Enjoying The Race

#08007      130 X 194 cm     畫布丙烯      2008

Here, we see an assumptive scenario, an imaginary scene of exciting races such as at the Olympic Games. On a race track that looks like a musical score, we see five runners painted in the five colors of the Olympic logo, representing the different races gathering to compete in harmony. Above the crowded spectators, two big screens hang to broadcast the event. On one of them we see gymnastic presentations; on the other, we discover a close-up of two Europeans in marvelous dress-figures from Renoir’s Opera Balcony (1878)-a gentleman and lady painted more than a century ago. Upon the crowded bleachers stands the silhouette of the Tiantan surrounded by high buildings. A warm and gentle pink sky bathes the magnificent scene.

This kind of artistic manifestation is characteristic of Dr. T.F. Chen’s“Neo-Iconography” style, which is based on his “Five-Dimensional World Culture” view.

He initiated this style and philosophy at la Sorbonne where he was studying in Paris in the 1960s. Dr. Chen’s “Neo-Iconography” is an art style and expression that:

1) Foregoes “natural images” in favor of “cultural images” with sym bolic meanings

2) Is based on unifying time and space through “assumptive scenarios” to assemble, modify, transform and transcend Icons in organic, meaningful and creative ways

3) Expresses the ideas and ideals of the artist, so a kind of conceptual art in one sense

4) Employs free, varied and spontaneous techniques according to the inspiration to create, so different art styles in different techniques can co-exist in a single painting

5) Grounds itself in deep humanism and a global concern, aiming to advance a global “New Renaissance” in LOVE. It is an aspect of artistic expression fitting for our global culture.