Flowing Dialectic – A Discussion On the Art of Lo Tsen by Tao Wen-Yao, 2007
“All life comes from a single core, sprouting and growing from the inside outwards. In the very best sculptures it is possible to identify a powerful inner impulse. This is the secret of ancient art – Auguste Rodin
This inner impulse symbolizes the vitality of life and is in many ways similar to the motive force behind any artistic creation. Art that lacks this particular force is little more than a soulless and empty shell, bereft of the passion of life. For Luo Tsen, producing art originates in instinctive emotion a kind of kinetic energy that has had a profound impact on the artist’s life, reaching the depths of her soul and linked to her experience growing up.
In point of fact, Lo Tsen first became interested in art at a very young age and soon thereafter developed her own surrealist painting style. Her earlier works are representations of unconscious dreamscapes, illusory human figures and bodies that are hollowed out and twisted, appearing in different time and spaces. In this context, a certain hidden and intangible emotional tension is shot through with fear, doubt, contradiction, struggle, and uncertainty extends constantly outwards. This is an unconscious reflection of the artist’s own inner world. It can also be seen as an exploration of the spiritual world, so that if Norwegian artist Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” is an expression of the human condition in an environment of fear and depression then this terrifying sound torn from the depths of the human soul makes the viewer feel almost as if he or she is there. Without doubt Lo Tsen’s work is a silent declaration of war against the times originating in the prevalence of the law of the jungle and the serial deceptions of global powers. The empty bodies symbolize the pain and helplessness imposed on people by war, in the same way that smoke is spread far and wide by the flames of an inferno.
Anyone wanting to understand the artist’s work will inevitably also be curious about the environment in which she grew up, her memories and background. Lo Tsen exhibited artistic talent from a very young age and even at elementary school the teacher that introduced her to painting was Huo Kang a member of the Eastern Painting Association a group that actively promoted “modern art.” At that time the teacher often pasted Lo Tsen’s paintings on the notice-board as a way of affirming her talent and encouraging her to keep painting. Having experienced an unhappy childhood he young mind was introduced to the painful realities of the adult world from a very young age, and this outlook often made Lo appear more independent and mature than her peers. Her love of art encouraged her to study painting with renowned artist Wu Hao-hsueh in the 1970’s. From these different creative ideas Lo encountered a wide range of artistic fields, which effectively led her in the direction of expressing herself through surrealist painting, launching and establishing a foundation for her own distinctive creative style
French linguist Emile Benveniste (1902-1976) argued that the things we call unconscious define the way in which people seek to mold themselves, the things they affirm, refute and ignore. The artist controls consciousness through unconscious potential, reflecting those feelings buried deep down inside.
In 2006, Lo Tsen produced the “Gene Profile” series, a work that differed markedly from her earlier paintings. Because her husband works for the diplomatic service, Lo has lived overseas with him for many years. As part of this process of always moving, the artist has experienced first hand differences in language, life habits and ideas in different countries and cultures and this has provided her with much material tin the development of her own diverse artistic forms. In the autumn of 1998, Lo Tsen moved to India where she lived for a number of years and saw with her own eyes the rich traditional of cultural diversity in that country where different life styles harmoniously existed in parallel. She found such sights particularly moving and sought to reflect them in her art. As with the cultural searching for roots and identity Lo once again started to practice calligraphy after many years away, infusing her existing creative foundation with a new driving force to influence her painting. Chinese calligraphy focuses on individual character and style in pursuit of a stylistic aesthetic that combines dots and lines in a graphic space. It is also imbued with the meter of music and rhythm of dance, in the same way that the unrestrained freehand of Huai Su expresses the energy of a soul moved, the instinctive reflection of body and mind in perfect combination. Lo Tsen takes the style of calligraphic lines, partially magnifies the structure of seal inscriptions to create an intriguing spatial contrast in her pictures.
The artist’s most recent paintings have been larger in size, eliminating the interference of other colors through the combination of a simple black/white style. In the same way, the lines are far from unrestrained, tending instead towards a more introspective and solemn approach. This is something the artist finds particularly hard to deal with faced with the vicious political environment and deliberate racial divisions in Taiwan tat have given rise to so much injustice and impacted traditional morals and values. Lo Tsen believes artists are duty bound to reflect the facts of an occurrence but remain impotent to resolve such political problems. All they can do is reflect all that suppressed rage through brushwork as a vehicle for the expression of emption.
English sculptor Henry Moore liked to carve holes into his sculptures of human figures, as a way of showing shapes hidden inside. Indeed, it is this interlinking of overlapping holes that realizes the essential nature of the human condition. Holes are spatial symbol that penetrate solid objects and that through rays of light create an alternative existence. When this comes into contact with the real world through a framework of illusion, it creates an intriguing state and extension that seeks to reveal and secretly spy on. Lo Tsen’s paintings are filled with different sized whirlpool shapes, which serve as a conduit to the depths of the artist’s soul. This can be seen in painting No 300, entitled “Seizing Life”, the left side of which has two whirlpools like two staring hate-filled eyes. This can be traced to Lo’s simple and unadorned heart expressing feelings of anger.
In addition to painting, Lo Tsen has also produced a number of sculptures, which tend to start with human shapes but are then distorted into more abstract shapes. Works such as “Puzzle”, “Hidden” and “XXX” (浮生門) are excellent examples of the way in which the artist records her feelings, the exterior of the dark bronze texture speaking to a powerful sense of mystery that immediately catches the attention. The artist’s creative development is inextricably linked to the times in which she lives but viewers always find themselves asking whether the times influence the artist or is it the artist who proactively seeks to create the times? Lo Tsen is very much an reflective artist and it notable that the title chosen for her upcoming solo exhibition at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (NTMFA) in February 2008 is “Finding Real Shapes” (原形所在) - presenting a collection of her work since 1981. Lo uses art as a testament to the way in which life grows. In fact Lo yearns for nothing more than a simple, easy life and a pure soul. To this end, her reversion to black and white to the exclusion of other colors is a representation of this need for simplicity, replacing her earlier somewhat desolate view of life. In this context, this development can be considered an awakening after many years, one that has brought her that much closer to the natural spirit of Taoism in doing that nothing that goes against nature.
“All life comes from a single core, sprouting and growing from the inside outwards. In the very best sculptures it is possible to identify a powerful inner impulse. This is the secret of ancient art – Auguste Rodin
This inner impulse symbolizes the vitality of life and is in many ways similar to the motive force behind any artistic creation. Art that lacks this particular force is little more than a soulless and empty shell, bereft of the passion of life. For Luo Tsen, producing art originates in instinctive emotion a kind of kinetic energy that has had a profound impact on the artist’s life, reaching the depths of her soul and linked to her experience growing up.
In point of fact, Lo Tsen first became interested in art at a very young age and soon thereafter developed her own surrealist painting style. Her earlier works are representations of unconscious dreamscapes, illusory human figures and bodies that are hollowed out and twisted, appearing in different time and spaces. In this context, a certain hidden and intangible emotional tension is shot through with fear, doubt, contradiction, struggle, and uncertainty extends constantly outwards. This is an unconscious reflection of the artist’s own inner world. It can also be seen as an exploration of the spiritual world, so that if Norwegian artist Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” is an expression of the human condition in an environment of fear and depression then this terrifying sound torn from the depths of the human soul makes the viewer feel almost as if he or she is there. Without doubt Lo Tsen’s work is a silent declaration of war against the times originating in the prevalence of the law of the jungle and the serial deceptions of global powers. The empty bodies symbolize the pain and helplessness imposed on people by war, in the same way that smoke is spread far and wide by the flames of an inferno.
Anyone wanting to understand the artist’s work will inevitably also be curious about the environment in which she grew up, her memories and background. Lo Tsen exhibited artistic talent from a very young age and even at elementary school the teacher that introduced her to painting was Huo Kang a member of the Eastern Painting Association a group that actively promoted “modern art.” At that time the teacher often pasted Lo Tsen’s paintings on the notice-board as a way of affirming her talent and encouraging her to keep painting. Having experienced an unhappy childhood he young mind was introduced to the painful realities of the adult world from a very young age, and this outlook often made Lo appear more independent and mature than her peers. Her love of art encouraged her to study painting with renowned artist Wu Hao-hsueh in the 1970’s. From these different creative ideas Lo encountered a wide range of artistic fields, which effectively led her in the direction of expressing herself through surrealist painting, launching and establishing a foundation for her own distinctive creative style
French linguist Emile Benveniste (1902-1976) argued that the things we call unconscious define the way in which people seek to mold themselves, the things they affirm, refute and ignore. The artist controls consciousness through unconscious potential, reflecting those feelings buried deep down inside.
In 2006, Lo Tsen produced the “Gene Profile” series, a work that differed markedly from her earlier paintings. Because her husband works for the diplomatic service, Lo has lived overseas with him for many years. As part of this process of always moving, the artist has experienced first hand differences in language, life habits and ideas in different countries and cultures and this has provided her with much material tin the development of her own diverse artistic forms. In the autumn of 1998, Lo Tsen moved to India where she lived for a number of years and saw with her own eyes the rich traditional of cultural diversity in that country where different life styles harmoniously existed in parallel. She found such sights particularly moving and sought to reflect them in her art. As with the cultural searching for roots and identity Lo once again started to practice calligraphy after many years away, infusing her existing creative foundation with a new driving force to influence her painting. Chinese calligraphy focuses on individual character and style in pursuit of a stylistic aesthetic that combines dots and lines in a graphic space. It is also imbued with the meter of music and rhythm of dance, in the same way that the unrestrained freehand of Huai Su expresses the energy of a soul moved, the instinctive reflection of body and mind in perfect combination. Lo Tsen takes the style of calligraphic lines, partially magnifies the structure of seal inscriptions to create an intriguing spatial contrast in her pictures.
The artist’s most recent paintings have been larger in size, eliminating the interference of other colors through the combination of a simple black/white style. In the same way, the lines are far from unrestrained, tending instead towards a more introspective and solemn approach. This is something the artist finds particularly hard to deal with faced with the vicious political environment and deliberate racial divisions in Taiwan tat have given rise to so much injustice and impacted traditional morals and values. Lo Tsen believes artists are duty bound to reflect the facts of an occurrence but remain impotent to resolve such political problems. All they can do is reflect all that suppressed rage through brushwork as a vehicle for the expression of emption.
English sculptor Henry Moore liked to carve holes into his sculptures of human figures, as a way of showing shapes hidden inside. Indeed, it is this interlinking of overlapping holes that realizes the essential nature of the human condition. Holes are spatial symbol that penetrate solid objects and that through rays of light create an alternative existence. When this comes into contact with the real world through a framework of illusion, it creates an intriguing state and extension that seeks to reveal and secretly spy on. Lo Tsen’s paintings are filled with different sized whirlpool shapes, which serve as a conduit to the depths of the artist’s soul. This can be seen in painting No 300, entitled “Seizing Life”, the left side of which has two whirlpools like two staring hate-filled eyes. This can be traced to Lo’s simple and unadorned heart expressing feelings of anger.
In addition to painting, Lo Tsen has also produced a number of sculptures, which tend to start with human shapes but are then distorted into more abstract shapes. Works such as “Puzzle”, “Hidden” and “XXX” (浮生門) are excellent examples of the way in which the artist records her feelings, the exterior of the dark bronze texture speaking to a powerful sense of mystery that immediately catches the attention. The artist’s creative development is inextricably linked to the times in which she lives but viewers always find themselves asking whether the times influence the artist or is it the artist who proactively seeks to create the times? Lo Tsen is very much an reflective artist and it notable that the title chosen for her upcoming solo exhibition at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (NTMFA) in February 2008 is “Finding Real Shapes” (原形所在) - presenting a collection of her work since 1981. Lo uses art as a testament to the way in which life grows. In fact Lo yearns for nothing more than a simple, easy life and a pure soul. To this end, her reversion to black and white to the exclusion of other colors is a representation of this need for simplicity, replacing her earlier somewhat desolate view of life. In this context, this development can be considered an awakening after many years, one that has brought her that much closer to the natural spirit of Taoism in doing that nothing that goes against nature.
