Since Taipei County's Yingko Ceramics Museum opened in 2000 to promote ceramic art, the National Museum of History (
Calefaction and Diffusion (
The four artists, Yang Yuan-tai (
"Unrestrained by `exquisiteness' and `modesty' in traditional ceramics ... the four artists have in common a willing to create cross-disciplinary works and an open-mindedness," said Huang Hai-ming, installation artist and art critic.
The most eye-catching works may be Lo's installations and documents of his performances, some of which did not even involve ceramics.
Born in Chiayi, Lo has had a strong affection for land and earth since childhood, which was spent playing with clay. He later came to realize the vital connection between humans and earth. "After my grandmother had been dead for several years, my family went to her grave for "bone-picking." When the lid of the coffin was lifted, I saw only earth. My grandma had turned into earth. ... The same will happen to everyone. ... If you spit on the ground, you might be spitting on your own corpse from your last life," Lo said in a documentary about him, which is also on show.
Restoration Project (
Concerned about Taiwan's environment, Lo made Land Survey (
Treating ceramics objects as mini architectural pieces, Kuo leaves a small window-like square opening near the top of each work. Viewers can only wonder what or who remains hidden inside those "buildings."
Ah Leon was a craftsman of traditional Yixing pottery. During his study trip to the US, it occurred to him that the new direction for Taiwanese ceramics is not to blindly emulate international ceramic techniques, but to express the country's characteristics. His imitation wooden pots and tofu, popular among collectors, are his effort to create something that appears genuinely Taiwanese.
Yang often presents his ceramic works as if they are sculptures. He would place them in the outdoors and take photos of them from angles that make them appear to be several meters tall. Although these works are shown not in photos, but placed as they are in the gallery, they still convey a sense of serenity and geometric harmony.
What: Calefaction and Diffusion -- Works by Four Ceramicists
Where: National Museum of History, 49, Nanhai Rd., Taipei (
When: Through Sept. 8
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