Integration of Chinese and Western Art, Following My Inclinations Making Art – Huang Shu-Wen 80 Years Old Creations Exhibition｜Taichung City Seaport Art Center

In 2021, in celebration of Huang Shu-Wen’s 80 years old birthday, the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Taichung City Government presents “Integration of Chinese and Western Art, Following My Inclinations Making Art- Huang Shu-Wen 80 years old Creations Exhibition” at Taichung City Seaport Art Center. The exhibition presents 160 works of art, focusing on Huang Shu-Wen’s ink and oil paintings. Visitors will see the full scope of Huang’s creativity.

Huang Shu-Wen aims to present concrete art. In the exhibition, the proportion of ink paintings to oil paintings is half and half. The motifs of ink paintings involve traditional landscape, rural scenes and daily life. The paintings are created with subtle but true brushstrokes, loose but with vigor. Although Huang applies a large amount of ink in the painting, he still creates a balanced composition, leading to a sense of calmness. For example, in “Listening to the Sounds of Spring in the Mountain Residence” and “Rainy Night,” ink fills most of the pictures, but Huang uses careful paint rubbing and blending techniques to create a dramatic effect with ink and convey calmness. In his oil paintings, the emphasis on light, shadow and colors reveals Huang’s preference for impressionism. In “Ginbi Alley” and “Enchanting Penghu,” viewers will get a sense of calm from the artist’s primitive, stacked brushstrokes. As well, the use of strong outlines reveals the Fauves’ influence on the artist. Characterized by stacking blocks of colors, Huang’s artwork is quite unique.

In particular, Huang uses unconventional media to create traditional art. For example, he applies color ink to still life painting or employs oil paint to create landscape painting. In this regard, we see that Huang is good at using these two media, ink and oil paint, to create artworks. In addition, he also creates a dialogue between Chinese and Western painting styles via these two conventional media to demonstrate that art is without borders.

Besides conventional media, Huang also tries to use mixed media to create his artworks. In his works, “Pigeons Gathering” and “Seizing the Moment” he uses cracked egg shell to add texture to the painting. An artist really deserves our respect when he shows courage and a determination to pursue innovation constantly.

Graduating from an art school and dedicating himself to art education for many years, it goes without saying that Huang is an excellent artist. He is still a productive artist after retirement. Thus, most of the artworks in this exhibition have been created in recent years. Judging from this, we can appreciate his passion and dedication to art. We hope many people can get a glimpse of the Taiwan artists’ dynamic creativity via the exhibition.