Fresh view of familiar scene
THE support and approval Taiwanese artists Cheng Tsai-tung and Yu Peng found in Hong Kong has helped them launch international careers.
It was for this reason that Johnson Chang, owner of Hanart TZ Gallery, invited the pair, considered two of Taiwan's hottest avant-garde artists, to take part in the first of several 10th anniversary exhibitions with a show titled Views of Hong Kong .
''They are part of the generation of the new individualist movement, which sprang up in the early 1980s,'' said Mr Chang.
''These two artists have been visiting Hong Kong over the years, and they were respected in Taiwan because of their success in Hong Kong, so the place holds a special attachment for them.
''They are the first generation of [Taiwanese] young artists to start looking at themselves and their environment. They use their artistic tools rather freely. They have both Chinese and Western influences, but are very distinctly local in their flavour and outlook.'' Cheng is one of the founders of the movement, and known for his brooding psychological ''portraits''. His use of strong primary colours evoke a solemn tone. His Hong Kong work is haunting and nostalgic.
Peng, although younger than Cheng, is no less prominent in his role in the arts scene.
Concentrating on innovative ink and brush work, he was one of the youngest artists to have his works auctioned at Sothebys and is one of the few contemporary Chinese artists to be included in the British Museum. His view of Hong Kong is totally fanciful.
''He completely alters what it looks like,'' said Mr Chang. ''He paints what it should look like rather than what it does. It is joyful and playful. It is a nice contrast to Cheng's work.'' Views of Hong Kong: paintings by Cheng Tsai-tung and Yu Peng will be showing at the Hanart TZ Gallery in Central from Wednesday to September 25. For more information, call 526-9019.
