People respect Hsia Yan for his innocent, free and independent style. Ms. Cheng Ling-Yi, editor in chief of Yiart, recently visited Hsia’s studio in Shanghai. She interviewed the master who had lived in a numbered of countries. In the interview, Mr. Hsia indicated that he would hold his retrospective exhibition at the end of this summer.
Some people say that Hsia Yan is an art traveler, as he has migrated from place to place. Looking back on his life, Hsia Yan was a pilgrim and also a wanderer in art. He went to the romantic city of Paris from Taiwan and then headed to New York City. For the early 1990s, he came back to Taiwan and then recently moved to Shanghai.
Hsia Yan decided to go abroad based on a letter from his friend, Hsiao Chin. Hsiao wrote what he had seen in Europe, which makes Hsia Yan eager to go to Europe.
At the end of 1963, 30-year-old Hsia Yan went to Paris without hesitation. With only five thousand Taiwan dollars, he finally left for Paris. For nearly five years, Hsia Yan took part-time jobs to make ends meet. When not working, he got involved in creating. Even though the days in Paris were tough, he felt happy and satisfied.
During this period, his work was based on oriental culture. He shaped a man’s body with Chinese writing brush strokes. Viewers cannot clearly see the faces of his characters, but they can see the bodies of the characters. This kind of painting technique is called “Fuzzy People”.
At first, Hsia Yan didn't plan to go to New York at all. However, his friend insisted on inviting him to stay in New York for a while. Then Hsia Yan felt his life was getting better. During his time in New York, Hsia Yan was influenced by Realism, he started Photorealism, painting modern city life on paper. Different from Fuzzy People, Hsia captured movement; then he combined Fuzzy People techniques with Photorealism.
Not until he was recruited by The O.K.Harris Gallery, did he realize that skill is not a priority. The owner of O.K. Harris Gallery told him that he still needed to practice for more than 6 months, and his skills would be better.
Hsia Yan emphasizes that the creating doesn't relate to place. The most important concepts are related to the artist himself. The key to finding one’s ideas is what interests himself. Take his work, the Saint of War, for example. He painted the work in New York, but he derived from his traditional experience in Taiwan. Also, Hsia Yan wants to give some advice to young artists. He thinks Taiwanese artists should follow traditional Chinese culture. Since we are in the era of the global village, we are inevitable to be influenced by globalization and cultural hegemony. If everyone shared the same culture, then people just miss the joy of living. Art should be based on its own culture, as that everyone has their own personality.
The basic principle of creating is scientific and systematic. The more artist practice, the better work is. However, the core of art is to have its own charm. If an artist is not good at painting, as long as he has a sense of creating, he will not be dragged down by his lack of skill. Skill is not the primary issue. We have long been immersed in the western culture, but it has caused damage to our own creating.
Hsia Yan states that much art is now called "Chinese elements," but that can only be called Chinese cosplay. The elements are inherently contained in ourselves, and they are naturally occurring qualities from the inside out. For example, the folk culture of life in Taiwan is extremely abounding. Young people can get in close contact with each other and appreciate the differences in oriental spirit. Art has its own unique personality. It doesn't matter whether it is not high or low class. We must have our own culture to contribute to the world.
Our culture can be said to be the mother's culture. It is the most intimate and familiar background while we grow. When we imagine, the sensational stimulation will emerge spontaneously without the need for excess adaptation and provocation.
Hsia Yan is expected to hold a retrospective exhibition at the Taipei Fine Art Museum in August. It will also be an important show for the reopening of the Taipei Fine Art Museum after nearly a year of renovations. The show will exhibit from early paper creation to recent metal sculpture. Viewers can appreciate the different stages of Hsia Yan, and explore the story of the artist as well.
Hsia Yan: Journey to Art
Exhibition Date: 25 August- 28 October 2018
Venue: Taipei Fine Art Museum of Fine Arts
Curators: Liu Yung Jen、Tsai Ta Chi
Figure 1: The studio of Hsia Yan, photo by YIART
Figure 2 left: The God of Guard 1990-1991 Acrylic on Canvas 305x167cm
Figure 2 right top: Woman and Door 1974 Acrylic on Canvas 182.9x137.16cm
Figure 2 right bottom: Human Figure 1965 Oil on Canvas 79x79cm
