HONG KONG.- Galerie du Monde presents, Fong Chung-Ray – A Retrospective, showcasing 33 important works from 1965 to the present in Hong Kong. Fong was a member of the Fifth Moon Group, and is a leading figure in the modernization of traditional Chinese ink. The retrospective traces the complete trajectory of Fong’s creative practice and the expansive scope of his historical periods. Fong Chung-Ray – A Retrospective showcases the distinct periods of a great leader in Chinese abstraction. The exhibition is on view from May 7 – June 10, 2015.
Breaking from Tradition
Over six breathtaking decades Fong has demonstrated a sustained dedication to abstraction, stemming from his pioneering undertakings in his early career. In the 1950s, the centuries old philosophy of natural landscape copy practice continued to dominate Chinese ink painting discourse. Fongand his contemporaries strived to deviate from the burden of China’s history, founding the Four Seas Artists Association and leading artistic innovation of the period. Rooted in traditional painting teachings, the artists expanded the scope of Chinese paintings into the practice of abstraction. In 1961, Liu Kuo-sung invited Fong to join the seminal Fifth Moon Group, leaving an indelible impression on the course of Chinese contemporary art. From 1964 to 1975, Fong ceased to represent the ephemeral world in his painting, instead pursuing his inner reality, an essence that has since defined contemporary Taiwanese art.
Innovation in Medium
Innovation continues to be central to Fong’s artistic practice. By 1966 Fong had developed new mixed media textures, using a printer’s brayer roll, acrylic and ink that have become a characteristic trait of his work. Upon emigrating to America in 1975, Fong entered a new period focusing intently on texture and new mediums creating a new body of collage works in the 1980s. Discovering new effects of paint and ink whilst creating textures with levels of viscosity, by 1990 he was also experimenting with layering acrylic on plastic film and transferring to the canvas as the starting point of his creation. Acrylic collages afforded greater freedom to experiment with color, layers and patterns, allowing Fong to pursue constant innovation.
Meditative Practices
Fong Chung-Ray – A Retrospective will include the newest works by Fong, which have not been exhibited to the public. Fong’s study of Buddhist teachings appear in the oeuvre from his recent years, reconciling the philosophy that metaphysical existence is nothing more than a fleeting disillusion. By contrast, a constant reality lies beneath the surface of the world and is yet to be explored by individuals through meditation, which expresses itself in the form of artistic practice in Fong’s case. Scholar Mark Dean Johnson has hailed the artist’s newest works as “among his most powerful”, stating that the recent large format painting 14-37 as “both philosophically engaging and represents a great pinnacle…is a high point in the development of Chinese abstraction” .
Galerie du Monde presents a complete documentation of Fong’s long creative career and an important historical exhibition of modern Chinese abstraction. Fong Chung-Ray – A Retrospective is a poetic mirror of the pivotal developments in painting from China, inviting the audience to contemplate the state of peace art has brought Fong.
Originally from Henan, China Fong Chung Ray’s early life was impacted by the Sino Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. Following his move to Taiwan as a Navy officer in 1949, he joined Fu Hsing Kang College – the Naval Defense University – and majored in art in 1952. In 1961, he was invited to join the influential Fifth Moon Art Group – a series of pioneering annual exhibitions in Taipei. During this period, in addition to frequent exhibitions in Taipei and Hong Kong, Fong’s work was exhibited internationally in Paris (1963), Rome (1965), Sao Paulo (1959, 1963), Sydney (1963, 1964), several countries in Africa (1963), throughout Southeast Asia (1965) and in New York’s Parrish Museum (1963) – and he was recognized as among the most creative painters in Taiwan. At the age of forty in 1975, Fong moved to the United States to enhance the educational opportunities for his three children. He continued to mature as an artist over the next forty years while simultaneously working as an art director at various TV stations. In 1978, Fong began a long-term collaborative relationship with the Triangle Gallery and later Allrich Gallery in 1992, both respected spaces for abstract art in San Francisco. Meanwhile, his artworks made minor appearances in Asia, with a few exceptions including the 1984 exhibition at Beijing’s China Art Museum titled “Associated Art Exhibition of Six Artists from Taiwan”. His role in the art discourse in the greater China region is best illustrated at the upcoming retrospective with works spanning his whole artistic career.
