Hu Jung-Yi
The “CTBC Painting Prize”, held biennially, entered its second edition in 2024. From a pool of 802 submissions, 17 works were shortlisted, marking a highly competitive process. Hence, this also demonstrated that despite confronting the dominant presence of conceptual performances, multimedia art, and spatial installations, painting—a time-honored creative medium—has not diminished in its allure; instead, it continues to exhibit a vibrant vitality.
CTBC Painting Prize Panel Discussion, May 26, 2024 (Photo courtesy of CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture)
At the May 26 panel discussion, titled “Painting Now – Three Perspectives on Understanding Contemporary Painting,” the moderator, art critic and C-LAB curator Chuang Wei-Tzu, opened the conversation by stating that when we think about “contemporary painting,” we should move beyond the linear development logic of old versus new or sequential time frames. Instead, we should focus on the originality, experimentation, and artistic language through which creators reflect the issues and characteristics of their time, which binds “contemporaneity” to painting. Furthermore, an observation of recent Taiwanese painters reveals a return to explorations of craftsmanship and materiality while addressing the issue of “contemporaneity,” emphasizing brushstrokes, textures, and the study of painting surfaces and paint layers as a form of “resistance” against the pervasive use of image technologies in contemporary art. The ease of production and dominant presence of these technologies continually challenge the old tradition of “painting,” prompting reflections on its relationship with contemporary technologies, the essence of painting itself, and considerations of appropriateness.
The return to craftsmanship and exploration of materials also reflect the creators’ engagement with three dimensions: interfaces, volumes, and carriers. The three artists in this discussion—Yen Yu-Ting, Li Bing-Ao, and Wu Yih-Han—can be roughly categorized by age, each spanning a decade, reflecting diverse art education backgrounds and offering distinct experiences to share. They each considered issues such as the transformation of painting grammar, the state of being in modern life, the accidental and coupling of images, feminist thought and self-awareness in their explorations of contemporary painting.
Artist Yen Yu-Ting Sharing Her Creative Experience (Photo courtesy of CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture)
Yen Yu-Ting discussed the evolution of her painting, beginning with modern mental states and then delving into the proliferation of social networks and modes of information dissemination. While these advancements enhance communication and connectivity, they also contribute to a growing sense of isolation and loneliness, as people become accustomed to “indirect connections” through interfaces. Contemporary life is increasingly confronted with information overload and an overwhelming flood of messages. Her painting practice focuses on the role of “text” beyond its traditional reading and writing functions, exploring the chaotic states and disordered phenomena it creates in everyday life.
In Yen Yu-Ting’s artistic transformations, we observe how text and images, once “informationized,” are highlighted for their “spillover” and “hybridized” characteristics. Through her multilayered painting processes, contouring, and the technique of “veiling” (where the rich textures and forms of the underlying layers are seemingly concealed by upper layers, yet subtly retained and revealed to enrich the composition), Yen reinterprets the traditional Chinese landscape technique of “ts’un” (texturing brushwork). By adapting this concept—historically used to capture the spirit and texture of mountains and rocks—she transforms it into a contemporary visual grammar of “informational texturing.”
Her paintings incorporate the glitches and disruptions of digital imagery, the overwhelming flow of information, and the depiction of blurred, defocused backgrounds, presenting a layered reflection on the realities of modern networked society and individual anxiety. She states, “I’ve been thinking about whether I can extract traditional techniques to express contemporary experiences, so I used the traditional ‘ts’un’ technique, mixed with Chinese block characters. After layering and overlapping, the result is a chaotic mental state. I combine traditional ink techniques with the contemporary phenomenon of fragmented memory caused by information overload.”
In Fragmented Yesterday-2, the painting depicts indistinguishable characters filling the scene, with individuals standing alone on a rocky island in an ink sea. They seem close, yet are absorbed in their phones. Modern loneliness is found here—each person is solely focused on what matters to them. Immersed in a silent sense of chaos, they gradually lose their sense of direction and belonging.
Therefore, to perceive a sense of “volume” amidst waves of nihilism, Yen Yu-Ting begins with unit-based brushstrokes, textual information, or block characters, each connecting to a referential mass within the overall spatial environment. This “volume,” akin to an imprint or projection, embodies the individuality of modern people. Even in a mentally disoriented state, they strive to grasp onto driftwood in turbulent currents, ensuring they do not lose themselves.
Li Bing-Ao’s insights subtly raises the question: “Is there a unique generative logic or model for contemporary painting that can provide answers once the question of ‘what to paint’ becomes hollow?” He explored the concepts of “volume” and “lagging,” which helped clarify his approach and attitude toward painting, serving as an entry point for reflecting on its “contemporaneity.” He shared that he is conducting an experiment in the form of “imagined artistry,” aiming to converge the dual subjectivities of the painting’s creator and viewer within a seemingly disjointed planar scope. This involves weaving and orchestrating visual intersections, reassembling logic, and handling symbols through a process of “breaking out of the frame,” constantly engaging with the “dislocation” between representation and perception. “I feel like a scavenger, repeatedly picking up, categorizing, and organizing image messages. ‘Lagging’ refers to the delays in navigating software interfaces on computers and smartphones, as well as the sluggishness in processing and collecting information.” Li explains, “In this process, I often feel as though I can never fully catch up with the times, as if bound by an inevitable gap. This sense of ‘lagging’ is what I’ve identified as a way to describe the approach of contemporary painting.”
Li Bing-Ao’s Shunt Running And Fugue：Empty Ship (Photo courtesy of CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture, Photography by ANPIS FOTO)
He shared an interesting insight, recounting how, when approaching methods of generating paintings, he often recalls his childhood experiences of “sticker pasting” and “scrapbooking.” He feels that painting, as an interface for images, acts as both a vessel and a trigger for the continuous layering and “flattening” of images. On the canvas, images form various “unintended” yet strikingly interconnected assemblages. In his own words, this process involves “stitching” as a technique to organize the relationships between objects and symbols.
Wu Yih-Han’s work in this exhibition centers on clear thematic creation and storytelling, focusing on the engagement of contemporary art with human conditions and demands. She began her talk by quoting Crown Culture Chief Editor Hsu Ting-Ting’s analysis of novelist Liu Zhi-Yu’s book The Goddess in Buffet-Style: “Lightly, gracefully stepping on pieces of broken fragments.” This quote encapsulates her ongoing exploration of feminist thought and self-exploration in her artistic journey. Her material evolution has moved from watercolor to oil paints, while her themes have touched on mythology, religious stories, and metaphors reflecting on women’s situations. These include subtle investigations into the body, skin, sensation, and a feminist perspective on the patriarchal gaze and privacy.
In the discussion, Wu also shared her ongoing Little Adult Series (started in 2013), which contrasts “naivety” with “precociousness” to critique social frameworks, morally coercive expectations, standardized education, authoritarianism, and traditional norms that impose constraints and oppression on an individual’s growth experience. Her piece The Madonna And The Whore directly addresses the absurdity and paradox of female imagery within historical and patriarchal frameworks. Through contemporary scenes and role reversals, she engages in a form of concealed and metaphorical imagery. “Mirroring” can be regarded as a crucial narrative method in Wu’s image composition.
Wu Yih-Han’s The Madonna And The Whore (Photo courtesy of CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture, Photography by ANPIS FOTO)
In her piece initially titled In the Name of Love, Wu Yih-Han reflects, “Often, we find ourselves in power-imbalanced relationships where we hear phrases like, ‘I am doing this for your own good’ or ‘You must do this for your own good,’ etc.” Ultimately, she changed the title to Untitled to express her thought process when reflecting on the themes of her work. She acknowledges that while these issues are already patently obvious today and may no longer require the invention of new terms or “labels,” yet the very act of asking whether society has reached a state of “female supremacy” reveals a misalignment in the discussion of the question itself. A woman is, first and foremost, an “ordinary person” no different from you or me. Observing Wu Yih-Han’s painting, one finds her sincerity toward herself amidst the pain and discomfort, as well as her resounding voice in confronting the world and its issues.
Paint is a cast made of the painter’s movements, a portrait of the painter’s body and thoughts….Painting is an unspoken and largely uncognized dialogue, where paint speaks silently in masses and colors and the artist responds in moods….Paint is water and stone, and it is also liquid thought. That is an essential fact that art history misses, and alchemical ideas can demonstrate how it can happen.
– What Painting Is – How to Think about Oil Painting Using the Language of Alchemy by James Elkins[1]
If contemporary painting inspires reflection, it does so not through the lens of a periodized historical logic, but by adopting an intimate approach and a sincere mindset that embody the psychological state, spirit, and overall condition of humanity. Why not consider the inherent subversion and transformation of “uncertainty” as a tapestry woven by the creator-subject upon the external object, serving as a vivid source of inspiration for thought? In the shadow of a certain nihilism, alongside the postmodern situation, the fragmentation of modes of information and reception, as well as the overlapping of nihilism and anxiety, provide a complex context for reflection. Several postmodern philosophers, building on the European tradition of subject philosophy, have further explored Immanuel Kant’s proposition that “human beings are an end in themselves,” deepening the discussion of how it expresses the idea that “the essence of humanity is freedom.” They continue to argue that “this freedom can only truly be realized when humans exist as ends in themselves.”
In the essay “The Freedom of Art is Indefinable”, scholar Gao Xuan-Yang cites philosophers like Jacques Derrida and Hans-Georg Gadamer, who articulate: “The freedom of art is a kind of uncertainty that determines its direction by itself, and therefore is a form of self-determining ‘uncertainty.’ This is a free play that needs no other foundation beyond itself—a creative activity that defines its meaning through itself. Indeed, the activity of play has no goal that brings it to an end; it perpetually renews itself through repetition.”[2]
What postmodern art seeks, therefore, is precisely this self-determined, highly liberated form of uncertainty. This “uncertainty” extends into the discussions of contemporary art, where these phenomena remain unresolved. Accompanied by algorithms, the attention economy, echo chambers formed by social networks, and aesthetic preferences, it has, on one hand, transformed the logic of image dissemination, the methods of filtering and judgment, and the ways in which images connect with individuals. On the other hand, it has also influenced the temporal scale of their persistence within human perception. At the same time, it has further transformed “uncertainty” from fragmented pieces of image information into a more temporal and momentary “molecularized” mode of visual literacy, akin to ephemeral stories. This shift compels creators to confront the interconnected issues of reception and selection in painting and imagery. They must navigate a tendency where the parts outweigh the whole—following the collapse of grand narratives—favoring detailed gazes and fragmented presentations of visual information. This approach has replaced the former aspirations of painting, which once sought to capture and outline comprehensive visions, value systems, and projected blueprints for the era. Such tendencies are now often seen as a form of historical nostalgia, predating modernism. Faced with the overwhelming “torrent of images” from the external, how can creators avoid being submerged while still discovering a sense of “certainty” within themselves? Perhaps we must view “painting” and the artist’s hand and body as interfaces of contact: sensitive receivers continuously engaging with the world and its image-saturated reality. Through painting, the perception of the world carried by images becomes not only an aggregation of experiences and a subjective act of creative interpretation but also an ongoing series of vivid moments that continually “reawaken human presence within it and elicit responses.”
In the face of the challenges of uncertainty and nihilism, we can observe traces of these lingering issues, inherited from the postmodern movement, among the shortlisted of the 2nd CTBC Painting Prize. Through their respective practices, these creators explore active solutions. Their approach lies in gradually finding a unique harmony among elements previously considered mutually incompatible: retinal imagery—the vacant position of images; the original categorization and barriers of mediums—conceptual and procedural reconfiguration; classical traditions of the past—contemporary interpretations; surface without depth—the ideology of flatness; autobiographical subjectivity and enclosure—issue-oriented self-objectification; the materiality of painting—painting as material; experiential sampling—the reality of conceptualization; and so on. These seemingly contradictory dualities, which initially appear oppositional, gradually blur. Through an evolving interpretation of differences, they shift towards a “balance of tensions,” achieving an integrated cohesion.
Painting emerges as a sincere response to an uncertain era. The earlier pursuit of authorial primacy and consolidated subjectivity in the creative process has not been entirely discarded but has undoubtedly loosened. Artists have begun to objectify themselves, positioning their own experiences as subjects of observation within universal phenomena. In this shift, “painting” itself and the artwork become the true subjects, redefining the role of the creator. The artist transitions into an object, seeking insights from the materiality of their medium. Through technical experimentation and the interplay of imagery and material, they generate elements of chance, unknowns, and distance—folds within the internal structure of painting. These folds reflect a convergence of self-awareness and external perception within the artwork. Painters learn to embrace and experimentally integrate heterogeneous elements and consciousness, akin to an alchemist conjuring transformative magic from a seemingly chaotic mix of materials.
The inspiration drawn from this magical process corresponds to contemporary artistic challenges and undoubtedly serves as a release from the burdens of expectation, reflecting the ongoing uncertainty and anxiety of our times. Perhaps, artist’s return to craftsmanship may signify a response to traditional classical techniques in painting, wherein creators revisit imagery, technique, and concept, forging a renewed relational understanding of these elements. Artists are tasked with mediating the “coordination” of these three aspects, aligning them with contemporary experiences, reducing the coercive tendency to demand a “homogenized” whole—both visually and logically—that conforms to a unified will. Instead, painting should allow for open interpretation, unlocking a multiplicity of meanings from within. In this process, creators gradually soften the authoritative control of their creative intent, transforming it into a balance of mutual “deference” among heterogeneous elements within the work. Contemporary painting thus consistently draws inspiration from heterogeneity, discovering opportunities to energize its surface tension.
[1] Elkins, J. (2000). What painting is: How to think about oil painting, using the language of alchemy. Routledge, p. 5.
[2] Gao, X. Y. (1996). On the uncertainty of postmodern art. Taipei: Tangshan Press, p. 17.