While Yo Yang’s (楊雅淳) previous photography included grotesque close-ups of plants, flowers and fruits, her latest solo exhibition at Pon Ding examines scenes from everyday life in a subtler way. Delete Park — Refrain (抽象化目標) mimics a film feel in the sense that it is told through a series of quick vignettes from the perspective of a pedestrian who’s passing by and only manages to catch a quick glimpse of his or her surroundings — for instance, a shrub stuck in between two parked cars, the top of a taxi passing by a townhouse or tree branches creeping up the side of a white apartment building. The fact that all the works in this series are untitled also adds to the anonymity of the experience, creating simultaneous feelings in the viewer of both involvement and detachment.
■ 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
■ Until March 12
Photo courtesy of Pon Ding
Xu Jiong’s (許炯) work is the type of art you stare at and think: “I can do this too.” Not only are the characters in his calligraphy incomprehensible, but they’re also faded, different sizes and replete with ink blotches. Though the results might be a calligraphy teacher’s worst nightmare, there’s something alluring and whimsical about the squiggles. Perhaps it’s the way the Chinese artist manages to conjure up childhood nostalgia — remember the times your parents reprimanded you for doodling on your bedroom walls? His message is simple but telling: just be your silly self. I Saw Jiadao (我看見了賈島) is currently showing at CANS Tea & Book Shop in Taipei.
■ CANS Tea & Book Shop (罐子茶書館), 9 Lishui St, Taipei City (台北市麗水街9號), tel: (02) 2321-6680. Open daily from 1pm to 9pm
■ Until March 18
Photo courtesy of Aura Gallery
On display at Eslite Gallery is Take in the Scenery (思索之景), a joint exhibition featuring the works of artists such as Cheng Po-tsung (鄭帛囪) and Chinese artist Chi Ming (遲明). The exhibition title derives inspiration from a saying by Song Dynasty poet Su Shi (蘇軾): “A painting in the poem, and a poem in the painting.” The works themselves are not quite as philosophical. Far from that, they focus on topics that are highly relatable to viewers. Cheng’s series of untitled paintings, for instance, document his inner thoughts and emotions, while Chi’s paintings capture the innocent and idyllic nature of China’s youth in a surrealistic, dreamlike style. Chi also comes from a long line of artists — his grandfather painted portraits of Mao Zedong (毛澤東) while his father painted movie posters. While Chi has more freedom to experiment, his paintings still exhibit a sense of restraint, as if telling viewers to dream but not dream too big.
■ Eslite Gallery (誠品畫廊), 5F, 11 Songgao Rd, Taipei City (台北市松高路11號5樓), tel: (02) 8789-3388. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 7pm
■ Until March 19
Photo courtesy of Eslite Gallery
Frees Art Space hasn’t been shy in the past about exhibiting works that challenge traditional perceptions of gender and sexuality and the gallery continues to do so with their latest exhibition, Bodies that Resist (身不由己) by Wen Shin (溫馨). Wen contests the idea of the ideal body type, suggesting instead that there is none. Rather, the human body is constantly changing. It’s a process of “formation, de-formation, re-formation,” the artist writes in her statement. Wen ties this to the larger idea that many things in life are social constructs — ideas imbued in us by the media and popular culture and reinforced by our peers that are meant to simplify the beauty and complexity of human existence.
■ Frees Art Space (福利社), B1, 82, Xinsheng N Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市新生北路三段82號B1); tel: (02) 2585-7600. Open Tuesdays to Fridays from 11am to 7pm, Saturdays 1:30pm to 9pm, closed Sundays and Mondays
■ Until March 24
Photo courtesy of Eslite Gallery
Hong Kong and Taipei-based artist Lee Kit (李傑), whose previous installations centered on working-class domestic simplicity in Hong Kong — often times with political undertones — turns his attention to human relationships (or lack thereof) in his latest solo exhibition, The more I ignore you, the closer you get (我越不理你，你卻離我越近), held at Taipei’s TheCube Project Space. While Lee utilized household materials such as bedsheets and rubber gloves in past installations, the main medium this time is video. There is particular emphasis on the idea of dialogue and how people use/misuse it to achieve selfish ends. Concepts of space and emptiness — literal and metaphorical — are also explored.
■ TheCube Project Space (立方計畫空間), 2F, 13, Alley 1, Ln 136, Roosevelt Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路四段136巷1弄13號2樓), tel: (02) 2368-9418. Open Wednesday to Sunday from 2pm to 8pm
■ Until April 9
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