An oil painting created by Jack Ma, best known as the founder of Alibaba, China's largest online retailer, will be auctioned off at Sotheby's autumn sale in Hong Kong, marking Ma’s debut as an oil painter, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported.
According to the report, Jack Ma's painting, called Tao Hua Yuan, is expected to fetch $194,000-$323,000.
The report said that the artwork was created by Ma in collaboration with artist Zeng Fanzhi. Multiple layers of paint were applied and reapplied then scraped off onto the canvas to create a layered, three-dimensional effect.
In 2013, Ma reportedly began studying Chinese painting and sold his first work for approximately $312,000 in the same year. He created a second work in 2014.
The Earth is the subject of Ma's first finished oil painting, which he said is a reminder for people to protect the planet, the oceans, air and water. The report said that Ma hopes to raise awareness of environment issues through his art.
In 2013, Jack Ma sold his own painting for 2.42 million yuan (HK$3.07 million) in his company's debut charity auction, to promote the new mobile messaging application, Laiwang.
The abstract artwork, done in traditional Chinese-style brushstroke, was titled "Ma-style painting," and was sold on Alibaba Group's consumer-to-consumer online retail platform, Taobao. More than 913 bids were placed over the three-day-bidding process, according to the Taobao website.
A Hong Kong bidder won the auction for the abstract painting and the proceeds were donated to a charity project co-organized by Taobao and the Red Cross Society of China.