HK Arts Centre, until Nov 22; Alisan Fine Arts Gallery Nov 23-Dec 31
The Hong Kong Arts Centre and Alisan Fine Arts Gallery are holding a major show on Chinese American painter Walesse Ting, who died in May this year, aged 80. The show will feature 35 pieces done in the 1980s to 2001 that give an overview of the Shanghai-born artist's famous subjects: alluring ladies, bright pink flowers, yellow birds, colourful animals and fluorescent green landscapes that reflect his joy of life, love, and beauty.
The exhibition (including Lady in Blue, right) is at the Arts Centre (where Ting last held a solo show 17 years ago) before it moves to Alisan Fine Arts Gallery from November 23 to the end of the year. A retrospective of his paintings will also be held at Taipei Fine Art Museum in Taiwan from November 27.
A self-taught artist, Ting is best known for his vibrant and colourful paintings that are full of a simple appreciation of the fresh sensuality of life. His philosophy was simple: finding beauty. 'Without beauty, life makes no sense. Where is life if you just think of lunch, or watching TV?' he once said. 'People watch TV and they watch Wall Street. Every day they buy stocks. But then what? After you die, do they bury you in stocks?'
Born in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, Ting moved to Paris, where he formed close friendships with members of the CoBrA group in the early 1950s. Six years later, Ting moved to New York where he became involved with the abstract expressionists and pop artists and exhibited with Andy Warhol (1928-1987), a leading figure in pop art. Ting never considered himself a part of any artistic movement or group.
'The art world will sorely miss Walasse and his distinctively cheerful paintings,' says Alisan Fine Arts Gallery director Alice King.