New Trend of Minimal Art---Paintings of Chang Chih-cheng

The rapid development of modern technology and society has a great impact on the art field. Contemporary artists are tirelessly pursuing rich form, materials and means of artistic expression. Under such a trend, graphic artists are perplexed by limitation of means of graphic artistic expression.

The birth of contemporary art, however, does not mean the end of graphic art but that the artists are having a fierce battle with themselves. Graphic painting is difficult in expression due to lack of materials. Compared with other ways of creation like video, graphic art seems to be restrained in use of materials. It mainly inherits the tradition and abides by the classic model of creation in the contemporary complex and changing context. Dilute ornate decoration and technical support of introduction and bring most pure thinking and painter's inner world in front of the audience with the most common canvas. This has become permanent in graphic arts.

First works of Chang Chih-cheng I know is his "bottle" series. The monochrome pictures and delicate performance deeply attracted my eyes. The material beauty called in the inner world of the artist is showed incisively and vividly through the pictures and every vase appears to have its character.

I first visited Chang Chih-cheng in his studio in Beijing Dashanzi 798 Art District when he was focusing on research of colors. He mixed a variety of pigments together to make a compound color. He changed the early-drifted color into bright colors with production method similar to Western classical paintings, and obviously revealed the trace of time through dipping with dry and wet brushes.