Over large area of color shapes, simplified outlines provide viewers with brief glimpses of everyday objects and sceneries; artist Kuo Hung-Kun uses his pen and brush to reveals a slice of his personal memory of the city and its life, memory that was accumulated over time. Between the mixture of the traditional and modern objects, Kuo Hung Kun displays the legacy of Taipei in its golden ages, as well as in its modern spirit.

Kuo uses geometric shapes to create the skyline of the city, its buildings and the passing of day and night; outlining the horizons of Gongguan, the part of Taipei where Kuo was born and grew up. Kuo uses the modern cityscape to reminiscent those unique childhood memories which resides within. As time pass, the city developed and expanded with this development sees changes. Using his personal experience Kuo depicts the area, reflecting on the layering of the traditional and the modern. At the same time these conflicts in development also represents the culture identity of the city, the transformation of life, the society and its structure. Kuo takes us on a tour of the streets and alleys of the neighborhood highlighting little details for the viewers.

About the Artist:

Kuo Hung Kun, born 1967 in Taipei, Graduated from the Accademia di Belle Arti of Rome, Italy, in 1996, returned to Taipei in 2000 where he currently lives and works. Kuo constantly observe and study the culture of Taiwan, developing his personal perspective of Taiwan as an island, its culture and social components. In this exhibition the main concept of his work revolve around the mixture of past and modern, the entanglement of memories and the change of culture over time. On display in VT are 14 works of paintings and 3 works of mixed media installation. Through these works the audience can catch a glimpse of Kuo’s desire to return to a simpler way of life, the nostalgia for the country and its traditional culture, looking at the possibilities of city life from the height of art.

Image: © Kuo Hung Kun, VT Art Salon