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Artist Tai contemplates society, universe with ‘Far off Journey’
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Some comment that artist Tai Xiangzhou is more famous abroad than at home as he tends to keep a low profile.
His collectors include Tesla boss Elon Musk and Xiaomi founder Lei Jun. In 2015, the Asian art department of the Art Institute of Chicago bought one of Tai’s paintings, the first purchase of a living artist’s work by the department since it was established 140 years ago.
His works have also been exhibited and collected by a group of famous museums around the world such as Seattle Art Museum, Brooklyn Museum and Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
“Far off Journey,” his solo exhibition at the BAO ROOM in Shanghai, is now on simultaneously with the show at Hunan Museum in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the archeological excavation of the Mawangdui Tomb of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220).
The Shanghai exhibition features a cluster of Tai’s ink-wash paintings, embodying his personal life experience, observations about society and macroscopic contemplation of the universe reflected by the Eastern spirit.
Born in 1968 in Yinchuan, northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Tai obtained his doctoral degree at Tsinghua University, focusing on topics of the origin, schema and philosophical concepts of ancient Chinese landscapes.
Tai began learning calligraphy and traditional ink-wash painting when he was very young. In 1996, he went for further studies in New Zealand, focusing on multimedia.
“At that time, I didn’t realize that I was about to step into the ‘right track of the future,’” Tai recalled.
During his campus days in New Zealand, he was fortunate to join the visual team of the epic film “The Lord of the Rings.”
“Working with (director) Peter Jackson was such a great help in my art career,” he noted. “I began to understand the Western visual esthetics. Perhaps that is why there is a camera feel in my works.”
Unlike many of his peers, he belongs to the pioneers of Chinese Internet professionals. In 2001, Tai returned to China and joined a big Internet company with a well-paid salary.
However, the “call of the art” deep in his heart never eased. In 2007, he switched careers and became a professional artist. His earlier works faithfully harmonize with traditional landscape paintings of the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Since 2013, he has further expanded his perspectives of art renderings into cosmology, astrology and how they interweave with the esthetics of painting.
Q: You mentioned Peter Jackson and his “The Lord of Rings.” What did you gain by working with him?
A: In Chinese traditional ink-wash paintings, we tend to “leave the emptiness” on the tableau. But from him, I learnt that the Western tableau emphasizes its completeness, a kind of space with different layers.
Q: Why did you quit the high-rewarding Internet career and go back for your doctoral degree at Tsinghua University?
A: As an Internet professional, it was just impossible for me to be away from any new knowledge and technology for three months. Such fast-paced work really drained me, and I desired another lifestyle. Also, I wanted to solve the question lingering in my mind for many years: Why does man draw?
Q: Chinese ink-wash painting, as a different art form, is not easily acceptable to Westerners. How did you make it?
A: Once the painting transcends the bondage of time, everyone can read it. Chinese culture with its own origins and characteristics should be reflected in a global context.
Q: Apart from your paintings, the exhibition also showcases some meteorites. Are they from your own collection?
A: Yes, I purchased my first meteorite in America in 2010. At that time, I was even unaware that it was a piece of meteorite, as I was merely drawn by its amazing texture. But gradually meteorites inspired me in my artworks as they were involved with the subject of time that could open the “door of future.”
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