Master palettes

There is a strong sense of rarity to this show, a feeling that it won't ever happen again.

Three legendary figures from the Taiwanese art world, all in their 80s -- men that had their heyday in the 60s and 70s yet whose prestige has stretched into the new millennium -- have been brought together in a group show.

Wang Pan-yuan (王潘元), Chu Deh-chun (朱德群) and Zao Wou-ki (趙無極) have some surface commonalities -- all are octogenarians and all have studied under master Chinese painter Pan Tien-shou (潘天壽). But what really ties Zao and Chu -- longtime residents of France -- together with Wang -- who lives a secluded life in Yilan, eastern Taiwan -- is their enduring popularity, among both Western and Asian art lovers.

The 30 pieces on view at the gallery all date from a period 30 years ago. During the 60s, Zao and Chu stepped into abstract painting and the years that followed shortly after represent the peak of their careers and the beginning of Wang's. The works from this period are also more valuable than the artists' recent works.

The 89-year-old Wang doesn't like to sell his works so they don't pop up on the market very often. According to Richard Chang, owner of Galerie Grand Siecle, it took a while for him to persuade Wang to join the show, and even when he acquiesced, it was only out of his respect for the other artists.

Wang's style is minimal, sober and ethereal. There's a sense of perseverance in the layers of quiet colors which reflect the strength of the artist and his determination to withstand the vicissitudes of life. Viewers are enticed into lingering around his paintings, admiring the beauty of desolation which they convey.

Wang is a bit of a cult figure in Taiwan, especially in Yilan, where his secluded lifestyle stirs up enough mystery to make him a name known in many households. His large, old -- and expensive -- works are a rarity to exhibitions, yet the doyen of the Taiwan arts world is willing to give them away. For example, at one time the Yilan Cultural Center wanted to purchase some pieces but Wang insisted on donating them and then asked the center to buy the works of young artists instead.

For this exhibit, the gallery owner particularly recommends the piece titled Kuishan Tao (龜山島), which is Wang's favorite. Kui Shan Tao is regarded by Yilan residents as a sacred place. Wang sees it everyday and associates feelings of home with it. The composition of the painting is quite unusual as the focus is at the top, cushioned by a vast area of sea underneath.

The 80-year-old Chu left Taiwan in 1955 for France, where he became a highly reputed artist, holding more than 200 exhibitions during the next 40 years. It was a career of creativity that, among other things, earned him an honorary membership last year in Academia Francais, a multi-disciplinary think-tank similar to Taiwan's Academia Sinica. Chu's excellent use of coloration has prompted his peers and critics to dub him "the magician of colors." Indeed, looking at his paintings is sometimes like peeping through a kaleidoscope -- the colors surge and flow like a piece of orchestra music, full of a passion for life.

The artist combines the techniques of Western and Chinese paintings. He uses Chinese calligraphy and ink but the lines are bold and flowing, heavily influenced by Western abstract paintings.