Rising from the East, Diver of Abstract Art

Tommy CHEN was born in Jinan, Shangdong Province, China, in 1931. Amidst the turbulence of the era, CHEN came to Taiwan and built his family here, later classified as one of the Chinese diasporic painters after the Chinese Civil War. At 18, CHEN enrolled into the department of art at National Taipei Teachers College and became the classmate of HSIAO Chin and LI Yuan-Chia. Afterwards, he learned under LI Chun-Shan, who had recognized his bold use of colors then. CHEN was acknowledged by HSIAO Chin as the first Chinese painter of abstract art, even earlier than ZAO Wu-Ki. At the end of 1955, CHEN, together with friends including HSIA Yan, LI Yuan-Chia, HO-Kan, HSIO Chin, co-founded "Ton Fon Art Group," and the eight founders were dubbed "The Eight Highwaymen of the East."

Influenced by Cubism at earlier stages, CHEN adopted geometric and architectural compositions. Around 1955, he introduced the formal elements of oracle bone characters into his paintings, attempting to capture the fluxes of consciousness through his abstract strokes. He also experimented with the combined effects of paints and varying materials, so as to equip his paintings with the uneven texture of antiques. During the 1980s, he turned to acrylic and watercolor paints, and thus his paintings appeared brighter and warmer, his strokes more dynamic. Like a scientific researcher, CHEN has been eager to explore the variations of materials, formations, and colors. He shapes microscopic worlds through the piling of paints; the concrete matters and abstract momentum come to clash on the canvas, generating many atlas-like tableaus vibrating with musical rhythms. As he remarked, "Make a change, or left behind." His works reflect the destructive and constructive urges of an epochal artist, not just because he has loosened the yokes of formal languages, but also because he has widened the parameters of material expressions. Overall, his creation displays cosmic magnificence and oriental brilliance. Transcending the constraints of language, his works crystallize and transform the images of life into many a lyric scenes.

In 1959 and 1965, CHEN participated in "Sao Paulo Art Biennial" for twice. In 1962, he was awarded the silver medal in the 2nd International Art Saloon of Hong Kong. His first solo exhibition took place at ESLITE GALLERY in 2012.

Spirit of Ton Fon Art Group

The modernization of Taiwanese fine arts began in 1950s. The alternations of political regimes and the influences of foreign cultures stimulated the original art scene on the island. Taiwanese fine arts had long been influenced by Japanese culture; then the diasporic painters from China brought over traditional Chinese aesthetics, and the entry of American power also entailed the introduction of western avant-garde ideas. Different cultures converged here, provoking the artists to search for new languages that could reflect their individual mindsets and social fluctuations. Ton Fon Art Group was established when the politics were despotic while the cultures were diversified. It competed with Fifth Moon Art Group founded around the same time, and together they commenced many new inspiring chapters for the art history in Taiwan.

Ton Fon Art Group was founded by Tommy CHEN, HSIA Yan, LI Yuan-Chia, HO-Kan, HSIAO Chin, WU Hao, OUYANG Wen-yen, and HSIAO Ming-Hsien. Most of them came to Taiwan after the Chinese Civil War, and they chose artistic creation as their lifelong aspiration despite difficult lives. Dissatisfied with the colleges' stereotypical pedagogy valuing imitation and realism, they came to LI Chuan Shan's studio for alternative learning. LI, the father of modern art in Taiwan, set up his studio on Andong Street in Taipei in 1951. He influenced the students most from the aspects of knowledge and conception. Apart from introducing such new ideas of western fine arts as abstract expressionism and automatism to them, LI also encouraged them to forsake the tradition of imitating the classics and to create their own individualized styles. These youths, based on their shared longing for spontaneous expression, abandoned the learned skills of painting and strived to find their exclusive languages in the hundreds of works every day, developing their own idiosyncratic styles at last. At the time when public gathering was politically suppressed, the eight comrades still decided to establish Ton Fon Art Group at the end of 1955. Their first group exhibition in 1957 immediately met positive acclaims, and the eight founders were entitled, by the UDN reporter, HO Fan, "The Eight Highwaymen of the East." From then on, they became the pioneers of modern arts, exploring the unknown and enriching eastern art with western ideas. Among them, Tommy CHEN was known for his extravagant colors and strong experimentalism. He utilized the skills and materials of western art to transform the symbols and rhythms of eastern art. His paintings, containing the features of sculpture, also broadened the parameters of painting the genre.

After the fifteen annual exhibitions, Ton Fon Art Group dismissed itself in 1971, and CHEN also distanced himself from the art scene for some time. Recently, he has resumed his painting, and his creative momentum is in no way dampened. His artistic integrity consolidated earlier is not tainted by the ups and downs of time. As art critic J.J. Shih noted, Tommy CHEN is an artist of "early departure and late arrival," but the viewers can observe the abiding "essence" and "palatability" of his works. Today, people can hardly envision the prosperity of Ton Fon Art Group, but they can appreciate, from CHEN's works, an epochal artist's spiritual tenacity after the storms of times, as well as his delightful indulgence in creation.

• 1931 Born in Jinan, Shandong Provence, China

• 1955 Co-founded of “Ton Fan Group”, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2017 Passed away in Taipei, Taiwan

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

• 2020 “A Trailblazer in Abstract Art”, ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2017 ART TAIPEI 2017-ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall 1, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2015 “Tommy CHEN─Rising from the East, Diver of Abstract Art”, ART TAIPEI 2015-ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall 1, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2014 ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2012 ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei, Taiwan

GROUP EXHIBITIONS 

• 2019

• “Re-present”, ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei, Taiwan

• “Pioneers of the Avant-Garde Movement in Taiwan: From Li Chun-Shan to His Disciples”, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung, Taiwan

• 2018

• “HSIA Yan and His times”, ESLITE GALLERY, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2015

• “Art of Consciousness—Works and Teaching of LI Chun-shan”, The General Association of Chinese Culture, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2013

• “Majestic Island─1911-2011 The Development of Modern Art in Taiwan”, National Art Museum of China, Beijing, China; China Art Museum, Shanghai, China

• 2012

• “Exploring the Wasteland—The Eight Highwaymen of the Easy”, Da Xiang Art Space, Taichung, Taiwan

• 1997

• “Tong Fang and Fifth Moon Group 40th Anniversary Exhibition”, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung, Taiwan

• 1981

• “Tong Fang and Fifth Moon Group 25th Anniversary Exhibition”, National History Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1980

• “Tommy Chen & H.S. Yang Joint Exhibition”, Louvre Art Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1965

• “8th Sao Paulo Art Biennial”, Sao Paulo, Brazil

• “9th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Centre, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1964

• “8th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Centre, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1963

• “7th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Centre, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1962

• “6th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Centre, Taipei, Taiwan; Galleria Flasetti, Italy

• 1961

• “5th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Centre, Taipei, Taiwan

• 1960

• “4th Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, Shin Sheng News Daily Press News Building, Taipei, Taiwan; Galleria La Bussola, Torino, Italy; Galerie Senatore, Stuttgart, Germany; Galleria S. Stefano, Venice, Italy; Galleria Grattacielo, Legnano, Italy; Mi Chou Gallery, New York, USA

• 1959

• “5th Sao Paulo Art Biennial”, Sao Paulo, Brazil

• “International Youth Biennale”, Paris, France

• “3rd Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, National Taiwan Art Hall, Taipei, Taiwan; Brigata dell Arte, Macerata, Italy; Galleria Numero 2, Florence, Italy; Galleria Blu, Milan, Italy; Galleria Numero, Florence, Italy; Association Artistica Vizcaina, Bilbao, Spain

• 1958

• “2nd Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, Shin Sheng News Daily Press News Building, Taipei, Taiwan; El Palacio de la Virreina, Barcelona, Spain; / Club la Rabida, Sevilla, Spain; Sala Clan, Madrid, Spain

• 1957

• “1st Tong Fang Painting Exhibition”, Shin Sheng News Daily Press News Building, Taipei, Taiwan; Galleria Jardin, Barcelona, Spain

• 1956

• “Republic of China 45 Years Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition”, Taipei, Taiwan

AWARDS

• 1962

• International Art Saloon Silver Medal, Hong Kong, China

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

• 1996

• Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

• 2012

• National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung, Taiwan