Everything that's wonderful about childhood can be found in Zao Bi's (趙國宗) ceramic paintings on exhibit in a show titled "The Primitive and Eternal Dream of a Child" (原始與永恆的童夢) at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum. Colorful circus clowns, spinning tops and a big bright lantern beast are some of the subjects that Zao resurrects from his memories and transfers onto ceramic plates in doodle-like images.
The show contains over 100 pieces made during the past 10 years and depict familiar toys, folk stories and other children's themes. Zao's paintings, made by scraping, pressing or imprinting into ceramic plates, are poetic in their colors and imagery and reveal genuine talent.
Zao, who teaches at the National Institute for the Arts and has published 50 children's books for the Ministry of Education, started to experiment with ceramic painting in 1990. His style is reminiscent of Joan Miro's semi-abstract images with their natural-flowing, geometric lines and two-dimensional compositions.
Zao's images are full of interesting allusions to Taiwanese folk life and customs. One series of paintings is built on images of two fish, which together reflect the concept of ying and yang. Fish in local folk custom are also symbolic of abundance. Lion Dance (1999) shows a lion carrying a large sword, another a flag, some lions lying and some standing upright. The picture is an assembly of the lions often seen at folk festivals. Tiger, Child (2000) is an image of the folk symbol of the child-protecting tiger god seen in temples. The rooster in Children's Day (2000) is a reference to imagery embroidered on ancient emperors' robes to symbolize the sun and warmth.
There are several series of paintings as well, such as Who Ate the Rainbow, which is a story consisting of 16 ceramic plates in a sequence. The series starts with a child flying a kite and who sees a rainbow, followed by another plate depicting the rainbow being cut in half by the kite and falling into the sea. The story ends with a colorful butterfly flying into the sky to become a new rainbow.
Zao says he is inspired by children's doodles that show ingenuity and instinctiveness without pretence. "Little kids are even better than slightly older ones whose creativity has already been washed away by eduction," Zao said at the opening last Saturday. Zao has done children and adults a favor by keeping much of the wonderment of childhood alive in his paintings.
Arts Notes:
What: The primitive and eternal dream of a child -- Ceramic paintings by Zao Bi (原始與永恆的童夢 -- 趙國宗瓷畫展)
Where: 3A, Taipei Fine Arts Museum (台北市立美術館), 181 Chungshan N. Rd., Sec. 3, Taipie(台北市中山北路3段181號)
When: Until Aug. 12
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