Artist Chi Kuo-chang Through the Photographic Looking Glass ___________________________________________________________________
Yang Ling-yuan / Images Arts by Chi Kuo-chang (紀國章) / tr. by Michael Hill
In the fresh, cool air of late spring in Taipei, a group of students crowd into the basement of the Taipei Fine Arts Museum to look at a collection of 100 photographs that appear to be in the style of Impressionist paintings. Some of the photos contain line drawings made with a brush, while others combine real scenes with oil-paint images. All of this leads some viewers to blurt out questions like, "Are these photographs or abstract paintings?" or "How the heck do you get photos to come out like this?!"
This photography exhibit, titled Trilogy of Color, brings together the last 12 years of creative work by Hualien native Chi Kuo-chang. Inspired by the work of Surrealist painter Joan Miro (1893-1983), Chi was determined to move beyond the realist framework built in to the camera, melding painting aesthetics into the world of photographic scenery to create new images that blend together the real and the abstract.
Chi's creations have earned him the high honor of an "Artiste Excellent" award from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as well as the only invitation offered in 20 years to a Taiwanese artist to exhibit at France's Arles Photography Festival, the most important event of its kind in the world. His works have also been purchased for the collections of the Van Gogh Cultural Center Memorial Gallery in Arles, the Bibliotheque nationale de France, the Musee Nice-phore Niepce, and the Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.
Known for his symbolic use of color in creating photographic images, Chi Kuo-chang may be like most photographers--always lugging around two cameras, a tripod, and heavy special-use lenses--but he also brings a sketchbook, watercolors or poster paints, and brushes.
"First, I sketch out my idea in color," says Chi. "Once the image I'm looking for becomes clearer as I work with the brush, then I start using the camera." Fair-skinned, soft-spoken and slight, Chi also has a steely Hakka temperament, and never balks at taking on difficult tasks. To get the right shot, he will go back to the same spot time after time. The images he brings back are almost always single-exposure. Aside from those pieces that require some digital processing or reworking on a computer, all of his works are completed once they have been developed in the darkroom.