This article was published in Eksentrika, The Sun Daily, CJ.MY, and Newswav.
Cultural aesthetics were displayed wall to wall at The Courtyard at Beach Street for the launch of Chao Kai Chih’s solo art exhibition titled Material.Quality.Aggregation. The launch event was held on 13 July as part of the George Town Festival’s programme, which spans the entire month of July each year.
The renowned artist, a Taiwanese currently a PhD candidate at the University of Seville in Spain, is celebrated as a visionary navigator boldly venturing into the uncharted territory where East meets West in his artistic endeavours, synthesising creation with culture.
"I like to incorporate Eastern materials like paper and calligraphy and infuse them with Chinese characters and Western brushstrokes," said the soft-spoken artist. His visually appealing works capture the essence of cultural exchange, bridging disparate worlds in a fusion of the physical and abstract. His art contrasts flatness with sculptural elements, abstraction with reality, and hints at subtlety and poetry—delicate yet powerful. Combining colours and objects and cutting across boundaries, both physical and through interpersonal experiences of navigating life, Chao’s art brings introspection into play and offers a different perspective from an almost rebellious point of view. Breaking stereotypes, to be exact.
Before pursuing formal art education, Chao honed his skills in a ceramics factory. While mastering Western artistry, he remained immersed in traditional Chinese themes, combining the old and new in a confluence of East and West, spanning classical to contemporary art forms. This duality, characteristic of the yin and yang, includes both two- and three-dimensional pieces and integrates sound and light technology as well.
"Chao’s works are largely influenced by the sea. As you can see, there is a resemblance between Chao's birthplace and Penang Island,” stated Wong Hon Wai, the Penang State EXCO for Tourism & Creative Economy, who officiated the event. “To truly grasp an artist’s work, one must delve into his background and understand his life story,” he added, praising the artist’s exceptional skills.
Born in Matsu in 1957, Chao desires to see his birthplace turned into an island museum. The archipelago, situated less than 20 kilometres off the coast of China’s Fuzhou City, is a stronghold of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). It is also regarded as a “front-line” zone for Taiwan’s armed forces. “We want peace, we don’t want war, and what we can do is turn Matsu into an art island,” Chao said, referring to the situation in his homeland.
Chao’s art pieces use mixed media, mostly discarded items, which augment his versatility and creativity. For this exhibition, he created seventeen artworks, inspired and completed during his short stay in Penang, along with twenty-six smaller works contained within used cigar boxes.
In his description of “No Longer Drifting” (2024), he expresses the theme of someone, portrayed by the driftwood, who works hard and achieves success but faces criticism. “Generation after generation, the stories of martial heroes and rural legends remain consistent. Whether in different countries or different regions, people are always recounting the same stories and legends.
“From now on, the driftwood will no longer drift,” he said contemplatively. He added that this artwork, measuring 122 cm by 366 cm, is also a tribute to those who had settled down in locations far away from their birthplace. To date, this artwork has been sold.
Elsewhere, Chao has enthralled art enthusiasts at the Sala Zuabarán and the Fine Arts Exhibition Hall of Seville. Back in Taiwan, his works are showcased in "Sentiments of Returning Home" at the Lienchiang County Social Education Centre. The pinnacle of his career, however, was his exhibition at Taipei’s Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall during its centennial celebration, where his highly acclaimed oil painting collection depicting Matsu’s landscapes, titled "Northernmost Impressions: Matsu Sceneries in Oil," was featured. Since relocating to Spain, Chao has begun exploring the fusion of Eastern and Western art, culminating in works such as “Cultural Exchange Between China and the West,” where cultural boundaries dissolve and traditions converge. Reflecting on his experience in Spain, he said, “‘Toothless’ symbolises my struggles as a stranger in a foreign country.” In his depiction, a dragon is stripped of essential attributes.
Chao’s latest works are sold between RM1,500 and RM55,000, depending on their size, while the cigar box miniatures are priced at RM600 each.
George Town Festival’s director, Chin Teo, was also present at the exhibition. “The George Town Festival 2024, titled ‘Here and Now,’ aims to reflect on the importance of celebrating the present moment and the rich tapestry of cultural expressions that define it,” she said, adding that Chao’s work perfectly embodied this theme, resonating deeply with the festival's spirit.
Chao Kai Chih’s Material.Quality.Aggregation will be
displayed until 28 July. Chao will also be available at The Courtyard on 19
July from 12 – 7 pm. The Courtyard is a new F&B and exhibition area at
Beach Street.