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Frolic:
Humor and Mischief in New Taiwanese Art will bring a
sense of fun with a touch of mischief to the fall art scene in
New York City. The exhibition will open at three New York
spaces in October, and November, 2007. This exhibition, co-curated
by Dr. Thalia Vrachopoulos, based in New York, and Jane Ingram
Allen, based in Taiwan, features works in all media by 27
emerging Taiwanese artists.
Each
gallery will highlight the works of different artists,
including several site-specific installations to be created by
some of the artists upon their arrival from Taiwan. The theme
of this exhibition, humor and mischief, reflects one of the
main qualities of contemporary Taiwanese art production. The
sense of fun and mischievousness exhibited in the new
Taiwanese art distinguishes it from others such as the Korean,
which is much more serious in its tenor and themes. An example
of an artist using these elements is Wenfu Yu, who deploys
feathers with which to create environments that speak to the
lighthearted child in all of us. They are light and
fantastical configurations that arouse our instinctual desire
to play, such as his Words of Bamboo, 2007, (site specific installation,
feathers and mixed media), done for the Taipei Gallery lobby.
Another artist who uses humor in works that address both
feminist and artistic issues is Agi Chen. This artist uses
color discs in symbolic sequences that correspond to heroines
known from popular culture, such as Winnie the Pooh,
Sailormoon and the Powerpuff Girls, Mr. Incredible and Elastic
Girl. Chen deconstructs the colors and by abstracting the
characters to color circles, she reconstructs their meaning to
reflect on issues of consumerism and regional preferences.
Howard Chen groups little creatures that appear to invade the
corners of the gallery, but who belie their innocent glittery
appearance when observed in detail. The Babies, 2003 is a
grouping of dolls and hearts composed of silver sequins and
pins that juxtapose the quintessential baby with the dangerous
object, the pin. This combination is grounded in the Dada
spirit of exploring seemingly innocent constructs, (the baby,
for example), while using irony to pun popular conceptions. It
is these and 21 other artists' creative productions that give
this show an edge that will contribute to the climate of its
time and leave an indelible impression upon global audiences.
Dr.
Thalia Vrachopoulos, known for her expertise on contemporary
Asian art and for curating many exhibitions in this field,
traveled to Taiwan in 2006. There she was introduced to the
contemporary art scene of Taipei at such places as the Museum
of Contemporary Art, VT Salon, Hua-shan Art Center, IT Park
Gallery, and other alternative art spaces. She was impressed
by the quality of the work, the fresh approach and sense of
fun expressed by these artists and wanted to present this new
work from Taiwan in New York. She approached the Taiwan
Council for Cultural Affairs for support of the exhibition and
teamed up with American artist and independent curator Jane
Ingram Allen, who is based in Taiwan. Allen, an artist and
independent curator and art critic, has been working in Taiwan
since arriving there in January, 2004 with a Fulbright Scholar
Award. During the three-plus years Allen has been living in
Taiwan, she has met many young artists and worked in all parts
of the country. Allen and Vrachopoulos have been working
together to select the works for the exhibition and coordinate
activities in Taiwan and New York City.
A
fully illustrated catalogue of 78 pages will accompany the
exhibition with essays by Jane Ingram Allen, Thalia
Vrachopoulos and Jonathan Goodman. It will be available at all
three galleries during the exhibition schedule.
The
first part of the Frolic exhibitions will open at 2x13
Gallery, Chelsea, 531 W. 26th St., 4th Floor, New York, NY
10001-5514, 212-563-3365 on October 5th and run through
October 27th. The opening reception at 2x13 Gallery will be
Oct. 5th at 6-8 pm.
The
second part of Frolic will open at Tenri Cultural
Institute Gallery, 43A West 13th Street, NYC 10011,
212-645-2800, on October 18th and run through November 21st.
The opening reception at Tenri Gallery will be Friday, October
19th, from 6-8 pm.  The
third installment of the exhibition will open at
Taipei Gallery, Taipei Cultural Center, 1 East 42nd Street,
7th Floor, New York, NY 10017, tel. 212-697-6188, on November
6th and run through Nov. 30th. The opening reception at Taipei
Gallery will take place on Tuesday November 6th at 6-8 pm.
Contact： Dr.
Thalia Vrachopoulos, Curator, thaliav@juno.com Jane
Ingram Allen, Curator, Email: info@janeingramallen.com Josiane
Lai at Josiane@tpecc.org
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