EXHIBITED:
International Master Series - Walasse Ting Solo
Exhibition, Tenpo Art Center, Hsinchu, Oct 1 - 31, 2007
ILLUSTRATED:
Walasse Ting - Jolies Dames, Yves Rivière Editeur, Paris,
1988, color illustrated

Posing gracefully in languor, the seemingly Western female in this painting exudes a sense of loveliness and charm as her

eyes gaze dreamily ahead. With her lips slightly parted, she seems poised to reveal a repressed desire to softly speak out. A thin layer of transparent color composes the slender form, while the fine curves of ink strokes outline the female form, creating an aura of mistiness and litheness. With flowers and fruits spread about the painting, Walasse Ting cleverly creates a methodical, rhythmic space of poetry.

The elegant lady’s hand fan, translucent tasseled shawl, as well as flowers and still-life objects, all intensify the colors

against the ink-line structure. The fluidity of the acrylic paint selected by the artist moreover enables the free expression of bold brushstroke movement. After relocating to New York in 1958, Ting became highly influenced by abstract expressionism, and his works began to display a distinctive style of natural unrestraint and rhythmic agility. His use of bold splashes, line drawing techniques, and large blocks of color also echo the expressiveness of Henri Matisse and the Fauvist movement of the early twentieth century. This style upended the rules of traditional painting, with fierce and intense colors appearing expressive and vivacious in comparison with classical works of composure and delicateness.

Incorporating the styles of East and West, and with a combination of fluid ink-and-wash lines and vivid, bursting color, one

cannot help but be wholly enamored with the compelling artistic language of Walasse Ting.