A talented artist and dedicated art educator, Chiang Wai Lan is presenting her latest works, centering on her original character ‘Miss L’, in her new solo exhibition ‘Once Upon A Time – Works by Chiang Wai Lan’. The exhibition will welcome viewers until November 11 in the Tak Chun Macau Art Garden at the Art For All Society (AFA).
“To me, the expression ‘once upon a time’ not only carries a sense of the past, but also hints at a kind of partition of different stages of life. When we enter a new phase in life, everything that has happened before can be referred to as ‘once upon a time’,” the artist says, explaining her choice of title for the exhibition.
“Life is a long journey, with plenty of ups and downs along the way. You may experience happy or upsetting moments, but when you look back, you may gain a new perspective and feel different emotions. Even an unpleasant encounter is a way to build our endurance and character,” she adds.
The fantasy-like atmosphere conjured by the expression also seems right for the showcased works.
“When we hear the phrase, we automatically feel we’re about to go back to the past and hear a wonderful story. It’s like opening a magic box,” Chiang laughs.
Around twenty printmaking and sketching works are featured, all of which depict the character ‘Miss L’ created by Chiang.
“I created this character five or six years ago very naturally, and the prototype is a rabbit. We often say that the face is the index of the mind, we can get some clues of one’s personality and thoughts just from the appearance. A rabbit is kind and pure, but at the same time sensitive and a bit neurotic. These characteristics really fit with what I want to express in my art,” she says.
The name of ‘Miss L’ derives from the artist’s own name, Lan, and gradually begins to bear wider connotations.
“I get inspiration from my own life, as well as my observation of people around me and things I hear from others. But everything I create has traces of my emotions. My feelings are more or less projected in my works,” notes Chiang.
“The letter ‘L’ is just a symbol, with many possible interpretations. It stands for me, but also for ‘love’ and ‘loneliness’, two very extreme and contradicting elements. In my artistic creation, I also attempt to seek a balance of opposition. For example, a delicate figure might unconsciously do something very cruel, and a sweet image might imply some deep feelings and thoughts. The concept of opposition fascinates me,” she says.
One of the acrylic paintings on show embodies the balance of opposition precisely. In the painting, the body of Miss L is in the form of a bird cage, with goldfish swimming out of it.
“I wanted to describe the contrast of protection and imprisonment. While the cage inside protects us from the outside, it also oppresses our emotions and ideas. The goldfish are like our various thoughts, breaking free and swimming into the quiet ocean. It is said that goldfish have short memories, but the wish to swim on is an instinct.”
Chiang continues to explore and experiment with the character, always making adjustments and adding new messages.
“I feel that Miss L is growing with me,” she smiles.
Besides painting, Chiang is also keen on trying out a variety of media of art, including sculpture and pottery. She held a joint pottery exhibition in 2013, displaying three-dimensional ‘Miss L’ works.
“I’ve always been very ‘greedy’ in terms of art and wanted to experiment. I normally come up with an idea first, and then decide which medium could achieve the best result. Each medium has its own features. Doing pottery art has a lot of constraints, you have to consider the physical properties of the materials and the firing process. But for plane art, there can be more blue sky thinking and creating out of nothing,” Chiang explains.
The uplifting power of art education
Chiang graduated from the National Taiwan Normal University in 2004 (BFA) and then began a career teaching visual art in Macau, before going on to complete an MA in Visual Art at the University of the Arts London in 2016. Having received art education in these three places, Chiang tries to absorb the best of all cultures.
“When I was in middle school in Macau more than a decade ago, art was not seen as a very important subject. But when I went to university in Taiwan, I was surprised to find a huge difference. In Taiwan, art is regarded as a crucial component of life. Even if you’re not going to be an artist, the education you receive still leaves a positive impact on you,” Chiang recalls.
As for her experience in the UK, what impressed her the most was the great encouragement for creativity.
“Unlike Taiwan, which first builds up the skillset of students, the UK attaches the most importance to creative ideas. Skills are never a big concern. As long as you have a good idea, the skill part can receive assistance from technicians,” Chiang says.
After taking up a teaching position in a local middle school, she also began to adopt this method and encourages students to give full play to their originality.
Chiang adds that things have improved significantly in Macau over the years, with formal teaching framework for art subjects formulated by the Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) and diverse opportunities of study and exchange offered by the schools and the government.
“For the next step, I hope art education can reach out to more people. It’s not just for students, but also their parents, and the wider public. Art has an uplifting power, and I hope more people can have access to it,” she says.
