Name: 此時彼刻-薛保瑕個展
Start: 2024-09-21T16:30:00+08:00
Location: 台北市內湖區瑞光路548巷15號1樓, Taipei, Taiwan 114

此時彼刻-薛保瑕個展
展期｜2024.09.21~2024.11.16
開幕｜2024.09.21（六）4:30 p.m.
地點｜耿畫廊（台北市內湖區瑞光路548巷15號1樓）
匯聚了多年在抽象藝術的凝視、穿梭於思辨和創作實踐、更戮力探究1980以後，當代抽象繪畫之定義，與可能發展面向的薛保瑕，2024年初秋，將於耿畫廊帶來睽違四年之個展「此時彼刻」。
身任教授、學者和美術館長等多重身份，同時也是台灣當代藝術的實踐者，薛保瑕除作育英才無數，也在自身創作上耕耘數十寒暑；在台灣女性抽象藝術的發展路徑，薛保瑕扮演著重要角色。其不論在技法、亦或理念上，皆為抽象藝術注入不可取代之獨特視角；若依循其一路以來的創作脈絡，便可明顯察覺藝術家以抽象語彙回應後現代主義時期之美學，並對於色彩、線條、結構、甚或肌理等深入的建構與思考。而如此一個專屬於薛保瑕的創作軌跡，源自於過往旅居紐約多年的求學經驗，那是薛保瑕打開對於西方當代的視野之契機；更甚者，紐約開放卻又嚴謹的思辨風氣，更造就薛保瑕在創作中，對於文本有著高度連結和辯證。
符號學中所提出的「能指（signifier）」和「所指（signified）」概念，主要用來描述語言符號的結構和功能。若對應到薛保瑕的創作，更可察覺藝術家運用其作為結構鋪陳，探索出嶄新路徑：自2004年以降，她經常以二拼及三拼作品作為主軸，當首張畫布完成後，畫面中所勾勒與詮釋的視覺構成，即為藝術家主觀意念中延展出的符號和訊息，經由閱讀，薛保瑕再以過程中所得知之訊息接續完成其後第二、第三張畫布；同時，藝術家更意欲邀請閱讀者，自畫面中之頓挫、合流之間，發展出個別的想像和感知，完整觀者和作品的連結。正如薛保瑕在自述中所述：「文本自身涉及的言說論述，有其文意上直喻、隱喻的意涵。我拼合的創作方式，在抽離與擴張之間，以循環的詮釋推進，是圖示表述的交界，也是喻意與納氣急緩頓挫的引動之處。」
而除了圖像和文本之連結，作品更取材自藝術家本身的文化底蘊，除了成長過程時期深受東方筆墨的訓練和薰陶，如今更以台灣原住民文化作為創作靈感來源。此次於主展場中的原住民系列作品，來自藝術家搜羅和閱讀台灣原住民文獻史料，囊括原住民歷史、習俗，到服飾、用色等文化美學作為想像的發端，以九條取自特定原住民族群之服飾色彩，進而創作、發展冷抽象的色域語彙，成為第一步於畫布上呈現能指與所指之表現。此舉同時呼應了上述薛保瑕於創作中對於符號的著墨：自原住民之色彩定錨為產生語意之徵象，並以此發展；同時利用其背後所代表之概念，誘發對於特定事物之關聯和認知，此系列創作藉由色彩指涉特定原民族群面對內在世界的自我認同，並彰顯色彩傳遞於外在世界的身份形塑，也是藝術家意圖以抽象藝術對應人文、歷史、甚或回應當下的文化語境，突破廿世紀初期抽象藝術以不具指涉性，並強調內在自我之表徵，邁入以抽象語彙擴大當代抽象藝術的可能。
「此時彼刻」中，薛保瑕以長形色塊做為理性基底，再於其上施以感性揮灑。藉由身體之參與，畫布上的線性動勢經由其手部動作、身軀之延展與畫布形成互動，其中的節奏與韻律，對應到藝術家的身體感知—包含對於筆觸、壓力的拿捏—這些疏容或緊湊，展現作品吐息之間的脈動與呼吸，如此以「冷」「熱」抽象並存之舉措，是薛保瑕近年作品中一個顯而易見之特徵。在創作過程中，薛保瑕不做由上而下、固定身體定位點，或是行走於畫布四方的潑灑、滴流等常見自動性技法，而是讓畫面中每處線條與色塊都是來自自身的控制，以熱抽象加諸於畫面的同時，卻某種程度消弭了基底冷抽象的完整性：在「加」的過程中卻造成「減」的結果；此外，觀者唯有離遠作品，越能夠清楚地看見作品底層構成，如此違背尋常觀看習慣的設定，也對應到薛保瑕創作論述中對於「悖論」的指涉：藝術家意欲喚起觀者多元的思維方式，更透過邏輯之辯證，重新定義，藉此促發關於抽象繪畫的再認知。作品以悖論探究繪畫中所產生之哲學意義，不僅在形式上打破了傳統抽象繪畫界限，也在內容上引發深刻思考當代抽象藝術的演變。
詩經《毛詩序》道：「詩者，志之所之也，在心為志，發言為詩。」闡述由心而生的創作思維，藉由所處環境所啟發，並通過創作者的內化與昇華，成為心靈和思想的真實映射，不僅僅是對周遭世界的共鳴和回應，更是自我反思和情感流融之過程。歷經近年的疫疾，以及藝術家自身之心境轉化，「此時彼刻」展出薛保瑕自2019年以來近50件作品，體現了關於藝術家自身與所處之地，與他人之連結，記錄著這段時期的生命軌跡；「此時彼刻」同時映照出藝術家於時間軸中那一次次的自省與回顧，它們不單是一個線性的消長過程，更顯露藝術家在這些無數之「彼刻」之間，不斷地探索和調整，最終成就了「此時」；也正因為那些點點累積、堆疊與聚合，儘管踽踽獨行，卻也步步紮實而磅礴；更是薛保瑕對無常的生命和種種未知，做出專屬薛保瑕那瀟灑、卻義無反顧的回應。
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Ava Hsueh: Within the Pulse of Time
Exhibition Dates │09.21.2024–11.16.2024
Reception │09.21.2024 (Sat.) 4:30 p.m.
Venue │Tina Keng Gallery (1F, No. 15, Ln. 548, Ruiguang Rd., Neihu Dist., Taipei, Taiwan 114)

Tina Keng Gallery is pleased to present Ava Hsueh: Within the Pulse of Time, her latest solo exhibition at the gallery after a four-year hiatus. The exhibition encapsulates the artist’s years of contemplation of abstract art, her navigation of thought and creative practice, and her exploration of postmodern era abstract painting.
As a professor, scholar, museum director, and practitioner of contemporary Taiwanese art, Hsueh has nurtured countless talents, while dedicating decades to her own artistic practice. She plays an indispensable role in the evolution of Taiwanese women’s abstract art, bringing a unique perspective to the genre in terms of technique and philosophy. Tracing the trajectory of her work reveals how the artist responds to postmodern aesthetics through abstract language, engaging with color, line, structure, and texture. Hsueh’s distinctive creative path is rooted in her years of studying in New York, where her exposure to Western contemporary art broadened her horizons. The open yet rigorous intellectual climate of New York cultivated Hsueh’s artistic approach, embedding a strong connection to theory and dialectics within her practice.
In semiotics, the concepts of the signifier and the signified are primarily used to describe the structure and function of linguistic signs. When applied to the work of Hsueh, these ideas reveal how the artist employs them as a framework to explore new creative paths. Since 2004, she has frequently focused on diptych and triptych compositions. Once the first canvas is complete, the visual elements within the work extend from the artist’s subjective intention, serving as signifiers of deeper symbols. Through an ongoing engagement with these initial signs, Hsueh continues to develop the second and third canvases.
She invites the viewer to develop their own interpretation and perception from the dynamic interplay and convergence within the visual flow, deepening the connection between the observer and the work. Just as the artist writes in her statement, “The discourse in the text itself encompasses literal and metaphorical connotations. My method of combining canvases, between separation and expansion, advances through the hermeneutic circle. It resides at the threshold of pictorial expression, of metaphor, of pace and cadence, of shift and pulse.”
In addition to the connection between image and text, the artist’s work is deeply rooted in her own cultural heritage. Influenced by her early training in Eastern ink painting, the artist now draws inspiration from Taiwanese indigenous culture. The series on view in the gallery’s main space stems from the artist’s research and study of Taiwanese indigenous archives, encompassing history, customs, clothing, and color aesthetics. This exploration begins with nine colors derived from specific indigenous garments, which inspires the artist’s cold abstraction vocabulary. This serves as the first step in embodying the interplay between the signifier and the signified on the canvas.
This approach resonates with Hsueh’s focus on symbolism, using indigenous colors as semiotic anchors that generate meaning. The colors provoke associations and recognition tied to specific cultural elements, referencing the self-identity of indigenous tribes and highlighting how color shapes external perceptions of identity. This series addresses the relationship between abstract art, humanity, history, and contemporary culture through the artist’s use of color. In so doing, she transcends early 20th-century abstraction, which emphasized non-referentiality and self-expression, and instead, expands the possibilities of abstract art by engaging with broader cultural and historical contexts.
Within the Pulse of Time sees Hsueh employ elongated color blocks as a rational foundation, upon which she layers expressive brushwork. Through her physical involvement, the linear movements on the canvas emerges from the interaction between her hand gestures, body extension, and the canvas. The rhythm and pulse of the work are attuned to the artist’s physical awareness — manifested in the nuances of brushstrokes and the varying pressure applied. These moments of tension and release reflect the organic breathing of the piece. The juxtaposition of cold and hot abstraction has defined Hsueh’s recent body of work.
In her creative process, the artist avoids the top-down, static positioning or the techniques of pouring and dripping associated with automatism. Instead, every line and color block is meticulously controlled, as the artist’s hot abstraction is layered onto the canvas, while paradoxically diminishing the completeness of the underlying cold abstraction. In the process of addition, there is a simultaneous subtraction. The viewer must observe the work from a distance to perceive its foundational structure — an approach that challenges conventional viewing habits and aligns with Hsueh’s reference to paradox in her artist statement.
Hsueh’s work invites the viewer to adopt a pluralistic mindset, using the logic of dialectics to provoke a renewed understanding of abstract painting. The work explores the philosophical significance within the practice of painting, not only breaking formal boundaries, but encouraging a deeper reflection on the evolution of contemporary abstract art.
“Poetry is the expression of one’s intent; in the heart, it is intention, but when spoken, it becomes poetry,” says the Maoshi in the Book of Songs. This statement captures the creative process born from within, shaped by one’s surroundings, and refined through the artist’s internalization and transcendence. It reflects a genuine projection of the mind and spirit — an emotional resonance with the world, while serving as a vehicle for self-reflection and emotion.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic and the personal transformation experienced by the artist, Within the Pulse of Time comprises nearly 50 works by Hsueh, made since 2019. The exhibition chronicles the artist’s connection with place, people, and herself, tracing the trajectory of her life during this period. It reflects Hsueh’s introspection and retrospection, revealing that this journey is not merely a linear progression, but an exploration of countless past moments, which have evolved and culminated in the now.
The accumulation, layering, and aggregation of these experiences, though often solitary, are resolute and profound. This body of work instantiates Ava Hsueh’s unyielding response to impermanence and the unknown, epitomized by her daring, yet graceful, approach.