大趨勢畫廊 Main Trend Gallery

About Work
About Artist
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About Work

[Nirvana](1983) features an erected round wooden chopping board with nine nails arranged in a square-shaped formation at its center. A rectangular iron plate is installed at the bottom as the stabilizing base. Chen preserved the traces of long-term use of this chopping board. In addition to the distortion of the circular body over time, the surface of this chopping board is rife with stains and cracks. Chen named this work [Nirvana], a title associated with Buddhist meditation.

A circle is a shape having neither beginning nor end, which is regarded as a symbol of the endless cycle of personal reincarnations. The nails in a square-shaped formation at the center of the chopping board suggest order and stability. It seems that Chen tried to strike a balance in such a cycle. This work also implies his quest for a state of freedom from all suffering, expecting to achieve enlightenment, relief, and autonomy, and to reach nirvana that transcends life, death, and the mundane world.

more Chen Ting-Shih｜Pure Vastness

About Artist

Chen Ting-Shih

陳庭詩

Chen Ting-Shih is closely associated with the development of abstract art in Taiwan, seeking to integrate Eastern spirituality into modern forms. From abstract prints to three-dimensional iron sculptures, he worked tirelessly throughout his life, making him one of the most important artists in the history of modern art in Taiwan.

2002

Passed away in Taichung, Taiwan

1965

Joined the “Fifth Moon Group”

1958

Co-founded the Modern Graphic Art Association

1948

Working at the Taiwan Provincial Library in Taipei (Today Taiwan branch of National Central Library)

1915

Born in Fukien Province, China

MAIN TREND EXHIBITIONS

2024

【Pure Vastness】 Chen Ting-Shih Art Exhibition

2011

【The Art of Welding】 Chen Ting-Shih 、Hsiung Ping-Ming 、Lee Tsai-Chien 、Huang Ming-Che 、Dechun Wu Group Exhibition

SOLO EXHIBITION

2005

Asking the Heaven: Chen Ting-Shih Memorial Exhibition, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

2002

Chen Ting-Shih (1915-2002): Sound of Rarity, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

1999

Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Kuo Mu Sheng Foundation Art Center, Taipei, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Iron Sculpture Exhibition, Capital Art Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1998

Dialogue between the Iron Sculpture of Chen Ting-Shih and Modern Poetry, Kuo Mu Sheng Foundation Art Center, Taipei, Taiwan

1997

Chen Ting-Shih Painting, Calligraphy, Print and Iron Sculpture Exhibition, Taichung Cultural Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1995

Chen Ting-Shih Iron Sculpture Exhibition, Dimensions Art Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

1994

Chen Ting-Shih 1994 Solo Exhibition, Capital Art Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1993

Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Kaohsiung Cultural Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
A Retrospective: Chen Ting-Shih at the Age of Eighty, Taiwan Museum of Art, Taichung, Taiwan

1992

Chen Ting-Shih Sculpture Exhibition, New Phase Space, Tainan, Taiwan
Echo of a Poet – Chen Ting-Shih Solo Exhibition, Hsiung Hsih Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan

1991

Chen Ting-Shih Color Painting Exhibition, Taichung Cultural Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1990

Chen Ting-Shih Color Painting, Calligraphy and Sculpture Exhibition, Kaohsiung Cultural Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Door Art Gallery, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Poetry, Painting and Sculpture Exhibition, Taichung County Cultural Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1988

Chen Ting-Shih Painting Exhibition, Imperial Study Gallery, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Color Painting Exhibition, Taichung Cultural Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1987

Chen Ting-Shih Painting and Sculpture Exhibition, Taipei Art Guild, Taipei, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Retrospective Exhibition, Kaohsiung Cultural Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Taichung Cultural Center, Taichung, Taiwan

1985

Chen Ting-Shih Print Exhibition, Kaohsiung Cultural Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Chen Ting-Shih Iron Sculpture Exhibition, Dimensions Art Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

1983

Chen Ting-Shih Print Exhibition, National Museum of History, Taipei, Taiwan

1981

Chen Ting-Shih Print and Painting Exhibition, Ming Men Gallery, Taichung, Taiwan

1980

Chen Ting-Shih Print and Painting Exhibition, Taipei Art Guild, Taipei, Taiwan

1975

Chen Ting-Shih Print and Painting Exhibition, Taipei Art Guild, Taipei, Taiwan

1974

Chen Ting-Shih Print and Painting Exhibition, Hung-Lin Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan

1973

Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Chinese Information Service, New York, USA
Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, San Diego, USA

1971

The 1st Painting Exhibition of Chen Ting-Shih, Le Land Art House, Taipei, Taiwan

1970

Iron Sculpture Traveling Exhibition, Tien Educational Center, Taipei, Taiwan / USIS Taichung, Taichung, Taiwan / Art Center of Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan / Taiwan News Art Gallery, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

1968

Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Luz Gallery, Manila, Philippine
Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Grossley Gallery, Melbourne, Australia

1966

Chen Ting-Shih Exhibition, Chinese Language Studies Administered by Sandford University, Taipei, Taiwan