NPM hosts Chen Cheng-po exhibition

2014-12-08

An exhibition on late painter Chen Cheng-po opened Dec. 4 at the National Palace Museum in Taipei City, marking what would have been the artist’s 120th birthday and celebrating the facility’s upcoming 90th anniversary.

“We are extremely honored to host the event with the Chiayi City-based Chen Cheng-po Cultural Foundation, paying tribute to this prodigious artist whose works reflect deeply his love for Taiwan,” NPM Director Fung Ming-chu said at the launch.

“Since Chen is a native of Chiayi City, where the NPM Southern Branch is located, we also want to use the exhibition to herald celebrations for the museum’s anniversary and the soft opening of the branch in 2015.”

Showcasing the legend’s 103 Western-style paintings, 18 letters and 28 personal belongings, the “Hidden Talent” exhibition is divided into six sub-themes. They chronicle different stages of the artist’s life and creative experiences in Taiwan, Tokyo and Shanghai, Feng said.

The director also noted that the event is distinctive for attempting to overcome the stereotype of Chen as an avant-garde artist mainly involved in local culture and education, by highlighting the influence of Chinese ink brush painting on Chen’s career.

“One important piece displaying such an influence is ‘Lucid Water.’” The 1929 piece created in Shanghai utilizes strong painting strokes characteristic of traditional Chinese painting, reflecting Chen’s association with his contemporaries like Chang Dai-chien and Xu Beihong during his sojourn there.

Equally praiseworthy is “Accumulated Snow on Jade Mountain,” Feng said. Depicting the noble character of local intellectuals, Chen painted this work while looking at the mountain from his home in Chiayi. This was the last piece Chen finished before his death at the age of 52 during the Feb. 28 Incident in 1947.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=224919&CtNode=413)