Text provided by KICHE
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KICHE presents Transparent Window, Glass Table, a group exhibition that brings together artists Cai Ruei-Heng, Daniel Chen, Seoul Kim, and Yang-ha. The exhibition delves into the main theme of 'transparency,' exploring the individual perspectives of each artist and their respective methodologies. The exhibition's title focuses on 'window' and 'table' as mediums through which the artists visualize their perceptions and understanding of the tangible world around them. Rather than portraying mere 'transparency' where external objects are reflected or depicted as they are, the artists embrace 'abstraction' in transparency, echoing Joan Mitchell's sentiment: “I paint the landscapes outside the window, but I could never possibly copy that. I try to paint the remembered feelings of nature, which of course become transformed in my own languages. While I paint, I always paint with windows closed so I can’t see what’s outside.” The 'window' referenced in the title acts as a visual language, bridging inner and outer worlds while unveiling the thoughts and emotions of each artist.
The four artists—Cai Ruei-Heng, Daniel Chen, Seoul Kim, and Yang-ha—adopt various approaches in their work, ranging from figurative to abstract or semi-abstract painting. Within these paradigms, they continue to pursue and experiment with their unique methodologies, pushing the boundaries and frameworks set by the artists themselves. The canvas serves as a “workbench”, highlighting the “uniqueness” that comes from their choices in the specific form, which replaces the conventions found in history of art with their characteristic visual language. In this space, artists uncover their emotions or contradictions found in the real world and construct a visual language by performatively examining the conditions of painting themselves. In this space, the artists unearth emotions and contradictions found in the real world, constructing a visual language by performatively examining the conditions of painting itself.
Cai Ruei-Heng captures the anxiety and helplessness experienced in an unstable reality, vividly depicted in his paintings featuring animals and ghostly figures. These recurring motifs and images symbolize existential sentiments and desires prevalent in our world. Cai composes situations and scenes where the subject is no longer in control of the consciousness and its own presence, such as a dog trapped in an outdoor chair's armrest or whose paws are being washed held up by an unidentifiable hand. Cai then conveys subtle emotions on a fluid, wet, and opaque canvas as if they are tangible, yet elusive to grasp entirely. By spilling acrylic paint or layering and mixing the brushstrokes’ textures, the canvas cannot fully absorb each layer of paint, maintaining opaque-like glaze. Also the canvas is often cut out irregularly and attached to a wooden panel, adding vividness and weight to the scene.
