Paintings of former Taipei County commissioners which are displayed in the New Taipei City government building are perhaps the only remaining symbols of these people’s years of governance after they stepped out of the political limelight.
They may owe their gratitude to 50-year-old Chen Yuan-cheng (陳原成), one of the only two artists who have been entrusted to record their terms through art.
Chen succeeded master painter Li Mei-shu (李梅樹), who painted the portraits of the first four popularly elected commissioners: Mei Ta-fu (梅達夫), Tai Te-fa (戴德發), Hsieh Wen-cheng (謝文程) and Su Ching-po (蘇清波).
Photo: Lai Hsiao-tung, Taipei Times
In 1997, Chen was commissioned to paint a portrait of outgoing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) after he was elected county commissioner, as well as Su’s three predecessors — Shao En-hsin (邵恩新), Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正) and You Ching (尤清) — and interim successor, Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀).
“I had to sit down with each one of the former commissioners to observe and talk to them in person before I could start painting. This process enabled me to capture their distinctive characters and personalities more vividly,” he said.
Chen said the essence of a portrait are the sitter’s attitude and facial expression, which make its quality more discernible to the audience’s eyes than that of landscape paintings.
Growing up in the then-Taipei County’s Bali District (八里), Chen said his favorite childhood pastime was molding miniature animal sculptures out of mud.
Chen said he did not discover his artistic talent until he met his first mentor, Chen Ting-kuo (陳定國), his elementary-school teacher.
With encouragement from his teacher, Chen Yuan-cheng entered his first painting competition and took first place.
His love of painting grew after he met his second mentor, Chen Yu-hui (陳幼輝), in junior-high school.
“He [Chen Yu-hui] not only sent me oil painting supplies as a gift, but also gave me a private tour of the studio of a veteran Taiwanese painter to give me an idea of what it is like to be a professional artist,” the 50-year-old said.
While some Taiwanese parents think art majors are unemployable, Chen Yuan-cheng’s father, a vegetable vendor, wholeheartedly supported his son when he decided to enroll in the Fu-Hsin Trade and Arts School.
“My high-school tuition fees nearly pushed my family to the brink of bankruptcy and the relatively steep price of painting tools only added frost to the snow,” Chen Yuan-cheng said.
Chen Yuan-cheng said that his desire to help alleviate his family’s financial burden prompted him to enter as many painting competitions as he could to win cash.
Doing so allowed him to gain experience, which later enabled him to graduate at the top of his class and to scoop the second place in the 10th Taipei Fine Art Exhibition.
After two years of hard work, Chen Yuan-cheng in 1982 secured admission into his dream school, the National Institute of the Arts — the predecessor of Taipei National University of the Arts.
He spent five years honing his painting and printmaking techniques, and he became the youngest painter ever to be granted a lifetime exemption from submitting his works for evaluation at the annual Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition, the most influential public art exhibition in the country.
Only those whose submitted works are ranked in the top three at the exhibition for three consecutive years are entitled to such a privilege.
When asked about the secrets to his success, Chen Yuan-cheng said: “I simply treat everyone and everything in my life as my creative muses.”
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