Arts project space Pon Ding has two new exhibitions opening tonight and tomorrow. Under the Surface (表層之下), which opens tonight, is a solo exhibition by Liao Che-yi (廖哲頤) which explores the dichotomy between public personas and their inner thoughts. Liao’s portraits make ample use of grays and solemn hues to flesh out the intricate thought processes that go into something as simple as choosing which picture to upload on to Instagram. He also questions the meaning of a beautiful image, and if an image can still be beautiful without makeup or touch-ups.
Starting tomorrow, the works of young Japanese artist Calligrapher Mami will also be on display. Calligraf2ity is the result of merging two art styles — calligraphy and graffiti. She seamlessly fuses the ancient and modern in her work, something which is especially evident in her paintings of the Chinese and Japanese character for the word woman (女). The characters are painted with bright pastel pops and elongated brush strokes that make them look like dancing legs in a way that’s both flirty and humorous.
■ Pon Ding (朋丁), 6, Ln 53, Zhongshan N Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市中山北路一段53巷6號), tel: (02) 2537 7281. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 8pm
Photo courtesy of Lin & Lin Gallery
■ Under the Surface opens today and Calligraf2ity opens tomorrow. Both exhibitions run until April 16
Currents — An Exhibition of Painting by three Emerging British Artists (現時流 - 英倫繪畫三人展), which opens tomorrow at Lin & Lin gallery, will feature the work of three young London-based painters, Caroline Walker, Nick Goss and Neil Raitt. It examines the difficulties that young artists face today, notably the pressure to make art that is unique and contemporary and to use media other than painting, which is often associated as being traditional and consigned to the realm of art history. Coming from a fashion background, Walker’s paintings of luscious pool sides and luxurious mansions explores the role of women in the domestic sphere. By contrast, Goss’s paintings blend cubist and abstract influences while Raitt paints endless rows of cabins, trees and mountains in a single canvas so that the scene looks abstract from afar.
■ Lin & Lin Gallery (大未來林舍畫廊), 16, Dongfeng St, Taipei City (台北市東豐街16號), tel: (02) 2700-6866. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 7pm
Photo courtesy of Bluerider Art
■ Opens tomorrow. Until April 23
American artist Rine Boyer, who is known for her quirky paintings of hipsters socializing, is back with another solo exhibition at Taipei’s Bluerider Art. Between explores relationships between spouses, parents and children and people and their pets. Boyer continues to employ her signature monochromatic patterns and prints in this new series of 2D and 3D works. The paintings seem to suggest that small gestures go a long way. In Old Friends, for instance, a man and his dog enjoy each other’s company, while in Teaching a young father shows his son how to grow a plant.
■ Bluerider Art (藍騎士藝術空間), 9F, 25-1, Renai Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市仁愛路四段25-1號9樓), tel: (02) 2752-2238. Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 9am to 6pm
Photo courtesy of Lin & Lin Gallery
■ Until May 6
Opening tomorrow at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum is Riverrun (伏流 · 書寫). The exhibition, which derives its title from James Joyce’s dream-like novel, Finnegans Wake, explores the hidden mental undercurrents beneath the surface that continually torment us. The artists in this exhibition examine the intersection of history and memory and how this in turn affects our sense of identity. Chen Che-wei (陳哲偉) looks at the effects of Taiwan’s White Terror era on victims and their families, but using a color palate that is wistful and almost-whimsical, while Chinese artist Jian Yi-hong (簡翊洪) subtly alludes to repression in Chinese society. Cambodian artist Vandy Rattana takes a personal but detached look at the Khmer Rouge genocide, to which he lost his sister, with his eerily calm photographs of the Cambodian countryside which show no physical violence but hint at a disturbing past.
■ Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM, 台北市立美術館), 181, Zhongshan N Rd Sec 3, Taipei (台北市中山北路三段181號), tel: (02) 2595-7656. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 9:30am to 5:30pm and until 8:30pm on Saturdays
Photo courtesy of TFAM
■ Opens tomorrow. Until June 4
American expat artist Ted Pigott rekindled his love for drawing while doodling in his sketchbook at cafes and restaurants during his lunch break at his job as a communications specialist years ago in Taipei. Now, he frequently draws scenes he sees at these cafes — a ketchup bottle or a potted plant. Since 2014, he’s been drawing every single beer he’s ever drank from Taiwan to Japan to the US and a selection of his work will be on display at craft beer bar Hop In in Taoyuan starting tomorrow. The exhibition, Beer Here Now, derives its title from Ram Das’s book on spirituality, Be Here Now, which argues that you should always be present in the moment. Likewise, Pigott’s drawings beckon viewers to savor every hop as they drink their beer.
■ Hop In (精釀啤酒小舖), 2F, 11, Guang-an St, Chungli Dist, Taoyuan City ( 桃園市中壢區廣安街11號2樓), tel: (03) 425-8700. Open Mondays to Thursdays from 6pm to 1am, Fridays from 6pm to 2am, Saturdays from 4pm to 2am and Sundays from 4pm to 12pm
Photo courtesy Lin & Lin Gallery
■ Opening party is tomorrow night from 8pm to 11pm with a selection of beers from Stone Brewing. Exhibition is until Aug. 26
Photo courtesy of Ted Pigott
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