臺南美術史

Liao Chi-Chun, Street, the 2nd Taiten (Taiwan Art Exhibition), 1928.

Street by Liao Chi-Chun was selected into the 2nd Taiten (Taiwan Art Exhibition). The three-way junction in the image is the modern-day intersection of Qingnian Road and Minquan Road in Tainan City. During the period of Japanese rule, the government built urban infrastructure, including road expansion and implementation of the sewage system, putting into the practice of the idea and system of modern urban planning. Consequently, Liao often included modern facilities such as utility pole and street block in paintings, creating a recurring subject in his works featured in the Taiten. Meanwhile, he adopted the perspective to further extend the line of vision, which is also one of the characteristics that renders this work extremely modern. Liao utilized linear perspective to express the depth of the winding street, whereas the clusters of houses guide the spectator’s line of sight toward the distant background, highlighting the density of buildings in the street block. On the other hand, the bustling scene in the foreground comprising figures either carrying a shoulder pole or looking at the bulletin board also conveys an everyday scene in the streets of Tainan. Among the painters who favored the subject of Tainan’s landscape and were selected into the Taiten, Liao was the most prolific in this regard, and had painted the traditional market, parks, city gates, streets, etc. From the 1st to the 5th Taiten, Liao’s paintings had mostly and steadfastly shown the style of plein-air painting.

References:
Liu, Chi-Yu and Lee Shu-Chu. “Street.” Missing Pieces – Taifuten Historical Archives. https://taifuten.com/oblect/街頭/#squelch-taas-toggle-shortcode-content-2 (viewed on 2023.11.5)
Lee, Shu-Pei. “A Study of Landscapes of Tainan in the Catalogues of the Taiten and the Futen during the Period of Japanese Rule.” The 2022 NCAF Visual Arts Grant for Study and Research – 2nd Phase, 2023.

Liao Chi-Chun
Liao Chi-Chun (1902-1976) was born in Fengyuan, Taichung. In 1923, he was accepted into the Department of Normal Education at Tokyo Fine Arts School (now Tokyo University of the Arts), where he was mentored by Tanabe Itaru (田邊至, 1887-1968) and received solid foundational training in sketch drawing. At that time, Fauvism and Cubism had already become increasingly well-known due to the advocacy of private art groups, such as the “Nika Association” (二科會) and “Sanka” (三科), through which Liao learned about these avant-garde art trends. In 1925, he co-founded the “Chi-Yang (Red Sun) Western-style Painting Society” (赤陽洋畫會) with Chen Cheng-Po (陳澄波, 1895-1947) and Yen Sui-Long (顏水龍, 1903-1997), which later merged with the “Chi-Hsing (Seven Stars) Painting Group” (七星畫壇) in northern Taiwan and became the “Chi-Dao (Red Island) Society” (赤島社). After graduating, Liao settled down and began teaching in Tainan from 1927 to 1936. He was deeply influenced by Tainan’s social milieu and ambiance, and eventually became the artist selected for the Taiten and the Futen with the most landscapes featuring Tainan’s scenery. During Umehara Ryuzaburo’s (梅原龍三郎, 1888-1986) several visits to Taiwan after 1933 for tourism and serving as a juror, Liao was the one who received Umehara and accompanied him on painting trips to Tainan, during which he created a few works featuring the Confucius Temple with similar composition. In 1934, Liao again co-founded the “Tai-Yang Art Association” (臺陽美術協會) with Chen Cheng-Po and Yen Shui-Long. Later, Liao moved to Taipei in 1947 to teach at Taiwan Provincial Teachers College (now National Taiwan Normal University). It was during this period that he established the Yunhe Studio (雲和畫室) on Yunhe Street near his residence. The founding members of the “Fifth Moon Art Group” (五月畫會), which was founded in 1957 with Liao’s encouragement, had studied painting with Liao at this very art studio.

Reference
Lin, Mun-Lee (ed.). The Everlasting Bloom: Rediscovering Taiwanese Modern Art. Taipei City: Museum of National Taipei University of Education, 2021.