Can memories be laid out on plates, each marked a different year, and exhibited in a gallery? Chang Kuang-chi (
Expansible Segments (演．譯．段落) shows 40 works of acrylic and mixed media on canvases meant to present her memories.
When studying in the US two years ago, Chang went to an exhibition of the ecological systems of prehistoric creatures. In transparent boxes were reconstructed strata with models of various animals on each stratum, with each box representing an era from the past. The history of the earth's ecological systems came to life before her eyes.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF TFAM
Despite her strong interest in insects and small animals since childhood, Chang had never seen these creatures in this way. "They were the kind of creatures you could not see when they were alive, but in those boxes, they were as if alive in their own environment," Chang said. Coming face to face with reconstructed ecosystems eons ago inspired her to do the same with her memories.
Using acrylic and other materials to creat a texture similar to earth strata, Chang put down on the canvass personal symbols and imageries drawn from her memories. However, "You can never be sure your memories are what they are. Neither can you preserve them intact," Chang said. Therefore, there are only "imitated memories."
In the namesake series, fragmented, multiplied or reversed shapes strewn about the canvasses gives viewers a feeling of deja vu.
Another inspiration for her is the fieldwork she did for a book about ecosystems. Many underwater plants, Chang learned, flower above water. Their huge underwater stems and roots gradually rot in order to generate nutrition, which then allows the flowers to bloom.
For Chang, that is how her memories of the past break down and transform into the creative energy she uses in her creations today.
At a time when installation art is extremely popular, Chang insists on working on paintings because, she said, it's the most foundamental art form and a medium she can work with all her life.
To deal with the usual lack of interaction between paintings and their surroundings, Chang made irregular canvasses. The shadows created by the irregular edges of the paintings gives them a livelier presence in the gallery.
What: Expansible Segments -- Chang Kuang-chi solo exhibit
Where: Taipei Fine Arts Museum,181 Chungshan N. Rd., Sec. 3, Taipei
When: Through Oct. 6
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