90s Taiwanese artist Chen Weiting uses painting, sculpture, and poetry to express his reflections on life. His latest solo exhibition “I Don’t Want to Change You” at Gallery Ascend in Hong Kong presents a poetic world through romantic poetry and innocent cartoon characters, guiding the audience to rediscover childhood and fragments of life in this atmosphere.
The exhibition’s title “I don’t want to change you 我不想改變你” comes from Damien Rice’s song of the same name, which is about the active and passive aspects of relationships, closely related to the core values of the exhibition. The artist believes that everything is neutral, without distinction between good and bad, and the definition of all things actually comes from personal perspectives. Therefore, each creation is a very personal and intimate feeling for him.
Chen Weiting’s works are mostly acrylic paint pieces. He uses a lot of childhood memories and symbolic characters in his creations, such as teddy bears, antique toys, intuitive graffiti, amusement park costume characters, and more. The characters in his paintings are full of childlike innocence, some smiling, some with a sad expression, and some even shedding tears. Whether they cry because they are sad or because they are moved and grateful, the artist does not clearly explain, leaving it to the audience to find the emotional resonance in the artwork.
During his college years, Chen Weiting majored in Chinese literature and began writing poetry. As a result, his works are often accompanied by poems that correspond visually, providing a complete sense of narrative. He believes that writing can blur the emotions he is facing, but intuitively awakens the innocence beneath the skin. Because he firmly believes that creation is a way to communicate with the world, he has always connected with the world through painting and poetry.
The exhibition works and matching poems do not define things, but provide viewers with a possibility of viewing from the perspective of the creators. Let us feel the innocence of the artists from these works!
Image source: instagram@chenweiting_art, instagram@galleryascend
Learn more: Gallery Ascend
