Internationally renowned Taiwanese artist T.F. Chen spoke Thursday night in Starr Auditorium to kick off an exhibition of his work, which will be in the Watson Institute Nov. 10-13. Chen's appearance at Brown is part of "Strait Talk," a student-run conference on U.S.-China-Taiwan relations that calls for peace among the nations.
Chen explained that the school of art he pioneered, called "Neo-iconography," is "art for humanity's sake," and he said he sees art as a unifying force. His theory of "Five-Dimensional World Culture," which is inseparable from his artwork, calls for a "Global New Renaissance" driven by love, the so-called fifth dimension.
"In this age of the computer, besides from hardware and software, we need Soulware," Chen said, explaining that only Soulware and love will lead to global unity and peace.
For the powerful humanitarian thrust of his artwork, Chen received a Global Tolerance Award from the Friends of the United Nations in 2001. The first painter to ever receive this award, Chen was designated "Cultural Ambassador for Tolerance and Peace" and encouraged to further pursue his vision of art as a unifying force for humanity.
Chen's neo-iconography style of art is colorful, bold and eclectic, drawing on images from the diverse spectrum of world cultures. His paintings transcend time, place and convention, as they meld together familiar cultural icons in unexpected and striking ways.
In "East-West I," the familiar image of the American lunar bug is shown landing on the moon. Above it looms a large, ethereal Nepalese image of the Buddha, with a background that is taken from the Japanese tradition. At first glance, these images may appear incongruous, but Chen uses their juxtaposition as a comparison between the pinnacle triumphs of Western and Eastern civilization. By smoothly integrating these two superficially divergent icons, Chen implies their underlying oneness - they are both representations of the height of human achievement.
Given his background, it is no surprise that Chen's art contains a fusion of images from many cultures. Chen was born and raised in Taiwan, but received a Ph.D. in art history in Paris. Today, he spends most of his time in the SoHo district in Manhattan, where he founded the T.F. Chen Cultural Center in 1996 to promote his vision of a New Global Renaissance based on love and Soulware.
"I think I am so lucky to be Taiwanese, because we are a convergence of Eastern culture and Western culture. ... I have the influence of Asian culture, European culture and American culture," Chen said in his lecture.
After Chen's lecture, audience members walked over to the Watson Institute to attend the opening of his art show. Most reacted very positively to the message of Chen's work.
"I loved his energy and his excitement about his work. He did not seem jaded by anything, and I think that contributes greatly to his role as a humanitarian," said Mark Tumiski '08.
Katy Tsai '06, Strait Talk media coordinator, also was impressed by the positive attitude behind Chen's work. "I admired his optimism, and I think he made a good point about the fact that most of his art was done before digital art and computers came into use. ... I think the fact that it is hand-painted gives it an element of love, in that it is clearly a human endeavor," she said.
Some, however, found it difficult to see beyond the assortment of cultural icons in Chen's art in order to understand the overriding message. "I cannot understand it - I can recognize the icons, but I cannot understand the deeper meaning. Maybe that is because my major is mathematics," said a Strait Talk delegate from Beijing University who preferred to remain anonymous.
Still, the overall response to Chen's art was overwhelmingly positive, as viewers were astounded by the uniqueness and positive message of Chen's neo-iconographic school of art. "Mostly the art I like is either art for the eyes or art for the mind. I think this is the first time I really liked art for the heart," said Scott Norton '08.
"This is why my art is different from that of other artists - it has a message, or story. ... We are entering a new age, where the different races are becoming a world family. In the 21st century, we need to avoid conflict and war, and this is the most important thing for everybody, because we have such powerful weapons of mass destruction. The fifth dimension of culture is love," Chen told The Herald after the lecture.
