in the clothes，as well as the masks are no longer heavily textured as they were early in the series. Looking at the figures' hands，even the criss-crossing musculature and the tactile roughness of the skin are now smoothed over into a refine gloss. This change in the form of brushwork is connected to the masked figures' emotional states—their feelings are no longer openly expressed. They are replaced by more introspective and reticent expressions. In mid-to-late period Mask Series，the objective of exploration has shifted from brushwork to the use of colour. Zeng used highly saturated colours in a big way—vivid，flamboyant，and intensely high-chroma，these near-primary colours are flatly applied to the painting surface. Such directness resonates with the forthrightness and complacency of the figures. The textureless brushstrokes intensify the contrasting colours. This gives the paintings a sense of flatness that is akin to an artificial construct of 'naturalness'. As glamorous as a theatre stage production，these works give viewers the sensory experience of a fantasy，even though it is entirely fictitious. This treatment reflects a new state of mind in the Mask Series.
Zeng Fanzhi explained his approach to the Mask Series on multiple occasions，'I painted them to be extra glamorous，but also extra artificial like a theatre set on stage. These self-indulgent individuals are posing self-consciously，including their hands，as if they are waiting for someone to take their pictures. This is how vain urbanites carry themselves'. In fact，this narrative aptly describes works in that Mask Series that were produced after 1997. The flatness of these works suggests a kind of spiritual delusion. By using different kinds of brushworks，colours，and other painterly elements，Zeng deftly conveys the emotional agitations inside these characters. The way in which the artist made these latent emotions and mental states apparent is an idiosyncratic treatment and an unconventional take on the portraiture tradition in painting.
The Mask Series has always been a spiritual portrait of a generation in tumultuous time. Although the Chinese economic reform had elevated everyone，from the nation as a whole to the individual，to a new stage of development，it was still an epochal change that brought tremendous anxieties and confusion. Zeng's masked figures retain these complicated emotions，but the artist opted for a more subtle and introspective way to express them. This approach is closely linked to the second symbolically significant change in works from the mid-to-late period：the use of three-tone composition and spatial conception.
Zeng abandoned the monochrome background that he used in early compositions. In its place is a three-tier composition divided by colours—the background in the distance is the sky; in the middle ground is the ocean; the foreground is occupied by the land and figures. This spatial arrangement creates a richly layered narrative. Rigorously constructed，the interlocking colour planes convey a sense of mechanical rationality that is cold and apathetic. This is precisely how the artist pictured the urban nouveau riche in this period. Although the horizon in the distance has a stabilising effect，the crashing waves disrupt this stillness by cutting across the picture diagonally. It also suggests that this destabilising element will continue to extend outside the frame into the imagined unknown. At the same time，the masked figures often walk towards the viewer either in a frontal or diagonal fashion. The result is that the picture is always dissected with horizontal，vertical，and diagonal lines and motions. The deceptive calmness of these paintings is charged with latent conflict and destructive power，and the composition speaks to this undercurrent of emotional distress. The sense of restlessness of an era can be hidden，but it cannot be easily tamed，and the artist incisively captured and expressed these sentiments in his works.
Not only did Zeng Fanzhi continue to develop the concept of the Mask paintings throughout the series，but he also used them as an opportunity to reevaluate issues that are pertinent to the painting discipline and the profound changes of an era.
Gladys Chung
Contemporary art expert，Editor of Zeng Fanzhi，Catalogue Raisonné
曾梵志《面具系列》中后期的探索与变化
《面具系列》历经十年，曾梵志在相同的图式里，一直持续探索与改变，中后期（具体指示1997-2004年阶段）的面具作品出现显著的变化，更多样的画面构图、笔触形式，甚至于色彩，前所未见的丰富变化，是整个创作 脉络里令人惊艳的突破。
这时期的面具绘画，伴随着瑰丽明快的色调，人物的神态也由早期惶恐焦灼变为顾盼自豪的自信神态。这或许也是对应了2000年前后艺术家的心理状态。他不再是初来北京的无名艺术家，面对陌生环境十分彷徨。他经历、成熟了许多，在香港完成他的首个《面具系列》展览，把作品带到德国汉堡、波恩、⻄班牙、新加坡参加 中国当代群展、中国美术馆的批评家提名展等，甚至迎来1998年巡回北京中央美院、四合苑画廊及上海香格 纳画廊的展览。出版画册、面对藏家、接受评论，无不使艺术家更趋自信从容，创作状态稳定发展，笔下的人 物因此也有着神釆飞扬的形象。具体表现在手的形态，自在从容的挂在马甲，已经不是往日无所适从的情态; 人物穿着的衣履剪裁更为贴身挺拔，敢于以自信傲然的姿态站于人前。主导着早期作品的苦涩沉郁气氛一扫而 空。常说《面具系列》带有自传性的意味，此即一例，它的绘画形式常常呼应了画家当时的创作心境。
而除去人物形象，中后期面具作品里，最具代表意义的突破，却是它的笔触形式和色彩。
艺术家减弱绘画性的笔触，无论是描绘面具、硕大的双手、衣履的皱褶，都没有过去作品常见的厚重肌理， 甚至减少了人物双手上肌肉盘结的纹理，抹平了交错皴擦、激烈厚重的笔触质感，取而代之是被细细打磨般的 平滑亮泽质感。笔触形式的改变，关连的是面具人物的情绪，不再坦率流露，转而以更内敛深藏的方式呈现出来。色彩更是取代了笔触形式，成为《面具系列》 中后期的探索重点。艺术家大量采用饱和度高的色系，明 亮、瑰丽、鲜艳、浓重、近乎原色的色彩平涂画面，莫不呼应了人物从容舒坦，踌踌满志的自信神态。抹平笔 触肌理，增强了色彩的对比度，都在赋予作品一种平面感，一种以人工虚构天然，如舞台般华丽精致，梦幻但 虚假的观感，呼应了面具人物全新的精神状态。
曾梵志曾多次提及他对《面具系列》 的一种处理方式：「把它画得特别灿烂，但也特别的虚假，就像舞台上 的一种布景，人都是一种自我安慰，等着谁来拍照的很做作的姿态，包括人的手，一种假装出来的得意的城里 人的姿态。 」事实上，这段自述更多对应1997年后的面具作品，这时的作品，以绘画的平面感暗示了精神的 虚幻感;进而运用不同的笔触形式、色彩等纯绘画的元素，更巧妙地传达人物内心的情感悸动，把那种幽微隐 约的精神状态表现出来，是艺术家对肖像这一传统画题的独特处理方式。
《面具系列》一直在刻划大时代下一代人的精神面貌。面对改革开放，从国家到个人，纵然已然迈向发展新天地，一代人面对翻天覆地的巨变，在乐观自信之中，仍不免有着焦灼与惶惑。曾梵志给他的面具人物始终保留了这种复杂的精神面貌，但以更内敛含蓄的形式表现出来，这就关乎中后期作品中，第二种具代表意义的变化：三段色的画面结构及空间想象。
艺术家一改过去单色背景的构图形式，以色彩把画面分割为三段结构，呈现为远景的天空 — 中景的海洋 — 前 景的陆地与人物的空间层次，组合出丰富的故事情境。严丝合缝、 极为精准严密的结构色面，传达了机械式 的理性冷漠，恰好是中后期《面具系列》对城市新贵的一种想象。远景有水平线，但海浪却又横空出世似的， 从侧向斜角的角度插入画面，破坏了静止的画面，也暗示了持续向外延伸至未知的空间想象。与此同时，他的 面具人物常以正面、或是斜向的角度向前方的观众走来，于是画面往往同时出现横向、斜向、纵向等几种不同 的线条形式，静止之中隐藏了冲突与破坏，画面结构暗含有一种精神情绪。时代的燥动不安，可以被隐藏，但 不易被驯服，却被艺术家敏锐地捕捉及表现出来了。
曾梵志在不断扩展面具作品的概念的同时，亦藉此重新思考，关于绘画、关于他的时代的种种问题。
钟嘉贤Gladys Chung
现当代艺术专家，《曾梵志作品全集》编著