EXHIBITED:

The 15th Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition, Taiwan Provincial Museum, Taipei, December 17-25, 1960; Tainan Social Education Center, Tainan, January 11-15, 1961; Taichung Library, Taichung, January 21-25, 1961

ILLUSTRATED:

15th Taiwan Art Exhibition Pictorial, 15th Taiwan Art Exhibition Preparatory Committee, Taipei, 1960, black and white illustrated, p. 49

Liao Chi-chun was one of the most forward-looking and innovative of Taiwan's first generation of oil painters; he has been described as a "magician of color". He graduated from the art education section of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts – where he was exposed to the influence of European impressionism and post-impressionism – in 1927. Beginning with "Courtyard with Banana Trees" and "A View with a Coconut Palm", two works that were exhibited at Japan's Imperial Exhibition in 1928 and 1931 respectively, Liao continued to innovate constantly in his depictions of daily life and nature in Taiwan, while also creating spectacular paintings of famous sights in Europe. His artistic achievements won Liao widespread plaudits in art circles in Taiwan.

After returning to Taiwan, Liao worked as an art teacher. Seeking to set an example to his students, Liao positioned himself at the forefront of the new developments in art, continuing to innovate, and exhibiting regularly. The 1950s saw the rise of the abstract expressionist movement in the U.S. (influenced partly by the many European artists who had sought refuge in the U.S. before and during the Second World War). Despite living in an era when information traveled more slowly than it does today, Liao Chi-chun was still able to keep abreast of the new trends in art through books and magazines that his third son Liao Shutsung and his students sent back from overseas. Liao developed a deep interest in abstract art, and quietly began to undertake research and experimentation in this area. By 1957 he was starting to exhibit abstract paintings created in a unique style, which put him at the cutting edge of the avant-garde in the Taiwanese art world of the time. Liao encouraged his students to form the Fifth Moon Group art association, as a vehicle for the exchange of ideas. Through these activities, Liao Chi-chun played an important part in laying the foundations for the successful development of abstract art in Taiwan.

The period from the late 1950s to the early 1960s saw a major transformation in Liao Chi-chun's art. He stopped producing the types of work that he had been painting for the previous three decades, and embarked on a radically different stage in his artistic career. "Tamkang Scenery", which Liao painted in 1960, is one of his most important works from this era. As a member of the appraisal committee of the Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition from 1946 to 1972, and a jury member from 1973 – 1975, Liao always submitted one of his own works with which he was particularly pleased for inclusion in the Exhibition. "Tamkang Scenery" was the only work that Liao submitted for the 15th Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition in 1960; a photo of the work was included in the Exhibition catalog.

The Taiwanese art critic Wang Su-feng, who has studied Liao Chi-chun's art for many years, offers the following comment on "Tamkang Scenery": "...in point of fact, Liao Chi-chun tended to spend a long time thinking about paintings, and a relatively short time actually executing them. The beginnings of this approach can be seen in Scene from the Window, which Liao submitted to the 14th Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition, and in "Tamkang Scenery", which was shown at the 15th Provincial Exhibition..." (Wang Su-Feng, Master of Chinese Painting – Liao Chi-chun, Taipei: Chin Hsiu Publishing, Feb. 4, 1995, p. 18). Wang goes on to say that: "...in paintings such as "Scene from the Window" and "Tamkang Scenery", which Liao showed at the 14th and 15th Provincial Exhibitions during the period 1956 – 1960, he had already abandoned representational techniques, and moved over to the use of color patches, although continuing to use line for emphasis. The effect is similar to the expressive power of a musical coda..." (Wang, Op. cit., p. 14).

"Tamkang Scenery"depicts a beautiful scene from the town of Tamsui, to the north of Taipei. One can see similar viewing angles in the paintings of Chen Cheng-po. We are looking down at the Tamsui River from the mountains, with the township of Pali and Mt. Kuanyin visible in the distance on the far bank. In the foreground, the little town of Tamsui sprawls up and down the hills, with its mélange of traditional Fukienese-style houses with red tiled roofs, Japanese-style officials' residences, and modern buildings in the Western style. Liao's use of an abstract artistic lexicon to depict Tamsui and Mt. Kuanyin was almost unprecedented. With the many patches of pink, contrasting with red, yellow, blue and black, the picture has a strong sense of rhythm. Liao employed a similar technique in two famous paintings, both entitled "Ancient Castle in Spain", that he produced in 1962 and 1965; both works feature a strong sense of dynamism created through the effective integration of the color white into the structure of the painting.

Reflecting the spiritual fount from which it sprang, "Tamkang Scenery" has a visual form that is smooth and clean. At the same time, its strong color tones and decorative style give it the feel of a richly embroidered landscape. Liao has cast off any striving for perfection in form, simplifying the scene that he depicts so that all that remains is subjective line and color that transmit the abstract essence of the subject matter. The wild and yet down-to-earth use of color reflects the influence of fauvist art, a style at which Liao excelled; the bright, harmonious color tones bring across the artist's integrity, frankness and optimism.