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Charwei Tsai
Thoughtforms
Curator : Veeranganakumari Solanki
THE GUILD MUMBAI
October 18 – November 2, 2011
The Guild Art Gallery is pleased to present
Thoughtforms the first solo exhibition of Charwei Tsai previewing
on Monday, October 17, 2011.
“Thoughtforms
are manifestations of the mind’s energy that formulate and emanate
themselves by means of mantras, sound vibrations and
philosophy. Every thought is centred on a form and a form around a
thought. These Thoughtforms are living forces, which are
structured, materialised and bound through the mind of their creator.
Charwei Tsai’s art practice is strongly affiliated with
Thoughtforms, the Buddhist notion of impermanence and the
cyclical nature of human existence. Tsai’s art reflects and conserves
her Thoughtforms, which in turn are platforms for viewers’
reflections and perceptions.
The Thoughtforms in this exhibition manifest
themselves through the artist’s reflections on – politics with
reference to alienation; ceremonies with reference to reversal cycles;
religion in conjunction with harmony in diversity; society and it’s
effect on individuals with reference to Kafka; love and its synonymous
nature with loneliness and manipulation; light with reference to
accidental beauty; and growth through the enlightenment of the
Heart Sutra – a mantra that is a recurring motif in Tsai’s work.
Thoughtforms
and the Heart Sutra imply the psychology of
un-minding the mind to equate emptiness with enlightenment. The text
Tsai implements in her work from mantras to quotes and
political statements are an extension of her strong belief in the
transient nature of the universe.
Tsai’s Thoughtforms and literary affinity
continuously grow in her biannual journal publications –
Lovely Daze”
-
Veeranaganakumari Solanki
Charwei Tsai was born in Taiwan (1980) and presently
lives and works in Taipei and Paris. In addition to her art practice,
Tsai publishes, designs and edits Lovely Daze, a curatorial journal
published twice a year. Tsai graduated from the Rhode Island School of
Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Industrial Design and Art &
Architectural History (2002) and completed the postgraduate research
program at L’École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris
(2010). She has had solo exhibitions in Taipei, Paris, Sydney, Tokyo,
Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Bogotá, and her projects have been
included in various international exhibitions, including the inaugural
Singapore Biennale (2006), Thermocline of Art: New Asian Waves at the
ZKM Center of Art and Media, Karlsruhe (2007), Traces du Sacré at the
Centre Pompidou, Paris (2008), the 6th Asia Pacific Triennial (2009),
and Taiwan Calling at the Ludwig Museum, Budapest (2010). Tsai is also
a participating artist in the Yokohama Triennale and the Ruhrtriennale
(both in 2011).
Thoughtforms
On politics...
Work Title: Etrangere II
Media: Hand-inscribed photograph
Dimension: 112 x 76 cms
Edition: 2/6
Year: 2007
Concept: I wrote numbers from my Taiwanese passport
onto alien-like octopus.
On ceremony...
Work Title: Baptism
Media: Video
Edition: 4/5
Duration: 2min30sec
Year: 2009
Concept: A reverse baptism ceremony performed where a
child cleanses her mother's hands at a Baptismal font in a church in
Paris.
On religion...
Work Title: Ah!
Media: HD Digital Video
Edition: 5/5
Duration: 5min
Date: 2011
Credit: Commissioned by The Esplanade, Singapore
Sound by: Zai Tang
Concept: “Ah!” is a video created originally for a
public space, which is a tunnel leading from a metro station to the
national theatre in Singapore for the occasion of the “Tapestry of
Sacred Music” Festival. The work celebrates the religious diversity
and harmony in Singapore by using a range of voices from people of
various backgrounds chanting “Ah”. “Ah” is a sacred sound that many
major religions in Singapore and around the world embrace, e.g.:
“A-llah “, “A-men”, “A-mitabah”, “A-lleluia”, and “A-OM”. The work
aspires to connect a sense of inner peace that is within us all.
On society...
Work Title: “Germany Has Declared War on Russia.
Swimming in the Afternoon.” Kafka – diary, 1914
Media: Video
Edition: 4/5
Date: 2007
Concept: Kafka’s unveils a dilemma between the
collective verses individual action. Often times while listening to
the news or reading the paper, we feel very strongly about the
injustices happening around the world. On the other hand, even after
such moments, our everyday life continues the way it has always been
as if nothing had happened.
In this video, I wrote Kafka’s quote on my hand as a
reminder of the mixed feelings of defeat and confidence on an
individual’s effect on the society and pre-existing systems. The video
is projected onto a table where the viewer would put his/her hand on
top of my projected hand. It is as if I am writing the quote like a
note of reminder on their hand. Then, as they walk away, the writing
fades as well.
On love...
Work Title: Bonsai Series I ~ XI (series of 9)
Dimension: 26x31 cms each
Media: Hand inscribed on lithographs
Date: 2011
Concept: Lyrics of love songs that I grew up listening
to in Taiwan about loneliness in love are written onto bonsais, which
are trees that are manipulated and dwarfed for a sense of beauty.
On light...
Work Title: Gone Beyond (a series of 7)
Media: Hand inscribed on black and white Ink-jet prints
Dimensions: 98x120cms
Year: 2011
Concept: Gone Beyond (2011) is continuation of a series
of black and white photographs where I write the mantra from the end
of the Heart Sutra onto light diffusions captured by a camera with a
broken lens. In religious ceremonies, the mantra is recited orally or
presented visually in mandalas as an aid to move forward, to be freed
from attachments. The accidental beauty created by a broken machine
relieves a need to control perceptions.
On growth...
Work Title: Champa Mantra
Media: Heart Sutra inscribed with permanent Chinese ink
on Champa tree
Dimensions: Growing
Year: 2011 |
