The Inspiration Art Group International Sponsors Artist in Residence – Chia Hui
The artist from Taiwan first connected with curator Bibiana Huang Matheis during a joint artist-in-residency at the Fresh Winds Art Biennale in Iceland. That was before the pandemic. The artists stayed in touch through this difficult time with the hope of eventually reconnecting. In August 2022, Chia Hui Luo was finally able to realize her long planned first trip to the USA. After another artist residency in Connecticut, she was hosted by Bibiana for a joint performance project as part of the Inspiration Art Group International’s environmental-existentialist ‘Address Earth’ exhibition at the Ottinger Room Art Gallery in the Library of Croton-On-Hudson, New York.
Chia Hui Luo is a painter and performance artist who delves into both abstract art and installations. She is a 2022 Fine Art PhD candidate at Tainan National University of the Arts, and a lecturer at Tainan University of Technology. Upon her return home, after this residency, she will defend her thesis. Prior to her art studies, Chia majored in English and Japanese, languages in which she is fluent. Her art activities have taken her around the world with residencies in Malaysia, China, Japan, and Iceland. She explains her approach to art, “I want to present the connection between people to people, and people to environment, and establish the intrinsic connection and unity.”
Her first visit to the US brought her to New England and the bordering Hudson Valley of New York. As an Asian urban dweller, she was deeply impressed by the natural beauty of the region, the scenery, clean air, wildlife and rich forests. In Connecticut she even saw a bear, which impressed her greatly. The trip also opened her to new perspectives. She reported, “In the US, I am able to open my mind. I am willing to receive, to try. I feel more restricted at home, in part due to work and school obligations. Here, I am able to focus on art and the people I meet. I find the people here to be generous, nice and willing to talk.”
Chia Hui Luo often utilizes local materials for her installations. In keeping with the curator’s concept, for this joint performance she created a fabric sculpture to represent melting glaciers, consisting of two towers made of discarded cloth donated by members of the art group. For five days the artists worked long hours tirelessly to cut, tie and assemble stripes of cloth into small “glacier” towers.
On Saturday, August 13, 2002, the “Glacial Melting” performance took place at the gallery space of the Croton-On-Hudson Free Library before an audience of approximately 40 people, many of them fellow artists and members of the art group. The ‘Address Earth’ exhibition featured two-dimensional artworks by Bridget Pavalow, Gretchen Abene, Jeanette Rodriguez, Michael Rothman, Suprina , Susan Bores, Tanya Kukucka and Tilly Strauss.
The event and exhibition opened with an extensive solo piano performance by renowned composer, arranger and performing musician and Grammy award winner Michael Abene. Chia Hui Luo then set up her white and blue fabric “glacier” sculptures on stage. Curator Bibiana Huang Matheis accompanied her on piano and mbira, a percussive African thumb-piano, creating a dramatic soundtrack to the expressive performance, as Chia slowly stripped away layers of the symbolic melting of the world’s glaciers. The combined artistry made a powerful statement, both environmentally and artistically. As Chia positioned herself behind her sculptures, gracefully removing the layers of fabric as in a dance, Bibiana accentuated each movement with startingly emotive instrumentation.
The duo managed to evoke deep sympathetic feelings among the audience, with both musical tension and intense, graceful movements by Chia as the sculpture was slowly stripped, exposing the calamity of climate change. The duo managed to express agitative pain and anguish for the earth in a way that was at once electrifying and disturbing. The poignant performance was over in less than ten minutes, short in duration but deep in emotional impact. The long preparation and hard work led to a resoundingly strong artistic success.
Chia shared her own perspective about her experience:
“Participating as an Artist-in-residence at the Address Earth Art Expo of Inspiration Art Group International was a wonderful experience for me. I noticed that there are similarities between artists in New York and Tainan, Taiwan. Most of the artists choose to live on the outskirts of the city, and they participate in various kinds of exhibitions. Their vigorous activities have revitalized both the urban and the suburbs/rural regions. In this way, the uncertainty and instability of life are also reflected in their artistic work.
Through this journey, I especially wanted to know how local artists carried out their activities. All I have experienced so far has given me a deep impression. It is fantastic that Bibiana organizes and connects like-minded artists to form a mutual support group along the Hudson River Valley in New York. I found that most of them are females and the group has become a very special presence in this area. Each member is energetic and active in various creative activities, such as painting, photography, printmaking, installation, video, performance, etc., showing their talents in one show after another. More importantly, those artists are willing to share personal resources. They also carry out exhibitions and artist-in-residence events around the world, which makes the future exciting and anticipating pages about to unfold, so rich and dynamic. In addition, it is always interesting to observe how artists create their artworks because materials influence how artists make their work and how viewers perceive it. Therefore, being able to see several local artists’ studios and some historical famous artworks in person is awesome.
I was deeply inspired, not only by the artists’ activities but also by the scenery of the suburbs and rural regions. There is beauty around every corner. In rural areas, mountains and woods are covered with green trees, under a blue sky with dramatic clouds. Lakes are surrounded by tree-covered hillsides. The environmental background is layers of green colors. Though most people say this summer is the hottest and driest one ever; however, compared to the stuffy, humid, and hot summer in Taiwan, the climate here is heaven for me. I was glad that I have a chance to take a glance at New York City, too. The architectures, both new and old, have a lasting impact on my perceived memory of the place. The city is so charming, no wonder it attracts so many artists from all over the world.
Last but not least, I think no matter how an artist’s talent is, the attitude of the organizer always plays an essential role and influences artists’ creativity. Bibiana supported me with all her resources generously and arranged every possibility for me. Her music helped boost the power of my performance and bring me a new and successful chapter to present my artwork in New York. I am very grateful.”
After the performance, Chia created another artwork in the “Glacial Melting” series, to be exhibited in additional shows of ‘Address Earth’, coming up at the Hudson Valley Museum of Contemporary Art in September 1 to Oct. 30, 2022.
Frank Matheis, Writer
Frank Matheis is a music, arts and culture writer and a contributing writer to the Inspiration Art Group International. His latest project was the book ‘Sweet Bitter Blues’ co-written with National Heritage Fellow Phil Wiggins (University Press of Mississippi, 2020). His column ‘In Other Words’ features member artists in all disciplines and general arts essays. He is also a contributing writer to Living Blues magazine (Center for Southern Culture Studies) and the publisher/editor of thecountryblues.com. Frank was formerly an award-winning radio and music producer whose radio documentaries were heard on three continents in two languages. He is also a published photographer, curator and video producer.