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A lecture will be presented today and an opening reception tomorrow in conjunction with Limits on Freedom: Art of Taiwan Today, a compilation of works by native Taiwanese artists Wei Jane Chir, Ben Yu, and Mei Dean-E, which is on exhibit Nov. 4-Jan 28 at the Grossman Gallery of the Williams Visual Arts Building on North Third Street.
It is part of a series of exhibitions that explores the artistic expression of the struggle with national identity and human security issues in the global context as part of the class of 2009’s First-Year Experience program.
“By posing the question of personal identity cross culturally, we begin to examine the varied and complex issue of what it is to be American, what it is to have a national identity, and specifically, what unites us as Americans, primarily the perceived freedoms that we enjoy,” says Jim Toia, director of the Grossman Gallery.
“The Grossman Gallery’s 2005-2006 exhibition schedule seeks to address these questions by broadening our perspective. Exhibitions highlighting different countries whose citizens have encountered limitations and restrictions on their will and expression engage the viewer by comparison, conflict, and common bond.”
The following events have been planned in conjunction with Limits of Freedom:
The Limits of Freedom artists exemplify the urge and necessity of divergent voices in their country. Born in Taiwan in the mid-1950s, they experienced the dramatic changes that have molded their homeland, moving from an era of martial law and authoritarian rule to developments toward democracy, and from a society that identifies strongly with Chinese culture to a vigorous search for Taiwan’s own identity. Each artist conveys Limits on Freedom using personal, political, or spiritual perspectives and uses familiar symbols from their own culture as a tool of communication.
Yu’s Taiwanese Bridegroom series amplifies the conflicting experiences of an individual caught between two cultures. His American wife and children reside in Pennsylvania while he works in Taiwan most of the year. The photographer traveled Pennsylvania accompanied by a formally dressed traditional Taiwanese puppet. Yu’s puppet wears traditional bright red bridegroom clothes and reflects the photographer’s personal journey through his own emotions.
Dean-E’s installation SARS is characteristic of his constant decoding of political figures and events. Influenced by the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) incident in 2003, which was entangled in the ongoing emotional debate of Taiwan’s independence versus unification with China, this work is based on an event where the ruling party used a referendum to decide if Taiwan would declare itself an independent state. The red and blue balls in this piece signify “yes” and “no” votes. This simple division game satirizes the decision process used to address the serious issue. Mei employs blue and red to represent the flags of Taiwan and China.
Chir’s Gate of Heavenly Peace consists of a meditation zone and a short film, Imagining an Occupation of the Gate of Heavenly Peace by Mediators. This work reflects humanitarian concerns and is a plea for greater awareness and understanding of a spiritual group that practices meditation, Falun Dafa, which is believed to be under severe oppression by the Chinese government. Chir’s installation is based on a historical Chinese symbol by the same name. At different times, it represented imperial power, the New China movement, establishment of the Communists’ People’s Republic of China, the Tiananmen Square massacre, and the attacks against the Falun Gong meditation group. Here, the Gate of Heavenly Peace becomes a symbol at the center of China’s public identity, inevitably connected to the plight of Taiwan. Chir’s work is represented in public and private collections in Germany, Taiwan, San Francisco, and New York. She won an award for her first documentary film, The Legend of Lily Yeh.
Future Grossman Gallery exhibits will include Imprints and Artifacts, Feb. 11-April 1 (tentative), presenting conceptual artist Diane Samuels, a Pittsburgh native whose work explores how generations removed from the Holocaust live in rural Buttenhausen and Grafeneck, southern Germany.
Directed by internationally known abstract painter Ed Kerns, Eugene H. Clapp II ’36 Professor of Art, the 23,500-square-foot Williams Visual Arts Building is one of the leading high-tech facilities for art education and exhibitions in the nation. It includes sculpture and painting studios, a community-based teaching studio, the Grossman Gallery, a flexible studio area with movable walls for honors and independent study students, a seminar room, a conference room, and faculty studios and offices. Honors students, faculty, and visiting professional artists work together with area high school and adult art students through the Community-Based Teaching Program led by Toia.
The building was recognized for excellence in design quality with the Silver Medal from the Pennsylvania chapter of The American Institute of Architects, the highest award given by the organization. It was chosen from a pool of applications by 100 practicing architects in Pennsylvania. It also received the Adaptive Reuse Award from the Easton Heritage Alliance.
Gallery hours are 10-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, contact the Grossman Gallery at (610) 330-5831.