Printmaking and Art for Everyone

Veteran artist Liao Hsiou-ping is the guiding hand behind a rejuvenation in Chinese printmaking. He has taken part in several international shows and held solo shows both within Taiwan and abroad. Liao's works have been collected by museums around the world, and the National History Museum in Taipei recently organized an exhibition of works he has completed over the past 20 years.

Since it involves the use of processed blocks and plates, printmaking is known as an "indirect" art form. Liao in fact started out in a "direct" art form, oil painting, in Taiwan at first and later in Japan, and it was only after he went to Paris that he found his own personal style and medium.

The Paris art world is the most active in the world, and because of its size and influence, it affects the entire population of the city. When Liao first arrived, his oil paintings won several prizes. The works of well-known artists in galleries and museums made him a little nervous, however. "But it is no use being afraid, and I decided to find my own road to follow," Liao recalls. He began to realize that for a work to succeed, it must have something of the artist in it to make people notice and remember. One should not merely copy other people.

His art teacher made him aware of the problem. "Why do Asians come such a long way to study our painting styles? Why don't you paint your own things?" the teacher asked. Liao admitted: "My style had become rigid. The lines should have flowed and not been static. To throw off the fetters of my old viewpoint, I decided to put all my energy into printmaking. I wanted to print my own `Chinese' things," he said.

To find his new direction, he went to the Oriental Art Museum in Paris and began to study designs of Chinese bronzes and pottery. But he also thought back to his childhood when he played at the Lungshan Temple in Taipei. The ancient architecture, people praying, the wall murals and observance of rituals... all these things found their way in to his work. As he participated in print shows around Europe he began to gain recognition, and a few museums began to collect his work.

In 1968, student unrest broke out in France, and the art world was not unaffected. When the Miami Museum of Modern Art invited Liao to put on a show of his oils and prints, he decided to move to the U.S. Liao considers that the New York environment, to which he was next exposed, transformed his style. "France has an old cultural tradition and there is a strong scholarly atmosphere. The U.S. is a new country, a society that is free, open, industrialized, and mechanized. The living environment is different, so naturally my works have a different style. In Paris my works were more complex, colors were richer, and on the whole the works were more decorative. In New York my work was simplified and symbolic; it was cleaner, crisper and more systematic."

In 1973 Liao was invited by his alma mater, the National Taiwan Normal University to teach modern printmaking techniques and theory. For the next three years, he had a busy schedule, working day and night teaching, lecturing, and promoting art. Even his summers were filled lecturing at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and giving lectures to elementary and high school art teachers. He felt that only by teaching all the time could he make any progress. "Because I had a lot of trouble learning the printmaking process I wanted to help my students save some time. For instance, it took me three months to learn that a roller could print seven colors at a time. I just showed my students how it was done." He is not afraid of divulging secrets because he believes "in art you still need to rely on your brain for expression. It is not just a matter of technique."

Most people think that because many prints can be made from one plate or block, the artistic value of prints is less than that of other art forms. Liao Hsiou-ping disagrees. "You can't say that because 10 prints have been made, the artistic value of each is one-tenth."

Because prints can be reproduced their cost is relatively low and they are more accessible to the public. This gives printmaking its distinct advantage. "The important thing is to allow people to see works with their own eyes. They then don't have to listen to any unnecessary comments or criticism but can come into contact with the work directly and really discover its power." For Liao Hsiou-ping, this is the essence of printmaking, and of art as a whole.

[Picture Caption]

1) A 1970 piece done in New York, which expresses the harmony of man and the universe. 2) Liao Hsiou-ping. 3)&4) In these two pieces completed in Paris, Liao recalls his childhood spent playing around the Lungshan Temple.

1) "Still Life". 2) "Late Fall Morning". 3) This work symbolizes mechanized, regulated society. The area left untouched is inspired by Chinese ink painting, being a place where the eye can rest.

Liao Hsiou-ping.

In these two pieces completed in Paris, Liao recalls his childhood spent playing around the Lungshan Temple.

In these two pieces completed in Paris, Liao recalls his childhood spent playing around the Lungshan Temple.

"Still Life".

"Late Fall Morning".

This work symbolizes mechanized, regulated society. The area left untouched is inspired by Chinese ink painting, being a place where the eye can rest.