gdm Gallery celebrates 50th anniversary by opening Taipei space
gdm爍樂畫廊慶祝成立50週年 台北空間新開幕
Inaugural exhibition presents Wu Chi-tsung's installations
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Founded in Hong Kong by Fred Scholle in 1974 as Galerie du Monde, gdm Gallery is celebrating its 50th anniversary by opening a new exhibition space in Taipei. Renowned for its influential role in post-war Chinese art, including its support for the Circle Art Group (中元畫會) in Hong Kong and the May Painting Association (五月畫會) in Taiwan, gdm has cultivated a strong reputation in the Asian contemporary art market, representing over 20 artists. With a renewed focus on contemporary art, the gallery aims to support emerging and diasporic Asian artists. For its inaugural exhibition in Taipei, gdm presents "Trail to the Moon," a solo exhibition by Taiwanese artist Wu Chi-tsung (吳季璁). This marks Wu's fourth collaboration with the gallery and gdm's debut in Taipei, signifying a significant step in the gallery's expansion. Concurrently, gdm launched the "Siong Tshinn" (上青) project, dedicated to discovering and supporting emerging Taiwanese artists. Wu is known for his profound exploration of light and shadow. In the exhibition, the artist continues this journey, employing the ancient cyanotype process to capture the fleeting beauty of sunlight on Xuan paper. This technique, reminiscent of traditional Chinese ink wash painting, imbues the works with a contemporary edge, transcending the boundaries of conventional art forms. Key highlights of the exhibition include the captivating “Cyano-Collage," and his new experimental series, "Studies of Brushwork: The Vanishing Original.” Drawing inspiration from Chinese aesthetics while embracing Western contemporary art practices, Wu's work delves into philosophical questions such as authenticity in the digital age. He considers materials not merely as mediums but as carriers of memory and emotion. As Wu explained, “'Studies of Brushwork: The Vanishing Original,' I layer the original cyanotype paper with subsequent sheets, creating a series of negative images. This process mirrors the gradual fading of memory, like the subtle shifts of atmospheric perspective in a landscape." "Cyano-Collage" is a breathtaking series in which dozens of cyanotype-treated Xuan paper pieces are meticulously torn, rearranged, and adhered to aluminum panels, creating a monumental, mountain-like effect. This echoes Wu's passion for rock climbing, an activity demanding intense focus and a deep connection with the present moment. "Climbing and creating," Wu said, "share a fundamental alignment of mind and body." For the Taipei space, Wu has created "Lying Moon," a 6-meter-wide interactive installation. This mesmerizing artwork invites viewers to recline on a giant, moon-like surface, inviting contemplation of the interplay between reality and the imagined. The moon's surface, meticulously crafted from photographed and digitally manipulated sand grains, offers a unique and immersive experience. |
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Lyla Liu, Taiwan News, Staff Reporter | |
2025-01-16 |