Elsewhere: Paul Gauguin brings together 50 works by the primitivist artist whose vibrant paintings of Tahiti helped usher in the modernist liberation of form and color from the constraints of the past. The show contextualizes Gauguin’s achievements by also displaying 25 works by 16 artists from Brittany’s Pont-Aven School and Les Nabis group — disciples who played an important role in the subsequent art movements of Fauvism and Abstract Expressionism. Borrowed from more than 10 museums, foundations and private collections, Elsewhere is the first solo exhibition of Gauguin’s oil paintings, prints, bronzes and wood sculptures to be shown in Taiwan.
■ Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM — 台北市立美術館), 181, Zhongshan N Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市中山北路三段181號). Until Aug. 8. Open daily from 9:30am to 5:30pm, closes at 8:30pm on Saturdays. Tel: (02) 2595-7656. Admission: NT$270
■ A lecture on Gauguin’s work will be held in TFAM’s auditorium on Saturday beginning at 2:20pm. Until Feb. 20
Photo courtesy of TFAM
Huang Hua-chen’s (黃華真) series of paintings and installations in The Family Album: If Hungry, Curry on the Table (家庭相簿 — 桌上有你喜歡的咖哩飯) visualizes family remembrance and nostalgia. Huang’s work, often arranged to resemble a picture album — a mother holding a child, a young man dressed in military fatigues — explores contemporary society.
■ Chi-Wen Gallery (其玟畫廊), 3F, 19, Ln 252, Dunhua S Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市敦化南路一段252巷19號3樓). Open Tuesdays through Sundays from 11am to 7pm. Tel: (02) 8771-3372
■ Opening reception on Saturday at 3pm. Until Jan. 9
Photo courtesy of TFAM
The Invention of Loneliness (寂寞及其所創造的) is a joint exhibition of work by Gwenda Chi (紀佩君) and Li Shiang-ying (李香瑩). Chi’s sculptures of distorted and elongated figures are a humorous take on the fear of the unknown. In Li’s sexually charged paintings, human body parts are placed in food packaging and displayed as appetizing cuisines that are eerily lustful — a statement, perhaps, about hedonism.
■ Sakshi Gallery (夏可喜當代藝術), 33 Yitong St, Taipei City (台北市伊通街33號). Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 1:30pm to 9:30pm, Sundays from 1:30pm to 7:30pm. Tel: (02) 2516-5386
■ Until Dec. 12
The Tang Dynasty is often viewed as a golden age of artistic activity, which, according to the National Museum of History, “all ethnic Chinese should be proud” of. Imperial Treasures — Relics of Famen Temple Underground Palace and the Flourishing Tang (盛世皇朝祕寶:法門寺地宮與大唐文物特展) is comprised of 120 sets of artifacts that cover the era’s political, economic, religious and cultural spheres through gold and silver vessels, Buddhist ceremonial objects, murals, ceramics and bronze mirrors.
■ National Museum of History (國立歷史博物館), 49 Nanhai Rd, Taipei City (台北市南海路49號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 6pm. Tel: (02) 2361-0270. General admission is NT$30
■ Until Jan. 9
Estranged Rhythm (疏遠的節奏) is a new series of works by geometrical abstract artist Tsong Pu (莊普). In this show, Tsong retains his emblematic dappled brushstrokes, but broadens his palette.
■ Main Trend Gallery (大趨勢畫廊), 209-1, Chengde Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市承德路三段209-1號). Open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11am to 7pm. Tel: (02) 2587-3412
■ Until Dec. 11
Monologue Under the Sunlight (日光下的獨白) brings together four artists working in sculpture, installation, drawing and painting. Though the show lacks a unified theme, the works seem to collectively meditate on Taiwan’s natural beauty, particularly its flora.
■ Sing Art Gallery (新心藝術館), 67 Shengli Rd, Tainan City (台南市勝利路67號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from noon to 8pm; closed Mondays, Nov. 18 and Dec. 12. Tel: (06) 275-3957
■ Until Dec. 19
Call for submissions
From now until Jan. 16, Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts (KdMoFA) is accepting applications for its artist-in-residency program. Residencies last from two weeks to two months and the museum provides accommodation, a studio and facilities for the artists as well as a support team. Taiwan passport holders are not eligible to apply.
■ For details visit kdmofa.tnua.edu.tw
■ Until Jan. 16
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