Preface from the Curator

With this year being the 50th anniversary of National Chin-Yi University of Technology, the National Chin-Yi University of Technology Art Center held an exhibition titled “Colored Ink Paintings of Five Taiwanese Artists” to commemorate the university founders, General Chang Ming, and his spouse Wang Kuo-hsiu, for their pioneering spirit and efforts in education. The exhibition will feature paintings by notable contemporary artists, including Chang Hsiu-yen, Lin Yung-fa, Lee Cheng-ming, Taile Cheng, and Chuang Lien-tung. The artists, whose connotations of works are deeply rooted in Eastern aesthetic philosophy, are unique in their visual aesthetics. Each of the works featured at the joint exhibition has reached a state of excellence in terms of colored ink and brushwork, with the richness of the masters being expressed thoroughly.

The French writer, Gustave Flaubert, once said: "Science and art break up at the foot of the mountain, and meet at the top of the mountain." Since the establishment of the National Chin-Yin University of Technology half a century ago, its scientific and technological education has progressed with the times and held high standards of excellence. At the same time, NCUT’s president, Dr. Chen Wen-Yuan, has a vision for the university as a place that maintains a deep concern for the cultivation and promotion of the humanities with the goal of cultivating high-quality students who combine professional knowledge, humanistic vision, concern for the welfare of society, and an international perspective. This is why he has established the art center on campus, which offers students and faculty a place for dialogue regarding the connections between the arts and sciences. Dr. Chen’s vision is at once inspirational and practical, and he shares Flaubert’s perspective of the mutually supportive nature of the sciences and the arts.

The style of the Exhibition of Five Taiwanese Color Ink Painters is different from the Western painting exhibitions organized by the Art Center in the past. Through showcasing works of the internationally respected Taiwanese colored ink painters, it is hoped that this joint exhibition will provide students and faculty of NCUT with another kind of oriental visual experience and artistic nourishment, and that it will congratulate the university on its 50th anniversary and bring success and prosperity.

 Director of the Art Center of National Chin-Yi University of Technology

Chen, Xian-Lian